#RabbinicLiterature

[princetonuniversitypress]

The modern reader, conditioned by the projection of today’s orthodox Jewish values back on antiquity and particularly on the rabbis, expects ancient rabbis to express sustained outrage and disapproval towards a place where nudity and licentiousness prevailed. It is easy to assume that ancient rabbis would offer detailed and strict decrees, dismissing the baths and prohibiting the crowds from attending. However, such judgments are not to be found. Instead, ancient rabbis enthusiastically patronized the bathhouse and shared its amenities and pleasures, just like all other groups during their era. Rabbinic literature supported by archaeological remains shows that Jews built bathhouses with no hesitation and rabbis frequented them with ease and comfort. Read more from author Yaron Z. Eliav.

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