Based on the
posuk “Morasha Kehillas Yaakov,” the Gemara teaches that it is forbidden for non-Jews to study Torah,
other than what is necessary for them to fulfill their
sheva mitzvos bnie noach (
seven Noahide laws), which are:
- Do not profane G‑d’s Oneness in any way.
- Do not curse your Creator.
- Do not murder.
- Do not eat a limb of a living animal.
- Do not steal.
- Harness and channel the human libido.
Incest, adultery, rape and homosexual relations are forbidden.
The family unit is the foundation of human society. Sexuality is the fountain of life and so nothing is more holy than the sexual act. So, too, when abused, nothing can be more debasing and destructive to the human being.
- Establish courts of law and ensure justice in our world.
With every small act of justice, we are restoring harmony to our world, synchronizing it with a supernal order. That is why we must keep the laws established by our government for the country’s stability and harmony.
In practice this allows one to study things which add to belief in Hashem and any works that expound on this (as belief in hashem is one of the seven mitzvos).
The source for this prohibition is from the understanding of word “Morasha”
As
“Morasha” is either understood to mean that the Torah is an exclusive inheritance of the Jews, or that it is “betrothed” (
m’orasa) to the Jews.
[1]
From another
posuk, “He has not done so for other nations, and they do not know His ordinances,” it is derived that a Jew is not allowed to
teach Torah to a gentile.
[2] (Although it would generally constitute
lifnei iver to cause the non-Jew to transgress
his prohibition to study, the prohibition to teach is necessary for circumstances in which
lifnei iver would not apply.
[3])
Poskim vary on which parts of Torah are included in this prohibition: Some hold that it doesn’t apply in practice or that it is only a stringency (
chumra) and not mandated, others hold that it only applies to the Oral Torah and not the Written Torah (as we find that the Sages translated the Written Torah into Greek for King Talmai),
[4] or that it applies to the secrets of Torah,
[5] while others hold that any study without in-depth analysis is not prohibited.
[6]
Yet, the consensus is to be stringent unless it is related to the
sheva mitzvos, and this is the Rebbe’s opinion, and in practice we follow the Rebbe’s opinion.
[7]
Studying for conversion
The Zohar mentions that one may not learn Torah with one who is not circumcised.
[8] This has ramifications for teaching a potential convert. While some
poskim give a blanket permit since the non-Jew isn’t learning to take the Torah from from the Jews rather to join Am Yisroel,
[9] others prohibit it due to the fact that he is not circumcised.
[10] In practice, one should be stringent, besides of course teaching him the actual laws that he must keep once he converts.
[11]
A non-Jewish student joined my Torah class. May I continue teaching?
The consensus of many
poskim is that the prohibition (on the teacher) only applies if one specifically
intends to teach the non-Jew and does not apply if one is teaching a class to Jews and a non-Jew decides to join as well. Therefore, one may advertise a class to the public and continue teaching even if a gentile enters, yet one should not specifically invite him to come (unless it’s a subject that he is allowed to learn).
[12]
Similarly, it is wrong to accept non-Jewish students to a Jewish school. This is aside from the concern that they will come to mingle and assimilate into the Jewish people without conversion.
[13]
[1] סנהדרין נ”ט ע”א.
[2] חגיגה י”ג ע”א.
[3] תוספות חגיגה י”ג ע”א ד”ה אין מוסרין.
[4] ראה שטמ”ק ספ”ב דכתובות ד”ה ולא.
[5] מאירי על חגיגה דף י”ג ע”א.
[6] מרומי השדה לנצי”ב על סנהדרין נ”ט ע”א (מדייק מהמילה ‘עוסק’), שו”ת מחנה חיים ח”א סי’ ז’.
[7] שו”ת אג”מ ח”ב סי’ קל”ב (ק”ו מהא דאסור ללמד לעבדו תורה – רמב”ם עבדים פ”ח הי”ח), שו”ת מנחת יצחק ח”ג סי’ צח, שו”ת שבט הלוי ח”ב סי’ נ, שו”ת מנחת אשר ח”ב סי’ נ”ז. וראה אג”ק רבינו חכ”ב ע’ קמב.
[8] זוהר ח”ג דף עג ע”א.
[9] ע”פ מאירי סנהדרין נ”ט ע”א ד”ה בן נח, מהרש”א שבת ל”א ע”א.
[10] ע”פ שו”ת צ”צ יו”ד סי’ ר’. ובנוגע שיטת הרבי יש התייחסויות שונות לזה, ראה לקו”ש חל”ה ע’ 67, שיחו”ק תשל”ד ח”ב ע’ 19-20, לקו”ש חי”ז ע’ 70. שו”ת אמרי יושר ח”ב סי’ ק”ל. וראה שו”ת השלוחים סוף סי’ ס”ד.
[11] ראה בכ”ז ס’ גירות כהלכתה (לרש”א שטרן שליט”א) פ”א ס”ו וס”ז. וראה שו”ת מנח”א ח”ד סי’ ס”ג וס”ד (שבזמנינו צריך ללמדו קודם איך להתפלל).
[12] ראה שו”ת אג”מ יו”ד ח”ב סי’ קלב. וראה שו”ת ציץ אליעזר חכ”א סי’ כה.
[13] ראה שו”ת מנחת יצחק ח”ג סי’ צח, ואג”ק חכ”ב ע’ קמב.
