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Why aren't women and men treated the same in Judaism?



Question: Why aren't women and men treated the same in Judaism?

Answer: In Torah, a woman has every obligation of a man, and a man every obligation of a woman.

Torah doesn't know of man and woman as separate beings. They are a single whole, whether they are cognizant of one another or not. Each act is performed once through a single body. A body that in our world may appear as two, but to the Torah is seen as one.

This is actually a statement of Rabbi Isaac Luria, the greatest of the kaballists. He explains that the man and woman are a single body--and that is how they are considered in halacha, as well. So, for example, a woman also puts on tefillin--only that she puts them on with her male body. If everything is working right, that should be her husband.


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By Tzvi Freeman   More articles...  |   RSS Listing of Newest Articles by this Author

Rabbi Tzvi Freeman heads Chabad.org's Ask The Rabbi team, and is a senior member of the Chabad.org editorial team. He is the author of a number of highly original renditions of Kabbalah and Chassidic teaching, including the universally acclaimed "Bringing Heaven Down to Earth." To order Tzvi's books click here.


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Latest Comments:
Posted: Oct 15, 2008
Does the world need men?
Interesting question.

In a world of cloned women, and no men, would the halachah change such that women would lay tefillin?

Or would laying tefillin become irrelevant?

Hard to say.
Posted By Maurice

Posted: Oct 15, 2008
Anonymous you did not read Rabbi Tzvi's remarks
Rabbi Tzvi said,

In Torah, a woman has every obligation of a man, and a man every obligation of a woman. Torah doesn't know of man and woman as separate beings. They are a single whole, whether they are cognizant of one another or not. Each act is performed once through a single body. A body that in our world may appear as two, but to the Torah is seen as one. This is actually a statement of Rabbi Isaac Luria, the greatest of the kaballists, who explains that the man and woman are a single body--and that is how they are considered in halacha, as well. So, for example, a woman also puts on tefillin--only that she puts them on with her male body. If everything is working right, that should be her husband.

So said Rabbi Tzvi. But as a widow with no husband, how does she "put on tefillin with her male body"? The remarks of Anonymous are not in consonance with Rabbi Tzvi's presentation. Let's hear what Rabbi Tzvi says
Posted By Charlotte

Posted: Oct 14, 2008
She puts tallis and tefillin on her male body
To Charlotte:

There is no need for you to "experience this mitzvah". The reason that women are not required to do so is that they do not need it. Men do need it, however.

Halacha states that men MUST wear tefilin. It does NOT state, "women are not allowed". This is a very common misconception, which should be stopped here.

Tradition does not "allow" women to wear Tefilin or a Talit, because they do not need it. By doing so anyway, a woman can literally take away a man's ability to be spiritual, himself. Then where are we? Surely, you do not believe that the world needs no men?!
Posted By Anonymous, FC, Colorado



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