Avodah Zarah 50: Not a Carpenter, Nor the Son of a Carpenter

Talking Talmud · Aug 7, 2025 · 17m

More on the Mercury idol - including stones that were removed from the idol, and were then prohibited. Plus, other idolatries -- more than one that compares the practices of idolatry with the dead, where benefit is prohibited. But stones weren't the Jewish approach in worship, so perhaps it shouldn't be a problem of benefit. Plus, a beraita that was too difficult to unpack -- with the claim that they needed a carpenter, the son of a carpenter to resolve it. Also, another beraita that needed unpacking (about removing worms from a tree, or putting manure on certain places on the given tree…