days” had begun, without waiting until immersion.86
Although the customs associated with menstruants have parallels with respect to other causes of female impurity, such as immediate post-partum status, no evidence of ritually impure men remaining outside the synagogue has been recorded—neither at their own initiative nor by rabbinic instruction—despite the endorsement of such restrictions by Ra’aviah, Judah the Pious, and other authorities. This disparity comes without surprise since, as Sharon Koren has noted, it follows the asymmetrical biblical attitudes that show greater leniency toward male impurity than its female parallels. Furthermore, this approach to male impurity is congruent with communal reliance on a quorum of men to hold prayer services; had men been instructed to avoid synagogue during their states of impurity, the established rhythm of public prayer might have been endangered!
Consequently, even the most pious men went to synagogue regularly, without taking their purity status into account; while these individuals were more meticulous about washing after nocturnal emissions, under no circumstances were they dissuaded (much less prohibited) from entering the synagogue. Rather, men were encouraged to temper the conscious and unconscious sexual thoughts that caused their impurity. Furthermore, impurity was never raised as a factor that might interfere with men’s participation in prayers services or their recitation of blessings. This, of course, differs significantly from the religious imperatives linked to menstruation, the manifestation of an involuntary bodily function.
As we have seen, among women, the inception of “white days” (and in some cases, immersion) marked their return to regular synagogue attendance, and ritual immersion punctuated their cycle of sexual relations. Even though men’s immersion did not typically determine their cycles of religious activity in the same way, male immersion emerged as a custom on the eve of the Day of Atonement. Medieval sources identify this as a practice that was intended to substitute for all immersions that should technically have been performed during the remainder of the year in addition to its more obvious assurance of male purity on the holiest of days.87 Let us now turn to this annual custom to explore how it might shed light on rituals that were performed by women throughout the year.
Men, Women, and Angels
The idea that the Day of Atonement requires a heightened level of purity is not a medieval innovation. In the Bible, it is already described as a day of utmost significance, when purity was crucial. This principle was operative when the Temple stood and following its destruction. The Day of Atonement’s unique status is evident from rabbinic texts that describe priestly rites in the Temple and in medieval discussions of Yom Kippur, which are especially relevant to our study given their attention to the fear of a nocturnal emission on this holy day. Such an occurrence was understood as a signal that the affected man must immediately repent lest he die in the coming year.88 In many ways, this concern represented a commitment to piety for the entire community since all men were elevated to the status of the high priest in the Temple on Yom Kippur. As such, efforts to achieve a state of purity were intrinsic to preparing for the holiest day in the Jewish calendar.89
Rabbinic and medieval sources provide various explanations of the need for purity and thus for immersion prior to Yom Kippur.90 The midrashic image of all Israel—men, women, and children—poised like angels before God on Yom Kippur had enduring popularity: originating in Midrash Leviticus Rabbah, it was often repeated by later generations,91 as in Mahzor Vitry: “Yom Kippur arrives and all Israel fasts. Men, women, and children wear white, like the angels who serve God (malakhei sharet). They stand barefoot, like the dead. [In response,] God is filled with mercy and grants atonement for all their sins.”92
While repentance (teshuvah) is the obvious reason for fasting, numerous medieval sources make explicit the connection between this midrash and purification from nocturnal emissions.93 The most marked among them is a fifteenth-century reference to Judel, son of Shalom of Neustadt:94 “Judel, the son of our teacher Shalom, states that it seems to him that women should not immerse in preparation for Yom Kippur eve because they cannot be like angels.”95 The halakhic topic at issue here is whether immersion in the mikveh on the eve of Yom Kippur was a component of repentance that every Jewish adult performed before Judgment Day,96 or whether this ritual was carried out to release men from impurities related to nocturnal emissions. The latter process could not apply to women since, by definition, the sin of nocturnal emission does not pertain to them.
Judel assumes that immersion prior to Yom Kippur counteracts the impurity caused by nocturnal emissions and, since this matter is uniquely related to male anatomy, women need not perform this ritual. However, this physiological distinction bears no relationship to his rationale: Judel reasons that women need not immerse because, in contrast to men, they cannot be like angels. His words reflect a gendered hierarchy that depicts a world where God reigns, followed by angels, men, and, lastly, women.
Judel’s teaching provides fertile ground for further examination of the main issues that we have seen so far. Male impurity did not present an impediment to entering the sanctuary or participating in prayer; even the men who were most cautious about ritual impurity would wash, then attend synagogue, without immersion in the mikveh. On Yom Kippur, an additional level of stringency was prescribed and, therefore, many men immersed in preparation for that most holy day.97 In the early thirteenth century, Eleazar of Worms suggested that exceptionally pious men (perushim) immersed before Yom Kippur, whereas by the fifteenth century, as we have seen, this practice had become customary for all men.98
As we have already seen, women immersed regularly as a component of maintaining menstrual purity.99 The passage by Judel implies that some women also immersed on the eve of Yom Kippur, and his objection focuses on that practice.100 Although the Yom Kippur eve immersion is mentioned frequently in sources from the thirteenth to fifteenth centuries,101 only Jacob Moellin (known as the Maharil, 1360–1427) explicitly describes it as an observance for both men and women:102
Mahari Segal (an acronym for Maharil’s name) says that one can argue that [immersion] is for the sake of repentance since it is customary for men and women, youth and virgins who have reached bar and bat mitzvah [age] to immerse [on Yom Kippur eve]. Clearly men immerse because of seminal impurity or because they touched some impurity, but why do the women immerse, given that they don’t emit semen? The same reasoning applies to elderly (menopausal) women, and to youth and virgins whose bodies are clean from any impurity. Rather [this immersion] is certainly on account of repentance.103
In contrast to Judel, Maharil unambiguously separates this immersion from purity. Although Maharil’s opinion was widely accepted, Judel’s comment allows for further reflection on medieval Jewish notions of corporeal purity.
Judel’s comments cast a doubt on women’s potential to be like angels. This comparison between Jews and angels originated in late antiquity. Texts from that era discuss how men and women could resemble angels, although some late antique sources claim that men are more capable of reaching the level of angels (beings who were considered asexual by their very nature).104 Medieval sources continue to compare both men and women to angels, as, for example, in the thirteenth-century composition Semag:105
When God created the world, he created heaven and earth on the first day and the angels on the second day. [The angels] had no evil inclination but know how to worship and serve their Creator, whereas animals possess evil desires but know not how to serve their Creator. On the sixth day, he created man, who resembles both angels and animals. For that reason, when a human eats, drinks or goes to sleep, it should not be for the sake of pleasure, like an animal. Rather he should eat with the intention of gaining the strength needed to worship God as angels do.106
This passage features humanity—without distinguishing between men and women—as an intermediary category of beings that share certain characteristics
