[Avodah] abuse vs gneiva

[Eitan Levy]

Saul Newman quoted a letter which included, as it’s conclusion:
”Perhaps this goes some way to explain why incest and other sexual crimes
are not treated as seriously as they should be in certain communities.
Firstly, the possibility of real teshuva is something which I imagine
psychotherapists would challenge. But the Gemara says it is possible. And
incest (or other sexual sins) are not as bad as stealing (though I know
that in some communities stealing is also not considered such a serious
sin).”

1. Arayos are not the same as sexual abuse, which is a form of violence. Arayos may or may not be involved, but I don’t think the term captures what is being discussed.
2. Why would psychotherapists challenge the ability to do teshuvah? It doesn’t require the person be returned to their prior state if they forgive you...
3. This is more of an open question and tangential rumination on my part, but relevant: In the ancient world it seems clear they were much less sensitive to certain issues than we are today, particularly as pertaining to psychological health and physical well-being and particularly comfort. Perhaps this is because violence (sexual and otherwise) was such a common part of most people’s lives. Children, women, and slaves were commonly beaten. Constant warfare meant rape, kidnapping and the destruction of entire cities were common occurrences (see Tana”ch for evidence, not to mention any history book of the ancient world). In a sense, everybody probably had some sort of PTSD, or were simply inured to violence by constant exposure. How do we take discussions which took place at that time, and apply them to the relatively safe world that most of us, B”H, live in? Certainly the words of Chaza”l are eternal and binding, but just as we have special allowances for the physically sensitive (istanisim) which could be applied to pretty much everyone in our generation (e.g. showering during the 9 days), perhaps we need to consider that the amount of harm which certain experiences would have caused in their time is not the same as in our day.
--
B’ahavat Yisrael,
-Eitan Levy
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