Joodse traditie als permanent leren

190.

leave his premises as fit for Jewish consumption; 20) or who has not examined his slaughtering knife in the presence of the Chacham (religious head of the community); 21) whoever deliberately practises priapism; 22) whoever divorces his wife and then enters into a partnership with her, or engages in other commercial transactions which bring them into close relations - when they come into Court (i.e. when they come under the notice of the Court) they are placed under a ban; 23) a religious leader of evil repute; 24) whoever unjustly excommunicates one who has not incurred the ban.

7. 1 If a sage grown old in wisdom, a Nasi, or Ab-beth-Din, committed a grave offence, he is, under no circumstances, to be publicly excommunicated, unless he acted like Jeroboam, the son of Nebat and his confederates. But if he committed other sins less heinous, he is punished with stripes privately, as it is said "Therefore shalt thou stumble in the day, and the prophet also shall stumble with thee in the night" (Hosea 4:5); this means that even if he stumbled, conceal it as in the darkness of the night. And we also say to him "Save your self-respect and stay at home" (II Kings 14:6). So too, if any scholar rendered himself liable to excommunication, the Court is forbidden to act precipitately and hastily put him under the ban. The members of the Court should flee from such a procedure, and take no part in it. The saints among the sages gloried in the fact that they never sat in a quorum of judges, to excommunicate a scholar, though they might sit as judges in a court that sentenced a scholar to be punished with stripes, if he had incurred that penalty, and even if the sentence was for contumacy.

7.2 What is the form used for Niddui (the lighter ban of excommunication)? (The authority who excommunicates) says "So^and^so (naming him) shall be under a ban". If the excommunication took place in the offender's presence, he says to him "This person, (naming him) is under a ban! For Cherem (the severer excommunication), he says to him "So-and-so (naming him) is under Cherem and accursed; he is under an imprecation with Oath and Ban",

7. 3 How is the lighter or severer excommunication removed? The authority says to the person excommunicated "Thou art released;