Q&A: Rashi
Rashi
Question
Hello,
As someone who has been teaching for quite a few years, I wanted to ask you: when teaching children ages 7–10 Humash / Talmud with Rashi [in an atmosphere of admiration for the commentator, and with a constant drip of the idea that every one of his words is a diamond and you must not miss anything or be lazy about understanding his comments because he is the foundation for analysis], how should one explain it when you reach problematic topics and they ask what “marital relations,” menstruation-related impurity, prostitution, intercourse in the usual manner, intercourse in an unusual manner, and the like mean?
Answer
I don’t have experience teaching children. But usually it’s possible to work around topics like these. Either not teach them, or say that it will be explained when he is older, perhaps with a general explanation (things that happen between a husband and wife).
I also don’t see the connection to the greatness of the commentator. We’re not talking about nonsense that he writes, but about things that at the moment are not the place to explain. On the contrary, precisely if he is great, then not everything can be understood.