daf bit: Nazir 62

[cellio]

As we near the end of tractate Nazir, the discussion turns to slaves. Can a slave make a nazarite vow? Yes, and not only that but, according to the mishna, the nazarite vow of a slave is more stringent than one of a woman, because a man can annul his wife's vow but cannot annul his slave's vow. If a slave's master disapproves of the slave's vow, it appears that the master's only recourse is to free the slave. (62b)

(I assume, though I couldn't confirm one way or the other in the Aramaic text, that this is talking about an eved ivri, a Jewish slave. Jewish slaves get freed eventually anyway, so this would just mean accelerating the schedule, and I would be surprised if non-Jews can (per torah) take nazarite vows. (Of course they can vow anything they like, but it wouldn't be governed by torah, I would think.)

Comments

[aethereal-girl.livejournal.com]

My assumption is that it's talking about a non-Jewish slave. A non-Jewish slave of a Jew doesn't have the same halachic status as a free non-Jew (or slave of a non-Jew), instead, their status is considered generally similar to a Jewish woman. Hence the common formulation "women, children and slaves."

A male Jewish slave, on the other hand, is basically considered to have the same halachic status as a free Jewish man.

[cellio]

Thanks!

[zevabe.livejournal.com]

Why should that be a common formulation, given that children are totally exempt from all mitzvot (like deaf-mutes and the insane), whereas women and slaves are obligated in everything but positive time-bound commandments?