Imagining the Priesthood in Tractate Yoma: Mishnah Yoma 2:1–2 and BT Yoma 23a

This article explores the ways in which feminist analysis can be used to think more deeply about the rabbinic treatment of male priests in Tractate Yoma, and in so doing to illuminate the power structures by which the rabbis dominated or differentiated themselves not only from women, but also from other men. Just as the rabbis asserted their authority—actually and imaginatively—on and through women’s bodies, they used similar strategies with respect to priests. Through an examination of Mishnah Yoma 2:1–2 and BT Yoma 23a, I investigate the rabbis’ constructions of masculinity as strategies for developing a distinct image of themselves over and against an “other,” specifically the priest, whom they wish to render less authoritative and even powerless.