Why, then, do men stay separate from women, and refuse to touch them? Are they afraid of getting contaminated?
A. No, of course not. Speaking in modern terms, the separation of men and women in public places and such have prevented virtually any teenage pregnancy in the Orthodox-Jewish communities throughout the world. (I’m not saying there is no illicit, secret activity at all, but incidents are one in a million That’s how good the situation is, and that’s how good the system works.) Judaism teaches that protection against illicit misconduct is an integral element of holiness. Staying separate from a man or woman who is forbidden to you helps you be less likely to sin with that person. Judaism demands holiness, and it is impossible to be holy while sinning. And the sin of illicit behavior is one of the most tempting, therefore we need greater deterrents against it. In Judaism, men and women who are not married to each other do not touch each other, because touch is a very exciting and arousing experience. Men and women married to each other experience only each other, and this raises the exper
