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Rabbi Daniel Rowe - Does the Talmud say Non-Jews are not Human?

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Author: Rabbi Daniel Rowe
Categories: Religion
Tags: religion
Views: 2 · Last viewed: 2026-10-14 23:15 UTC

Short Summary

Main recommendation: Read the Talmud's "Adam" passage in its legal context rather than as a claim that non-Jews are not human, because the Talmud's statement about Jews being called "Adam" concerns ritual impurity of corpses and does not deny humanity to non-Jews. Rabbi Daniel Rowe argues the quote circulated by critics is partially accurate but misunderstood, and that the Talmud elsewhere affirms the full humanity of non-Jews. He also says the claim is wrong and that some Jews who misread the text in a derogatory way are unacceptable.

Key Points

  • The quote circulated by critics, from Bava Batra 114b ("The Jews are human beings, but the nations of the world are not human beings but beasts"), does not appear in that passage, according to Rowe.
  • The passage is about whether the laws of impurity of a dead body apply to non-Jews, and the Talmud rules that Gentile graves do not cause ritual impurity.
  • Rabbi Shima's statement, "You are called Adam, not the Gentiles," relies on Ezekiel's "you are Adam," which critics translate as "human."
  • The Hebrew Bible uses four words for human: ish, gever, enosh, and Adam. Rowe says the first three always apply to Jews and non-Jews alike, while Adam sometimes refers only to Jews.
  • Talmud Avodah Zarah 3a, citing Leviticus 18:5, says a non-Jew who studies the relevant Noahide laws is as great as the Jewish High Priest, showing the Talmud includes non-Jews under "Adam."

Details Worth Noting

  • Concrete instructions: No personal actions, purchases, dosages, or step-by-step procedures are given. The actionable guidance is interpretive: when reading a Talmudic "Adam" statement, check whether the legal topic (such as ritual impurity) is specific to Jews, and if the issue concerns all humanity, "Adam" refers to all humanity.
  • Rowe explains that Adam in Eden is a soul containing the oneness of all humanity, and that the Jewish people are a "microcosmic Adam" meant to model a reunited humanity.
  • Rowe says the earlier quotes circulating online are largely fabrications traced back to the 17th century, as covered in his two previous videos.
  • The quote was requested by a TikTok user named "tegr," who found the quotes online.
  • Pesachim is cited for "Beloved is Adam, for he is created in the image of God," which Rowe says most commentators apply to all humans.

Bottom Line

The apparent insult in the Talmud comes from a narrow legal usage of "Adam," and the broader text, according to Rowe, treats non-Jews as fully human.