Shalom Hakham,
I read your Torah Talk about contemporary non-Jews not being the idol worshippers that the Torah refer too. I absolutely agree with you and I came to this conclusion long time ago, but, I still have a question:
We have a lot of Mitzvot related to Avodah Zarah. Are these relevant in our contemporary modern society or apply to our friends, colleagues and neighbors, that aren’t Jewish, in some way? And if so, when do they apply?
I’m very curious about stam yayin for example.
Thank you for your answer. As I mentioned before I saw that we have a lot of laws in regards of idolatry, so, I think I will ask the most common situations.
Obviously everything related to ovoth, yid’onim, witchcraft of any kind, incantations and astrology remains very in place.
I’m referring to making business and friendship freely with people from the main religions, like Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, etc. And to specific situations like: if a very close Christian friend invite me to a Christmas dinner, no prayer nor religious things involved (basically the secular Christmas that you find in most of the West), and with food that I can eat, can I attend? Or, can I visit a Church to admire the architecture or for a concert of music (I really like culture, music and art)? And if yes, the same apply for the other major religions? (visiting Hindu/Buddhist temples, etc.)
I guess the bottom line is not to participate in their services and rituals. But I may be wrong.
I’m not prepared to give a blanket cancelation of all Avoda Zara related laws. Let’s address each one separately.
With respect to wines. Stay tuned. There should be something posted within a week.