Question:
Is there a specific issur for a man to pour wine for a woman, (unrelated to hilchos nidda) e.g. as a host is it permitted to pour alcoholic drinks for women at one’s table?
If so what is the source of this halacha?
Thank you
Answer:
Without getting into the issue of women drinking alcoholic beverages, according to most poskim, it is permitted for a man to pour wine for a woman. The source of this is the following. There is a halacha (Shulchan Aruch E:H 21-5) “אין משתמשים באשה כלל”, that a man should not accept certain personal services from a woman, and one of them is for her to pour water or wine for him. The main reason for this is so that he should not come to think about her, because of her services. There is another reason given, so that the woman should not mingle with men. The poskim discuss, if this prohibition applies in the opposite direction, for a man to pour wine for a woman. Although there is an opinion that says that it does apply in the opposite direction, most poskim say that it is permitted.ay thatit applies in both directions
Sources:
Sources:
Apeh Zutri E:H 21-16 mentions this and it is brought in Om Ani Choma – Bara Kchama 61. However the poskim disagree with it, because the Shulchan Aruch and commentaries only mention that a man shouldn’t accept such services, and they don’t say that it applies in both directions. See Shevet Halevi 11-308, Gan Naul 12 ftnt. 15.
