Reply To: Am Ha'aretz

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Sam2
Participant

That Gemara in Pesachim is clearly not meant to be taken literally as the most important Halachic ideas were left off of that list and nothing mentioned above it is Paskened (though see the Ben Yehoyada there for an amazing Lema’aseh P’shat of what Lenochro Beyom Hakippurim Shechal Lihyos Beshabbas means). I would assume from context that Am Ha’aretz in that Gemara means someone who is anti-religious. See the Rambam in Perek 11 of Hilchos Eidus where he defines Am Ha’aretz from that Gemara as someone who we can assume doesn’t keep Halacha (because we have seen that he is not learned and because he does not have proper Derech Eretz).