Is Tamar Epstein free?
The Modern Orthodox, agunah-minded, and Jewish/religious/feminist blogospheres (a small and particular world, admittedly) were abuzz yesterday with the news that Tamar Epstein, whom I in the Times dubbed the country’s most famous agunah, or chained wife (that is, her husband has withheld
from her a religious divorce) is now “free.” This news appeared on her
Facebook page and in a press release e-mailed widely by activist group
ORA, the Organization for the Resolution of Agunot.
But several people with intimate knowledge of the situation have confirmed for me that Epstein did not in fact receive a get, the writ of religious divorce. One could infer this from the wording that she is now ”free,” with no mention of a get. Rather — and I am a bit fuzzier on the details here — it seems that a beit din, or religious court, has anulled her marriage, ruling that it was never valid.[...] It seems that Epstein has finally found some grounds to persuade a beit din to annul the marriage. What were the grounds? Nobody is talking. [...]
This declaration could prompt a real schism between some Orthodox and
other, more right-leaning Orthodox Jews. If this case sets a precedent,
rabbinic courts may begin “freeing” more women, who go on to re-marry,
while their husbands are convinced the old marriage is still in effect.
Then, the children produced by the new marriages will be considered mamserim, or bastards
— a huge stigma in Judaism. The children will be shunned, the mothers
will be shunned, and the rabbis who performed the women’s second
marriages will be written out of some precincts of Orthodoxy.
To which those women, and their rabbis, and their male and female
supporters, could say: “Who cares?” And if they have a critical mass of
support, it is they, not their ex-husbands and their supporters,
who will be marginalized. I once asked a prominent Orthodox rabbi how
many rabbis it would take to support new, more liberal measures to free
agunot. “90 percent,” he answered. “If 90 percent of Orthodox rabbis
were with us, the other 10 percent could scream ‘Mamersim!’ all they wanted, but they’d fall in line.”
Mark,
ReplyDeleteI am an ultra-Orthodox rabbi with a large brood of children, grandchildren, etc, and etc. My neighbors ditto. We are growing stronger and stronger and more and more strict in our religion. When do you plan to unveil the ninety percent of us rabbis who tossed the Code of Laws and became different? As you wait you will trampled upon by my great-grandchildren. But you will be lucky. The few remaining Orthodox Jews who invent their right to remarry without a GET will produce mamzerim, and they will not be able to marry into my family. For that I am shattered. I have dealt rabbinicallly with the senior rabbis of the world with a doubtful mamzerim, and I can't understand why anyone would contribute to such a child molestation.
Mark,
ReplyDeleteI have access to the top rabbis in the world, and nobody knows a valid reason for a Tamir to be free of her husband. The latest I hear is that the reasons we hear are not kosher ones or not true ones. This is a major scandal, even an unheard of one. Who produced this false information?
Who are the "top rabbis in the world" now that R' Eliashiv זצ"ל, R' Ovadia זצ"ל and R' Wosner זצ"ל are no longer here? Who are the Poskei HaDor?
ReplyDeleteChaim,
ReplyDeleteThe heads of honest Gittin Beth Dins are top of the line poskim, at least, the ones I know are. They are in different countries, and I deal with some in five countries. Now, you want names. Let me do it this way: Very soon, a letter should be coming out with their names commenting on this disgusting Philly case. I have nothing to do with that letter but I know it is planned to come out and it will contain the names of senior Torah personalities who feel that Tamir will be having babies who are mamzerim.
Thank you
ReplyDeleteReb Dovid, are any of the signatories to the upcoming Epstein letter names of the worldwide recognized gedolim?
ReplyDeleteI was actually reading something today from the Torah:
ReplyDeleteBereishis 38:
כד וַיְהִי
כְּמִשְׁלֹשׁ חֳדָשִׁים, וַיֻּגַּד לִיהוּדָה לֵאמֹר זָנְתָה תָּמָר
כַּלָּתֶךָ, וְגַם הִנֵּה הָרָה, לִזְנוּנִים; וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוּדָה,
הוֹצִיאוּהָ וְתִשָּׂרֵף.
24 And it came to pass about three months after, that it was told
Judah, saying: 'Tamar thy daughter-in-law hath played the harlot; and
moreover, behold, she is with child by harlotry.' And Judah said: 'Bring
her forth, and let her be burnt.'
Her child was described as "
וְגַם הִנֵּה הָרָה, לִזְנוּנִים
This was not quite a mamzer. In today's halacha, unless she is a bat Cohen, there would not be pgam on the child or her. So is znunim an independent halachic category? Or something that was only in the days prior to Matan Torah?
btw, it is purely coincidental that this is the story of Tamar and Yehuda.
She was quite a Bat Cohen. Bito shel shem hayta. A lil' bit of more discretion wouldn't hurt. Vehameivin yovin.
ReplyDelete