The Haifa Beis Din heard a case involving a recalcitrant wife, a wife who has refused all efforts to give her a get. The case involves a couple married for eight years, years that according to the husband were anything but a good marriage, but more a life of insults and screaming while his wife turned their four children against him. The husband told beis din they basically hate one another. The wife however insisted on ‘shalom bayis’ since she still loves him, and they were ordered to attend counselling by the beis din.
The case was heard by Av Beis Din Haifa Dayan Avraham Meir Shalush along with Dayanim Rav Avraham Chazan and Dayan Refael Gelb. The psak din was signed off by the Av Beis Din of the Supreme Beis Din Rishon L’Tzion Rabbi Yitzchak Yosef Shlita.
The counselling did not result in progress, and the woman did not change her position while the husband is interested in remarrying. The wife admitted to the beis din that she did not cooperate during counselling, and in fact, she exhibited an angry disposition towards him, leading the beis din to the decision she is motivated by vengeance and nothing more.
The beis din ruled that since Sephardim did not accept Cherem D’Rabbeinu Gershom, the husband, being Sephardi, may have more than one wife and therefore, he may remarry despite the objections of his wife. The beis din did not compel giving a get via the heter meah rabbonim.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusale
Sephardim don't need a heter in the first place to marry a second or third wife since, as stated, Cherem Rabbeinu Gershom and Heter Meah Rabbonim are inapplicable to them. They can simply take additional wives regardless of their relationship with their existing wife.
ReplyDeleteAdditionally, Beis Din cannot compel a husband to give a Get, under normal circumstances, if he doesn't want to give one.
Wrong. In Israel, one cannot get married without approval from the Rabbanut, and they apply the cherem to Sefardim as well.
ReplyDeleteThe two are interrelated. For Ashkenazim, a Hetter Meah Rabbonim is required, and standard practice is to require the husband to deposit a get with the beis din.
ReplyDeleteOf course, in a situation like this one, the husband is generally all too happy to give a get, so long as he can remarry someone else. So that requirement is generally not viewed as too onerous in most situations.
There are a number of alternatives. The most obvious one is for him to get married to a second wife outside Israel in a Sephardic Chupa and Kiddushin in London or New York. Secular Israelis get married in Cyprus all the time in types of marriages that the Israeli Rabbanut doesn't allow. An even easier possible alternative is to get married in Israel with a Chupa and Kiddushin outside the Rabbanut system. Like with the Eidah HaChareidus or something. I don't know how practical the second option is but the first surely can be done.
ReplyDeleteThe second option might be considered illegal in Israel, making the officiating rabbi complicit in breaking the law.
ReplyDeleteAFAIK, the halachic issue facing Sephardim in marrying a second wife, is that even though Rabbeinu Gershom's enactment isn't binding upon them, they customarily take an oath at the wedding, swearing that they will never marry another woman as long as they are married to this woman. This oath creates a formidable halachic barrier against polygamy, which would be difficult to surmount under normal circumstances.
However in this case, a salient feature of the ruling, was that the Beis Din agreed to annul the oath (see #4).
"א. בית הדין מתיר עקרונית למבקש לשאת אישה נוספת על אשתו.
ב. היתר זה כפוף לאישורו של כבוד מרן הראשון לציון נשיא בית הדין הגדול כפי שנקבע בתקנות הדיון.
ג. מאחר והמבקש מבני ספרד אין פסק הדין מצריך חתימת מאה רבנים או השלשת הגט וסגי בהתחייבות המבקש בקניין להופיע בבית הדין.
ד. לאחר קבלת אישור כבוד הנשיא שליט"א יופיע המשיב בבית הדין על מנת להתיר את השבועה שהתחייב בכתובה ולקבל בקניין התחייבות להופיע בבית הדין.
ה. בכל עת בו תרצה המשיבה להתגרש היא תוכל לתבוע גם את כתובתה ובית הדין ידון בדבר אחר קבלת הגט.
ו. בית הדין חוזר וקורא למשיבה לסיים פרק זה בהקדם ולהתגרש בהסכמה מבלי להזדקק להיתר נישואין".
http://www.bhol.co.il/129646/ביהד-התיר-לגבר-מסורב-גט-לשאת-אישה-שנייה.html
Interesting that when a woman's refusal to accept a get is from pure vengence, you all support the loophole that makes her protest irrelevant. But when the man's refusal to let his wife go free is from pure vengence (which is very often the case) then you are all outraged by any attempt to employ halachic loopholes to compassionately set her free. Your attachment to male power and privilege is unseemly and, hypocrical.
ReplyDeleteYou are totally missing the point. This was a pesak allowing him to marry within the Israeli Rabbanut system.
ReplyDeleteNot all Sephardim add a provision to their kesuba forswearing taking a second wife without his first wife's permission. It is not a standard condition across all Sephardic marriages. Some add it and some do not.
ReplyDeleteI agree that not ALL Sephardim add such a provision to their kesuba.
ReplyDeleteMy argument referred to cases where they did.
For further discussion regarding this oath, see:
שו"ת חבל נחלתו, חלק טו, סי' נ
https://he.wikisource.org/wiki/חבל_נחלתו_טו_נ
Assuming that they don't mind going to prison.
ReplyDeleteThere's no law against having an ecclesiastical-only marriage with multiple women so long at he does not file for more than one State marriage license. Polygamous Fundamentalist Mormons are doing so in the United States today and have freely been doing so uninterrupted for well over a century already. Immigrant polygamous Muslims from Africa living in New York City do the same.
ReplyDeleteThe government is prosecribed from involving itself in religious activities, such as religious plural marriages or any other religious ceremonies, as a result of the First Amendment. Bigamy laws only pertain to multiple marriages licensed by the State governments. In an era of anyone having whatever they want for their personal cohabitation arrangements, the State and prosecutors do not involve themselves with them, at the polygamous Mormons have well proven.
I like this: “The Haifa Beis Din heard a case involving a recalcitrant wife…The beis din ruled that since Sephardim did not accept Cherem D’Rabbeinu Gershom, the husband, being Sephardi, may have more than one wife and therefore, he may remarry despite the objections of his wife. The beis din did not compel giving a get via the heter meah rabbonim.”
ReplyDeleteMay I show you my letter today to Susan, Judge Prus, NYS Ct of Appeals, TIAA, and Commission on Judicial Conduct?
3.The NYS Court of Appeals writes me:
“February 23, 2018 Gerald Aranoff 8 Miriam Haneviah Street Bnei Brak, Israel 51583 Dear Mr. Aranoff: I return enclosed your letter dated February 21, 2018. It is not necessary or appropriate to send to the Court of Appeals copies of documents filed with other courts. Very truly yours, John P. Asiello”
4.It is necessary and appropriate for the NYS Court of Appeals, Susan, your honor Judge Eric I. Prus, the NYS Commission on Judicial Conduct, and TIAA to deal with the issue of the (fake/fraudulent) 1995 Judge Rigler Order of Separation that Susan and your honor are refusing to send me a copy of. Susan and your honor Judge Eric I. Prus continued silence is the biggest proof of criminal guilt in the matter.