Prohibition of Gentile and minor wives

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asked 9 years ago

I understand that from a halakhic perspective, a small wife and a widow are permitted. Would it be correct to say that, similar to stealing from a Gentile, there is no halakhic prohibition, but there is a moral prohibition here?

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מיכי Staff answered 9 years ago

There is a complete halakhic prohibition against a wife from an Akko. Their wives apply to them, and for us too there is a universal level of the sons of Noah in which we share (which is why some have proposed marriages between the sons of Noah and Jews, and I agree with this). A minor wife seems meaningless to me, but if society recognizes this status, then perhaps there is room for a moral prohibition. —————————————————————————————— Asks: In Sanhedrin 5: It is written: “Our rabbis taught: A man – except for a minor, who commits adultery with another man’s wife – except for the wife of a minor, his neighbor’s wife – except for the wife of others.” Even in the commentaries there it appears that a Gentile wife is permitted, and also from the biblical commentaries on Leviticus 20:10 it appears so. If you still say that there is an additional dimension of the sons of Noah, how do you explain the minority in the Sanhedrin (“his neighbor’s wife”)? —————————————————————————————— Rabbi: This is about the prohibition of adultery that requires death, and this is only when there is sanctification. No one claims that there is a death penalty for coming upon a woman who has not been sanctified (i.e., married in the marriage of the sons of Noah). This is unlike the Gentiles themselves, but they are required to die for everything. —————————————————————————————— Asks: If I understood you correctly, you mean to say that the minority in the Sanhedrin came to exempt the death penalty, but did not come to completely permit having sex with a Gentile woman? And if so, what is the source of the prohibition on a Gentile woman? —————————————————————————————— Rabbi: The source is the law of the wife of a man who also belongs to a Gentile. After all, a Gentile is forbidden, and the rule is that what was forbidden by the sons of Noah is forbidden and is permitted to us (see Sanhedrin 51). However, there is a difference in the matter of punishment, because among a Gentile every offense requires death, and in Israel it does not.

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דן replied 9 years ago

Regarding the wife of a minor, the Gemara in Kiddushin 19 teaches that it is a yibbum, where there are wives for a minor from the age of 9 whose coming is imminent: “Rav Ashi said: Here, a yibbum nine years and one day old who comes to his yibbum is what we are dealing with, a dem-Aroita has a vision of her, what is the religious law? Since a dem-Aroita has a vision of her and his coming is imminent, the one who comes to her is obligated to be a man's wife, KM”l. “

מיכי Staff replied 9 years ago

Daffah.