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Prohibition of a man’s wife who has committed adultery

שו”תCategory: HalachaProhibition of a man’s wife who has committed adultery
asked 1 year ago

Peace be upon you, dear ones, the Honorable Rabbi Shlita

A Jew from a Hasidic background asked me who left the religion, got married, had an open relationship. Got divorced, repented and wants to remarry.
What about the prohibition of a man’s wife who has committed adultery being forbidden to her husband?
It is a great commandment to permit, of course…
I saw that you wrote an article on the subject of prostitution with the husband’s permission.
I would be happy to rule on the matter.

Thank you very much.


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0 Answers
מיכי Staff answered 1 year ago
Greetings to Mr. Hope he is well. I don’t remember my article on the subject. What I found on my website now is a fairly short question and answer: https://mikyab.net/%D7%A9%D7%95%D7%AA/%D7%90%D7%99%D7%A9%D7%94-%D7%A9%D7%96%D7%99%D7%A0%D7%AA%D7%94-%D7%91%D7%94%D7%A1%D7%9B%D7%9E%D7%AA-%D7%91%D7%A2%D7%9C%D7%94-2/ On the surface, it is very difficult to permit in the rabbinical tradition. Indeed, some poskim wrote about a woman who committed fornication because she thought that it was not fornication (some rabbi seduced her by claiming that it was a mitzvah for the benefit of her marriage, etc., as in the case of Sheinberg of Safed, and now another such case has been published by Rahal). But this is because she herself did not think that there was anything superior in the woman here (and they shared some of the words of the rabbinical tradition there). But in the matter of Didan, the explanation that emerges is different: there is nothing superior here because he agrees. This is a new and good opinion, and it is difficult in my opinion to permit on its basis. On the surface, it is not a mitzvah that is strictly speaking a rabbinical tradition. But perhaps there is a place to examine the first kiddushin from the perspective of that same idea. If they were performed while both were far from the Tomah, and were performed with the intention that they would be “open” in principle, there is no kiddushin at all. If he does not dedicate it to himself and both of them knew that it would be “open”, it seems that they did not intend kiddushin as a demuy. And according to the well-known words of the Maharik regarding “ma’aleh ma’al ba’isha”, it seems that even if both of them thought that this was permissible, there is still no kiddushin here because these su’s are not kiddushin. It is true that one must discuss matters of the heart, but in the kiddushin of secular people, even so, everything is about matters of the heart, since the validity of the kiddushin is only because of those who in their hearts want to be sanctified as a demuy. And if it is clear in retrospect that it is not, then there is no kiddushin here. It should perhaps be added that when these things were done, they were rapists in their minds (like babies who were raped), and rape is accidental, and is not forbidden to the husband. Although this depends on whether they understood at the time that this was forbidden and their instincts were valid, or whether they denied the truth of the Torah in general and then became rapists. To Dina, the first reason is questionable in my opinion, and perhaps I should join the other two. In any case, combined with my reasons, there is room for allowing them to remarry because they were not married at all during the era of prostitution. Thus, there is room for discussing at least this situation so as not to close the door to those who return. But if the last two reasons do not exist in the N.D., I would not permit it, unfortunately. And I wrote it.

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א' replied 1 year ago

Many greetings
After another conversation with the Jewish questioner. At the time of the Kiddushin, both of them were far from religion, and he was not interested in marriage but did so to please his parents who were pressuring him to get married. In addition, at that time, he did not know about the concept of open marriage.
Although they were complete infidels during the entire period they had an open relationship, and therefore the latter explanation belongs in this case.
With thanks and blessings

מיכי Staff replied 1 year ago

I have now looked again and it seems to me that permission should still be discussed.
Although I thought from the beginning that according to the Mahrikh, a woman who has committed a mistake in law does not permit her husband, because in practice she is committing adultery with him. If so, then in this matter too, even if in their case it is rape from a halakhic perspective, in practice she is committing adultery with the woman. And apparently from this point of view they do not have permission. In the 5th and 6th writings we found that even if it begins with rape and ends with consent, it is prohibited.
But again I saw two sides to permission.
1. There are poskim who wrote that if she committed adultery with her husband's permission, it is not adultery and it is not prohibited against him (and they disappeared from my previous letter). Yes, it is in Rosh Pina Qah, and in AJM Abba'ez 84:47.
2. The words of Maharik themselves are an innovation of his (see Shredi Ash 2:8, which commented on this and offered an explanation, but it is very pressing) that has no source in Shas. Furthermore, in the reply to the Rashba (Chapter 11, Chapter 11), he wrote that it is permissible for her to be a prostitute, and therefore she is forbidden to her husband. From all his words it appears that he disagrees with Maharik and according to her, even inadvertently, she is lawfully permitted to her husband if she were not a prostitute. But with us, it is a pishita who is not a prostitute, since she did not believe in the halacha at all and did not belong to the middik, and we are left with the fact that according to the Rashba she is not forbidden. The substance of the Rashba's voice is found. And finally, I also think that Shmarik is right and his words also belong in the subject under discussion, still perhaps rape that I am mistaken (although it is urgent and as such).
In the end, there is a place to allow this. The permission is not extensive, but in a time of great urgency and if they really love and really want to live together, it seems to me that it can be relied on and especially that here it is for the sake of the returnees.
And I wrote the answer.

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