[Avodah] Your brother's a Mumar; here's the solution!

[Yitzhak Grossman]

On Tue, 17 Jun 2008 01:19:33 -0400
"Moshe Y. Gluck" <mgluck at gmail.com> wrote:

> R' Elozor Reich (way back when:
> http://www.aishdas.org/avodah/vol23/v23n145.shtml):
> > Having an apostate as a brother can present a potential future
> > Yibum/Chalitza problem.
> > 
> > What I can only describe as a "flabbergasting solution" is prescribed in
> the
> > Oruch Hashulchan, Even ho'Ezer 157. The detailed instructions seem to
> > indicate practical advice.
> 
> Basically, the AhS says to make the Kiddushin, Nisuin, and all the Bios Al
> T'nai that if she is Nofel L'yibum then the whole thing will not be Chal,
> and that she will be - L'mafrei'ah - a Pnuyah M'yuchad to him. So, I'm sure

This is the view of Rema (157:4) and many Gedolei Aharonim:  Noda
Be'Yehudah (Kama EH 56) [who writes that there was a custom predating
his arrival in wherever he then was to make such a Tenai], Rav Akiva
Eiger (Resp. I, 93), Hasam Sofer (Resp. EH I 110 [who writes "v'gam
kibalti l'hakel me'rabosai"], Rav Yonasan Eibeschutz (Bnei Ahuvah Resp.
2) and others. There is also a dissenting view.  See Pis'hei Teshuvah
(ibid. 8).

> that someone must have already asked this, but why can't this solve the
> "Agunah Crisis"? 

I have been meaning to research this.  There are entire works written
about the Agunah problem with titles like "Ein T'nai B'Nissuin", and
there's always R. Dr. Eliezer Berkovitz's Tnai B'Nisuin U'vGet. (Paging
R'MM ...)

A quick Google turns up what appears to be an excellent, extremely
comprehensive paper by Bernard Jackson, "Agunah and the Problem of
Authority: Directions for Future Research", in "Melilah: Manchester
Journal of Jewish Studies", available here:
http://www.mucjs.org/MELILAH/2004/1.doc
See the section on the French Proposals of 1907, beginning on page 10.
They seem to be pretty much what you have suggested. Google also finds
a undoubtedly erudite and informative lecture on the subject by R.
Bleich:
http://www.yutorah.org/showShiur.cfm/711684/Rabbi_Dr._J._David_Bleich/Tnai_Bnisuin

> MYG

Yitzhak
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