[Avodah] the cohen gadol and marriage to a pubescent girl

[Moshe Y. Gluck]

> RMYG wrote:
> > But what if we know, for certain, that this particular minor will not be
> harmed, and she also wants to marry him?


R' Lipman Phillip Minden:
> Two things:
> 
> First, I think a basic assumption is that a 12-year old isn't able to make
the
> qualifed decision. <SNIP>

There are two questions here - does she want it, and is it harmful for her.
I think she can make the first, but her parents need to make the second. 

> The second aspect, harm or not: as far as I know, current psychology
assumes
> that, bar exceptions, sexual relations with a 12-year old are harmful. I
don't
> know enough about the matter to have an opinion, other than that
intercourse
> between a 12-year old and a 40-50-year old isn't a comforting concept. I'm
> aware that this is probably a result of growing up in "Western society". I
> suppose sexual relations without a stable emotional background aren't
healthy
> at any age, adn this kind of background is less there, statistically,
among
> 12-year olds.

I understand what you're saying, but I have two points in response. 1) IIUC,
Halachah doesn't mandate that the marriage be consummated when she is a
Naarah. 2) Most cases of 12-year-old girls having sexual relationships,
today, involve incest, molestation, rape and abuse. Current psychology
assumes - for very good reason - that these relationships are harmful. But
have psychologists studied situations where the husband of the 12-year old
was loving, gentle, solicitous and caring? I'm not saying that it is
definitely not harmful (although I suspect that to be the case), but I'm
saying that we certainly shouldn't assume that it is harmful.

<SNIP>
> (As an aside, physical maturity was probably even later in the
> time of the gemore, up to four or five years later.)

What do you mean here?

KT,
MYG