A PRIMER ON JEWISH DIVORCE A Guide for the Jewish Communal Professional IRVING A. BREITOWITZ Associate Professor of Law at the University of Maryland, Rabbinics Professor in the College of Jewish Studies Cooperative Graduate Program with George Washington University, and Rabbi of the Woodside Synagogue, Silver Spring, Maryland This article presents some basic information about the halacha of the divorce process with which Jewish communal professionals should be familiar. It describes the Get, the problems of the mamzer and the agunah, and the bet din process. istorically, divorce within the tradition­ discussion, some of this information is quite Hally close-knit and cohesive Jewish important even to Jewish clients who may family, particularly one that adhered to not normally adhere to halacha. Because halacha (Jewish law), was rare. Although women are most often affected by many of the Torah itself recognizes the possibihty of these requirements, this article assumes a divorce, it was an option that was rarely female client. employed and indeed was societally discour­ aged. This is no longer the case. Although THE GET: WHAT IS IT? the divorce rate among the most traditional­ ist segment of Jewry, the Orthodox, is still To dissolve a marriage under Jewish law, a well below that of the general popidation, it husband must present to his wife a specially is on the rise. To some extent, this is a sad prepared document known as a Get. Get is reflection of the "throw away" mentality an Aramaic term meaning "document." that pervades and afflicts all of American Although the term "Get" can be, and occa­ society—if it doesn't "pay" to fix a phone, sionally is, employed in reference to any le­ it doesn't pay to "fix" a marriage. On an­ gal document, its predominant usage is in other level, and this may be a more positive connection with bills of divorce.' development, spouses, especially women, The requirement of a Get is found in may be less willing to endure extreme psy­ Deuteronomy 24:1: "When a man takes a chological (and in some cases physical) wife and marries her, if it then comes to abuse than they were in the past. Educators pass that she finds no favor in his eyes for and psychologists within the Orthodox he has found something unseemly in her, he world are sensitive to this problem and are shall write her a document of divorce and attempting to address it through counseling give it to her hand, and send her out of his and education, with particular emphasis on house.'' A civil divorce has no effect in the reaching persons before they marry (Wikler, eyes of halacha, and any subsequent cohabi­ 1991, 1993). In any case, Jewish communal tation or remarriage is regarded as adulter­ professionals will inevitably encounter cli­ ous. ents who have strong commitments to Jew­ ish law and tradition and should be aware of 'The numerical equivalent of the Hebrew letters that and sensitive to these clients' special needs. make up the word Gel is 12. This in tum corresponds to the custom that the Get be composed in exactly 12 lines. Although the professional assisting a Rabbinic conunentators note that in a Torah, there are a spouse whose marriage is in difficulty need total of 12 blank lines separating the books of the Pentateuch from each other. Since 12 is a number sym­ not be conversant with all the nuances of bolic of separation and division, and the Get itself is Jewish law, a few basic items of information termed "sefer keritot" (a document of separation), it is may be helpful. Indeed, for reasons that therefore appropriate to compose the Get in 12 lines and will become apparent in the course of this to refer to the document by a name that indicates this fact 145 Joumal of Jewish Conununal Service / 146 The Get itself is written in a combination are present, one of whom has primary re­ of Hebrew and Aramaic; a rough translation sponsibility for ensiuing observance of the follows: requisite formalities—^the Mesader HaGet, tiie "Arranger ofthe Ge^"—with the other On the day ofthe week, the day two serving as witnesses. A scribe who will of the month of in the year compose the text of the Get by hand is also since the creation ofthe world according to present. According to the Talmud, "All the calendar reckoning we are accustomed to who are not intimately familiar with the count here in the city situated on the laws of marriage and divorce should take no River , I the son of have part in their proceedings" (Kiddushin 6a). desired of my free will, being under no du­ The Get, although a standardized text ress, to release [alt. trans. - remove, sever], except for names or places, may not be let go, and expel you my wife daughter printed. Xeroxed, or even prewritten with of wiio has been my wife from time spaces left blank for names and places. The past. And dius, I release [aU. trans. - re­ document in its entirety must be written move, sever], let go of, and expel you so that anew for the specific couple whose marriage you may have permission and authority over is being terminated. Since the writing of yourself to be married to any man you may the Get devolves in the first instance upon desire and no one may raise any protest the husband, the husband must formally against your doing so from this day forward designate the scribe as his agent before the and forever more. Behold, you are permitted scribe can begin the composition of the Get. to all men. This shall be to you from me a The Get must contain proper dates based on book of expulsion, a letter of letting go, and a the traditional Jewish calculation, location document of release [alt. trans. - removal, and names of the husband and wife includ­ severance] in accordance with the law of ing common nicknames, etc., with the tradi­ Moses and Israel. tional tag "son of or "daughter of" (Last names are not used.) These names The execution of a Get is a private act; it must be spelled correctiy. Indeed, one of does not require the participation or even the most difficult, albeit tedious, jobs of the the consent of a rabbinical tribunal, though Mesader HaGet is to determine which in view of the fact that the formalities sur­ names should be included and how to trans­ rounding its writing and transfer are numer­ literate those names into Hebrew. For ex­ ous and complex, a rabbinical court of at ample, what if Robert is sometimes called least three is invariably present. Even so, Rob, Bob, Robby, Bobby, or Skip and in ad­ the role of the rabbi is supervisory oitiy. In dition has a Jewish name of Rafael that he the eyes of halacha, it is the husband who never uses? The same questions may be divorces his wife, rather than the state or raised regarding his father, his about-to-be- the judiciary dissolving the marriage. divorced wife, and her father. Upon com­ The basic ceremony is fairly simple and pletion of the writing of the Get, two wit­ can normally be accomplished in under an nesses sign at the bottom. The husband and hour. (The mechanics of the ceremony are wife are both asked a set of formalized spelled out in the Appendix fotiowing the questions as a final assurance that the Get is Shulchan Aruch ^.n. 154. English ti-eat- not a product of duress, compulsion, or ex­ ments can be found in Haut, Divorce in tortion. The husband then takes the docu­ Jewish Law and Life, and in Amram, Jewish ment, physically deposits it in his wife's Law of Divorce.) As already mentioned, hands—again in the presence of wit­ the entire Get is only a 12-line document. nesses—^and, upon the Get's delivery, the Husband and wife or their proxies meet at a marriage is terminated. As a procedural prearranged time and place. Three rabbis matter, a divorced woman generally does WINTER/SPRING 1994 A Primer on Jewish Divorce / 147 not keep the Get, but returns it to the cus­ pregnancy is an impossibility, e.g., the tody of the bet din (the Jewish court), which woman is infertile, past menopause, or was will issue an official receipt stating that physically separated from her husband for such Get was delivered properly. If fiuther far more than 3 months (Ketubot 60b). For evidence of her divorced status ever be­ this reason, modem authorities have ruled comes necessary, the bet din will produce that the 90-day period is not waivable by the original from its archives. If either hus­ means of a sonogram or other early preg­ band or wife is unable to be present, the en­ nancy test (2 Otzar HaPoskim E.H. 13:5). tire procedure may be consummated via The delivery of a Get also triggers ali­ designated proxy, and the Mesader must en­ mony, child support, and custody rights but sure that all powers of attorney are in these are beyond the purview of this article. proper form. The details of the law of Jewish law treatment of child custody is agency are quite complex. Appropriate sparse (see Schaffer, 1984; Shareshersky, power of attorney forms can be found in the 1987; Warburg, 1981). There is an excel­ Appendix following the Shulchan Aruch lent though brief review of property rights E.H. 154. in Engel (1987). A divorced woman is free to marry any­ Interestingly, just as a civil divorce has one she chooses including her former no validity in the eyes of religious law, a re­ spouse except for the following: (I) a ligious divorce is not recognized civilly.