To be clear, my beef here is with rabbis who insist they must be in the room the whole time watching.
For those who want to learn more about how this happens in Israel, check out the documentary film
מעשה באישה וחלוק
by @Nurit_Jacobs woman.aluma-films.com
And this woman’s testimony where the rabbis walked into the room while she was buck naked m.ynet.co.il/articles/45965…
This clip from @Nurit_Jacobs‘s documentary is enlightening for those unfamiliar:
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Note that this monthly fine was approved by the same R Lau who opposes all halachic prenups, which work by requiring the recalcitrant party to pay the other a monthly sum until the get is given.
What’s the difference here? >>
1) Well, with a halachic prenup, both men and women can use it to extract themselves from get refusal; here, the beit din will only levy fines on a woman but never on a man (because of the concern of a “forced get”)
And
2) With a halachic prenup, the victim can go to a civil court and directly enforce the financial support clause, without needing the beit din's approval; here, only the beit din can control who is allowed to get help, who does not, and when.
#DidYouKnow that we once had a client who was stuck as an agunah, though her husband had died, because she could not perform halitza with her brother-in-law since his foot had been amputated due to diabetes complications?
Learn more about this story and other cases of halitza in this episode of @cwjisrael’s Hebrew podcast!
יבום וחליצה 2020 במדינת ישראל - זה קורה גם היום cwjpodcast.libsyn.com/episode--2020
*Correction: she was not a client of ours, rather a case in a psak din that one of our to'anot had encountered
Buckle up and get your barf bags ready, because it's time for another episode of #RealStoriesFromTheRabbinicCourt, #InternationalWomensDay2020 & #AgunahDay edition. This morning, the State Rabbinic Court published a new decision (by the Petach Tikvah Rabbinic Court, 4.3.20): 1/x
Case details: A young woman married 3 years ago. Shortly after the wedding, she discovered that her husband was schizophrenic and had actively hidden that fact from her—as well as from their matchmaker and rabbis—before the wedding.
2/x
She describes his troubling and violent behavior to the court, corroborated by professional psychiatric reports (which also note his refusal to take his prescribed medication following the wedding).
3/x
No one should have to “earn” their freedom by suffering violence. That the rabbinic court—essentially, the state—is using its authority to perpetuate this is violence on an institutionalized scale.
Thread:
1/
A woman flees home following a violent outburst by her husband and his threat to murder her. She requests a divorce. The rabbinic court rules: This is only the first incidence of violence and therefore, she has no grounds for divorce.
2/
A quote from the rabbinic court’s ruling: “The husband threw an object at the woman and used an expression that frightened the woman when he said that he would ‘dig her grave.’ As a result of the incident, the woman left the home and did not return… >>
3/
Cavalier cruelty, all in a day's work.
Thread about a client from @cwjisrael: 1/
2/ This past Sunday, after five hours of hearings—during which a @cwjisrael client caved to all kinds of extortion, like waiving child support, in order to receive her get—we sat with her in the hall and waited to be called back in for the get ceremony.
@cwjisrael 3/
At least it’s over, we tried to comfort her. After six years of suffering as an agunah, at least you can put it all behind you and begin a new chapter of your life.
There are so many questions here--ethical, moral, religious, legal. But even without all of those, the cruelty and disregard for this woman and her agency over her own life is just shocking. @cwjisrael
Thread: 1/
@cwjisrael 2/
A woman came into our @cwjisrael office with an ultimatum given to her by her estranged husband, who has been refusing to give her a get (Jewish bill of divorce) for the past two years.
What price has he set for her freedom?
@cwjisrael 3/
The couple had undergone some IVF cycles in the past, and the woman had had severe, life-threatening reactions to the treatments. One frozen embryo remained in storage after the process.