BS"D

To one of the rabbi's,
Can some-one tell me why it is so hard to get a get al tnai ? Before we got married my husband and I verbaly agreed that there should be a get al tnai. There are many agunot today because there husbands have disapeared, King David created this form of protection. Why can't we get it today ?!

The Rama (Even Ha'Aezer 145:9) says one should not give a Get Al T'nai and Rav Moshe Feinstein in Igros Moshe Even HaEzer 1 Siman 147 quotes this Rama and writes that if one did, then one would be forbidden to be alone with his (now conditionally divorced ex-)wife. Hence in only execeptional circumstances can such a Get be given.

Isn't a Get given if the husband is going out to war?

What is a get al tnai?

Literally, "A Get is given on condition". In case something happens, the Get is valid at that point.

quote:

Originally posted by sam-:
Isn't a Get given if the husband is going out to war?

But those are deemed exceptional circumstances.

Daniella, what sort of conditions do you mean?

Well now we are getting into one of the big problems of our time. The term get al tenai is pretty much restricted going to war in our time. The British rabbinate did issue them during WWII. We consider using it in Israel, but the Govt nixed it as they thought it would be bad for morale. (Do to the work of the Army Rabbinate, there have been no agunot from any of the recent wars. The last big case was the sinking of the Dakar submarine which was lost at sea.) In the gemara, get al tenai is something like if I am not back in 30 days, you are divorced. There is not question whatsover in the gemara as to its validity.
What is under debate is prenuptial agreements which have several proponents (like Rav Riskin) but some also in the Cheredi community. This would be a pledge to grant a divorce without extorting the wife and to pay a penalty in case of not fulfilling a divorce decree by the bet din. One could also determine the status of the children at that time. The reason it is painful subject is that the torah is suppose to be Darchei Noam, a beneficial not harmful set of laws, e.g. we do not use poisionous plants for doing miztvot. The large secular community in Israel which have no choice but to marry by Jewish Law (nearly all of which they haven't the foggiest notion of) suffer by husbands who refuse to give divorce or only if she pays exhorbitant blackmail. There is ample precedent. The German Jews for many years had the brothers sign a contract that they would not blackmail the wife if she was a yibum. Sephardic jews wrote all sorts of things in their marriage contracts like the husband agrees not to take a second wife.
The alternative is civil marriage in Israel which maybe better than the current situation where 20% or more of the couple just live together rather than risk contact with the extremely unsympathetic Israel Bet Din. This has nothing to do with Halacha, they are just uncivil to people.


Aryeh Shore

quote:

Originally posted by Yisroel Phillips:

quote:

Originally posted by sam-:
Isn't a Get given if the husband is going out to war?

But those are deemed exceptional circumstances.

Are there any other circumstances too, that would apply? Or just this one case?