In this country (England)....sometimes one has to "swear" an oath for different things...

One such thing I will have to "swear" soon, is for permit to get married - I have to "swear" an oath that my finacee has been in the coutry for more than 7 days.

Can I lie. She wont be here for more than 7 days before obtaining the marriage permit.

Thanks

B"H
Dear "Anonymous Member,"
In many places we learn that swearing is a thing which is taken seriously, and how that we are not supposed to be over-loose in swearing.
The Midrashic literature brings down a story on how, during the days of Yannai, hundreds of towns and villages scattered across the mountainous regions of Samaria (Shomron) and Judaea, known as "Har Ha-Melech," all came to devastation because of their inhabitants being over-loose in swearing. And these were only swearing to confirm a statement of truth made by them! How much more then would it be wrong to swear on oath about what you presently know to be a lie!
Sincerely,
David Ben-Abraham

quote:

Originally posted by Anonymous Member:
In this country (England)....sometimes one has to "swear" an oath for different things...

One such thing I will have to "swear" soon, is for permit to get married - I have to "swear" an oath that my finacee has been in the coutry for more than 7 days.

Can I lie. She wont be here for more than 7 days before obtaining the marriage permit.

Thanks

Two points. One is that you shouldn't "swear" at all. In England you have the option of "affirming" which one should use in all cases where swaering an oath is required (e.g. affidavits, testimony in a court case, etc.)

The second point is that we are told "Mid'var sheker tirchok" meaning one should keep distance onself from an untruth.

So apart from any criminal sanctions that there are in English Law for making a false oath, the Torah also forbids it.

Any way that you could wait the seven days?

In the US a person can refuse to swear on an oath on religious grounds. Are we talking about the act of taking an oath or are we talking about the affirmation that something is actually true? The two are different issues.

Both, or so it would appear from the question.

I once helped a Jewish person who had to deal with the immigration service who needed an oath... they also thought they needed a physical appearance on Yom Tov.

The first level government workers were rather difficult to work with, knowing that they hold such power over an immigrant's future, but once we got the matter escalated to manager level, they were quite willing to replace the word swear with "attest" or perhaps "affirm". I think the former, but in deference to the U.K. standard, it might have been the latter. In fact it could be that the rabbi I consulted recommended the former, but they had known of the latter, and whatever was mumbled was sufficient. It was to them afterall just a formality.

Perhaps in this particular 7-day matter, if there is an expectation that the bride will be within the U.K. for a 7 day period extending a bit into the future, they would accept an affirmation that within a few days it will be said that she was there for 7 days?

Perhaps the principle that the sun never sets on the British Empire can be used to validate whatever a Jew says according to such government rules, in that wherever she was during the prior 7 days, at some point it was considered part of the U.K? Or should we only consider this type of maneuver after the fact?

B"H
Anonymous Member,
Why is it so important that your girlfriend not wait the seven-day period before obtaining her marriage certificate? At least then, you could swear on oath without having to lie.
Sincerely, David

David ben Abraham,
If she is taking her mikveh soon after arrival, you don't want her to wait too long. I'm assuming there will chupa right away. You don't want to hold back love birds.

B"H
O.K. Good enough reason for not postponing. The Chupah is done when the bride is clean from her natural purgation, &c. If they have already invited guests to the wedding, it's hardly likely that they will delay the marriage in order to accommodate for the British authority that issues marriage permits. It's even questionable if the authorities would be forthcoming and understanding had they been told the truth about the matter, and the complications involved. If there is a "loop hole" in their laws to say "I affirm" instead of saying "I solemnly swear," this would seem to be the best choice.
Sincerely,
David