The story began some ten years ago, when a man and woman, parents of four children, decided that their marriage was over. They succeeded in reaching a civil court agreement on guardianship of the children and property division, but the actual get (divorce papers) never materialized. The woman finally turned to the Rabbinical Court in the hope that it could facilitate the get.
However, the husband maintained that he still had some outstanding monetary claims, and that only the civil court could adjudicate them. "Regarding financial issues," explained Rabbi Eliyahu Maimon, head of the Rabbinical Court's Division for Agunot (literally, chained women), to the Kipa website, "there was nothing we could do to advance the process."
But the court could – and did – inform the husband that it was obligating to give the get even before the monetary issues were finalized. The court told him that if he did not do so, sanctions would be placed upon him. The husband wasted no time, and disappeared.
Specifically, he left his hometown and did not accept mail or phone calls. He also, as was learned only recently, assumed a new name and lived in a non-registered, one-room apartment in Givat Ze'ev, north of Jerusalem. His family helped him remain incognito, and in fact, neither the woman nor the courts were able to locate him.
A year ago, the Rabbinical Court decided to involve the Agunot Division. "We hired a private detective," Rabbi Maimon said, "but he was unable to find the recalcitrant husband, whose family misled us in many ways. We ultimately hired another private eye, and he succeeded in finding him."
It happened a week ago. The investigator discovered that the man was living in Givat Ze'ev, working as a photographer under a new name. He stayed away from public transportation and attempted not to be seen.
Two nights ago, Rabbi Maimon recounts, "we followed him as he rode his electric bicycle home. There he was placed under arrest, sat in jail for 24 hours – and this morning he gave the get."
Rabbi Maimon expressed his satisfaction that the woman's ten-year nightmare was ended, but said, "It's too bad it didn't happen earlier. We arrest some 30-50 men each year for this purpose, and 95% of them give a get within a day of being arrested. In this case, the man gained nothing over these ten years, other than having to live underground for all that time. We would like to make it clear to everyone: A man who refuses to give a get – there is no point in hiding."
Rabbinical Court sources reported at the end of 2014 that there were 180 cases of '"chained" women whose husbands refuse to give them divorces – and 190 cases of men in a parallel situation.
19 comments:
Poor Lonna, my heart breaks for her.
The Get refuses are of course to be condemned and incarcerated for their behavior.
But a greater outrage should be directed against the repellent Get Halacha that enables these miscreants. Trash the Halacha and the issue disappears.
Those that refuse to change this noxious Halacha are as culpable as the Get refusers.
Abe sounds like one of our guys with his trashy talk about halacha.
And that anger sounds just about right after a 6 pack of Pabst or some other low cost watery beer.
Why do you keep on insulting Kin's new wife? There are plenty of rabbis who told her that Kin did nothing wrong. So even if you are 100% correct about Kin, what does she know? And maybe she is Sefardic background who are not bound by Rabbeinu Gershom of only one wife.
DIN- You delete Neturei Karta comments (rightfully so) but you don't delete the apikores Abe 1:01 comments? Come on.
What about the 100s of chained kids at home because the selfish lowlives running the elementary yeshivos won't let them in?
I am certainly not one of your guys because my guys employ logic, reason and common sense. While your guys are limited in the expression of those attributes because your education never permitted your ilk to progress beyond 3 digit long division and Dick & Jane readers.
There are some things that deserve to be trashed. Sharia and some aspects of pernicious Halacha like Get and Metzita B'Peh are examples. And there are many more but I can't enumerate them all right now. I just read some headlines about the ongoing pedpphilia and larceny endemic in your Kehilla and need a stiff drink to drown the sorrows reflective of what once was a moral and compassionate religion.
But cheap beer won't do it. Only a couple of shots of 100 proof Grey Goose vodka will accomplish that task
Even worse than both the gorilla and the transgender nonsense is this week the husband who saw his wife being raped by an attacker who ripped her clothes off in broad daylight and was forced to defend her by beating the criminal to death - was ARRESTED by the de Blasio controlled NYPD.
The rabbonim found a way to let the lender collect after shmittah...the pruzbul, calling private loans public, which of course they are not. The rabbonim found a way to let us keep chometz over Pesach, the "sale" to a non-Jew, which is no sale at all since it is contemplated at the outset that the chometz will return to the Jew immediately after Pesach. Now it is time for the rabbonim to find a way to allow a woman to escape the get law which evil Jews use to punish, torment, and torture women, often in their child bearing years. Who is the rabbi with the courage to lead this effort...he can be sure to be condemned in many circles, just as the Rambam was condemned and his books burned....but it is time now. If not now, when?
Anonymous 9:27
You're a fool. Many well regarded rabbanim have attempted to solve the Get crisis by employing the use of Halachic mekach taos, only to be cast aside by misogynistic automatons like you.
6:06
are you living on this planet? Wouldn't a normal person think that it is very strange that where ever the Bugeye goes there are protests ...why would a normal person get into bed with a guy that is hated ...
What Rabbi says he didn;t do anything wrong? Are you insane .... he left a woman as an aguna....
She is a skank...because only a skank would marry such a sick lunatic!
Not only is Abe one of us but he is also a Reformer.
"Halachic" mekach taus has not been employed for the last 2000 years in 99.9% of cases except by heretics of various stripes: Reform, Conservative & Open "Orthodox".
The last protest against Kin was at his wedding. How many years ago was that?
And of course you don't agree with them to put it mildly but you know darn well there are many rabbis who support Kin. You have already trashed some of them on the blog.
You don't think Kin had the rabbis on his side tell the new wife to ignore the protesters? And frankly some of the protesters who have been active for Tamar Epstein are way over the top so if they also participate in the Lonna-Kin dispute, they probably create more enemies of Lonna than they do of Kin.
10:42
The only Rabbi that supports this cruel bastard, is Mr. Gestatner and his mafia cronies, who ownd a fraudulant Bais Din in Monsey... Gestatner would do anything for money even to defend Eichman if necessary ..
And there is no "Lonna-Kin" dispute ... there is only a sick mamzer who was married three times and now refuses to give his wife a get while marrying some Spanish Skank ...
Come on DIN, surely you know that all the rabbis who are against the feminist get movement are against Lonna. And they respect Dayan Gestetner for standing up to feminists.
And just being factual here, it is well known Dayan Gestetner does not take money for any din Torah, gittin or Choshen Mishpot monetary disputes. He has said himself that taking money corrupts the other beis dins. And he is right!
Do you know how much money the corrupt ones take? Reuvein Feinstein there are public filings he took $3 million from Tropper. Belsky took at least $250,000 for the Schattner get. Hershel Schlechter is dragged into the feminist cases when the families like Tamar Epstein's are very wealthy. It is not known exactly the dollar amount but he does not come cheap, just like with that fake gerus for the Donald's tochter.
11:32
Tell your friend that scum bag, Kin ...to give the get!
Of course this woman hating bastard Gestetner will invalidate the GET because it was forced from the husband.
Get ready for PASHKVILIM from this evil monster who will give out a PSAK DIN that this poor unfortunate poor woman cannot remarry with this GET,and if she does and has children they will be declared MAMZERIM
As annonymous 9:53 pointed out, Gedolim of past generations found a way to change Halacha when Halacha became oppressive to their communities.
The difference between those Gedolim and your present day gedolim is that those Gedolim had the courage to make the change. Unfortunately the actions of present day daas torah simpletons resonate very nicely with their misogynistic cowardice.
It's not a matter of reform. Halacha has been modified many times over the last 2000 years.
Your incapacity to recognize the changes and apply similar avenues of redress to contemporary halachic issues makes you no better than the fundamentalist Shia and Sunni crazies.
The modification of repellent Get Halacha will effect nothing except the emancipation of these agunas from the control of today's daas torah dimwits. The planets will continue in their orbits and the tides maintain their ebb and flow . Only our respect for women would change for the better.
Only know-nothings & Reformers think halacha is as simple as hey we can do whatever we want as rabbis did 2000 years ago.
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