THE BORROWED RING

When a chassan stands under the chuppah with a ring that isn't really his, does the marriage hold?

THE CASE

A chassan in the town of Tolmitch did not have a ring for his wedding. A married woman lent him hers as a matanah al menas l'hachzir, a gift on condition of return. The chassan placed the ring on the kallah's finger under the chuppah, the brachos were recited, and the couple began married life.

Then someone raised the alarm. The ring belonged to a married woman who had lent it without her husband's knowledge. And the foundational rule of kiddushin is that the chassan must give the kallah something of value that belongs to him. A serious question arose as to whether the kiddushin had taken effect at all.

WHAT'S INSIDE

Can we assume the husband doesn't mind? The Maharsham examines the principle of nicha lei and shows where it applies and where it falls short.

The woman who runs the household. When a wife actively manages the home's financial affairs, her authority over household property is considerably broader. The Maharsham finds here the legal linchpin of his ruling.

Can their married life validate the kiddushin? The Maharsham corrects his son's reasoning: living together only helps if there was conscious intent to create new kiddushin.

The p'sak. The marriage stands. But more than that: the Maharsham warns that casting doubt on the original kiddushin would itself cause harm to the family.

A father writing to his son. This teshuvah is addressed to the Maharsham's own son, Rabbi Yitzchak HaKohen of Bohorodyczyn. One sees a father guiding his son in the derech of psak, shoulder to shoulder.

Gut Shabbos!

The Maharsham Project • www.kechnia.org/maharsham
L’illui nishmas R’ Shalom Mordechai HaKohen Schwadron zt”l • [email protected]