י״ח באב ה׳תשע״ה (August 3, 2015)

Nedarim 71a-b: On the Same Day

We have been discussing cases where the father or the husband have the right to annul the vows of their daughter or their wife by the power of hafara, or, alternatively, they can make a statement that is mekim: that ratifies the neder. On yesterday’s daf we learned that a statement of approval can be made indirectly, by agreeing to take a similar neder on themselves, for example.

Our Gemara asks what effect divorce might have on the neder? Is it also a statement of approval, or perhaps it is an unrelated event that will have no effect on the vow whatsoever. The Gemara explains that this question is important for deciding the issue of the couple that divorces and remarries the same day. If we view the divorce as a statement of support, then even after they remarry he cannot nullify the vow. If the divorce is no worse than remaining silent, then he will still be able to nullify the vow once they remarry.

The Ran explains that a divorce may be considered approval of the vow, since the husband recognizes that once they are divorced the vow will remain in effect. Therefore from his actions we must conclude that he desired his wife to keep the neder. Another approach is to say that the divorce shows that he dislikes her and leads to the conclusion that he is perfectly comfortable with the fact that she will remain obligated by her vow.

The Rosh points out that our Gemara’s emphasis on the fact that they might remarry the same day teaches that once the day is over it is clear that he has lost the ability to nullify the vow, even if they remarry. This contrasts with the opinion of the Talmud Yerushalmi which rules that whenever the husband cannot perform hafara because of an outside impediment, that time is not considered to be significant with regard to this halakha, and he will retain the ability to do hafara at a later date