A First in the History of the Beis Din: A Wedding in the Divorce Room

A couple who had recently married came to the Beis Din two years ago. The woman was in an advanced stage of pregnancy and was demanding a divorce. The reasons to divorce didn’t seem serious, but the woman was determined. Rav Shatsman convinced the husband to fulfill her wish, saying that if he did so – thus preventing her sorrow, there was a chance that in a “second round” the marriage would be an eternal one. The husband accepted the Rav’s understanding and the two were divorced.

Following the divorce the woman gave birth to a girl, and the parents appeared several times at the Beis Din to discuss alimony, child support and visitation privileges. The father wanted to see his child as much as possible, while the woman was less interested. The woman also asked several times to increase her alimony, claiming that the payments were insufficient, while the ex-husband claimed that he was already paying more than he could afford.

Av Beis Din Harav Shlomo Shatsman who studied the state of their divorce, their connection to their infant daughter and their financial straits reached the conclusion that the best solution for all parties was their remarriage.

In an unprecedented step, the Rav stopped the deliberations and called both parties to his chambers, explained his way of thinking and suggested that they go on a “date” as if they were meeting for the first time and act as if they were two unmarried persons meeting in a shidduch situation. The two agreed and the Rav waited to see what would happen.

A few weeks later, the two came to the Beit Din and excitedly told the Rav that they had accepted his suggestion and wanted to remarry. They begged Rav Shatsman that he be the one to be mesader kiddushin. He happily agreed and the wedding was held Thursday afternoon in the Rabbinate offices in Tel Aviv where sounds of “kol sasson vekol simcha, kol hasan vekol kallah” were heard for the first time.

'בחדרי' גם ברשתות החברתיות - הצטרפו!