Haifa, Israel – Rabbinical Court Voided Marriage By Invalidating Witness

Haifa, Israel – Following the decision to void the marriage of divorce refuser Oded Guez on Monday, the Rabbinical Courts Administration stated explicitly on Thursday that the ruling was made on the basis that one of the designated witnesses to the wedding was invalid.

A ruling to void a marriage is very rare and a step the rabbinical courts are usually hesitant to take because it is controversial, and the Haifa court therefore banned publication of the decision and the reasoning behind it.

Following an inaccurate report by another media outlet on Wednesday, the Rabbinical Courts Administration explained the circumstances behind the decision on Thursday. They have nevertheless kept the ruling sealed.

According to a statement to the press, the rabbinical judges interviewed one of the designated witnesses at the wedding who they found to have been non-religious at the time of the marriage, and lived a life “that was in total opposition to the Torah and commandments.”

The judges found that he violated Shabbat in public, including turning on lights, cooking and traveling in public, worked on Shabbat at one stage, and had sexual relationships outside of his marriage, but that this was unknown at the time to the rabbi performing the wedding.

Two friends of the witness also testified to the rabbinical court about the extent and nature of his non-religious lifestyle.

For a Jewish wedding to be valid, there must have been two valid witnesses who observe Jewish law, particularly Shabbat, who were designated at the wedding ceremony to be the official witnesses.

Because of the unique circumstances of the divorce case, and the vehement and unyielding position of Guez not to give his wife a divorce, the court sought a reason to retroactively void the marriage.

The fact that one of the witnesses was not religious at the wedding provided a perfect opportunity to invalidate the marriage.

The Haifa Rabbinical Court was praised for its decision which freed Guez’s wife, who had been an agunah for at least four years and could very well have been chained to the marriage for many years afterwards, given her ex-husband’s stance and the fact that he has fled the country and is yet to be expedited home.