This siman is huge, one hundred and thirty-two paragraphs, I think an indication that it dealt with topics relevant throughout halachic history. [R. Moshe Lichtenstein once astutely pointed out that lived halachah generates more literature than theoretical, because—in my memory of what he said—as we live it, we see its weak spots, where it needs more insight and/or explanation, and it builds on itself.]
We do not have the space---and I, sadly, do not have the patience—to see it all. I will try to capture highlights, a tiny bit now and more to come. First step: the Torah requires a get, a bill of divorce, to name the man and woman. Should a man give a woman a document, in front of witnesses, and the document says “I divorce you, you are now free to marry other men,” it has no impact, because there are no names in the get. (They’re still fully married, he still has to provide her the usual financial support, and if she, God forbid, marries someone else, sincerely thinking she’s divorced, the children are mamzerim, will not be able to marry regular Jews).
This stems from the Torah calling the get a sefer keritut, a book of sundering, and such a book must articulate what happened between them, for which they must be named. Rambam included this in the ten essential parts of a get, a bill of divorce.
Although we do follow the view of R. Eliezer, edei mesirah kartei, the important witnesses are those who see a document handed from one party to the other, se’if two says everyone agrees the document itself must have their names, to be valid.
Father’s Names
More significant debate arose regarding either spouse’s father’s name. Rosh validated a get lacking one or both of the father’s names, as Tur and SA recorded. For one practical application, should a convert or someone who does not know the identity of their father get divorced, we just write the individual’s name in the get, no father.
Just a first name doesn’t give a lot of identification (a main reason for names), and people sometimes were known by different names in different places. Knesset HaGedolah reported Radvaz’ view, the scribe would write the name where the person lives. Others, including Noda Bi-Yehuda, thought we today always write the name used where the get was given to the woman, also making her father’s name more important to include.
Getting the Name Wrong
The importance of the name means, AH says in se’if seven, any change ruins the get, even if the scribe wrote “and any other name he or she has.” AH’s examples are of changes we might think inconsequential, such as Avram to Avraham or the reverse. Including a wrong name negates the get. This is true also of fathers’ names, even for those authorities who accepted gittin without the father’s name. Sometimes nothing is better than something; the wrong name is worse, because it gives wrong information.
Unless this person is commonly known by the wrong name, a circumstance AH tells us he will discuss in se’if 88. As will we, somewhere down this long road. Time for a break, to be picked up, God willing, next week.
