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The Prozbul

in Our Time

Rabbi Yosef
Zvi Rimon what is a prozbul? the court

When Hillel saw that the wealthy were refusing to lend “Shmuel said, ‘A prozbul is written only in either the Court
money to the poor and violating what is written in the of Sura or the Court of Neharda’” (Gittin 36b).
Torah – “Beware lest there be any reprobate thing in your The implication is that a prozbul may be written only in
heart…” (Devarim 15:9) – Hillel instituted the prozbul (an a court of note (Shulchan Aruch, Choshen Mishpat 67:18).
institution, proz, to encourage the wealthy, bul, to lend), However, Ramban (Sefer ha-Zechut, Gittin 18b) and others
which ensures that a loan will not be canceled due to argue that Shmuel’s view is not authoritative, and Rema
shemitta (Shevi’it 10:3–4). rules that a prozbul may be written in any court – especially
This is the substance of the prozbul: “I submit to you, such- today, when loans are canceled only by dint of rabbinic law.
and-such individuals, the judges in such-and-such place, The Rishonim also debate whether the court must be
that whatever debt is owed to me, I shall collect it at any present at the writing of the prozbul. Shulchan Aruch and
time I desire”, and the judges or witnesses sign below. Rema indicate that the judges do not need to be present
How could Hillel make loans stay in force after the end of (Choshen Mishpat 67:21). Accordingly, the practice is to
the shemitta year, thereby abrogating a law of the Torah? include in a prozbul the names of leading judges and to
According to Rava, Hillel was able to do so because a court read and sign it before two witnesses. Nevertheless, Rabbi
has the authority to declare property ownerless, while Aharon Lichtenstein zt”l formulated a prozbul text that
Abayei argues that Hillel could enact the prozbul because accommodates both views. It includes the names of major
nowadays shemitta observance is required only by rabbinic judges, but is signed by three individuals instead of only
law (Gittin 36a–b). two. This way, if the halachah requires the judges to be
present, the signatories are considered judges rather than
witnesses.
how prozbul works
“One who submits to a court – the debts owed him are not some practical advice
subject to cancellation” (Mishnah Shevi’it 10:2). • Specific borrowers’ names do not need to be included in
a prozbul. Instead, the prozbul says that the lender sub-
The Torah says to forgive loans to “your brother”. By using mits to the court everything he is owed by all borrowers.
this wording, it addresses a private person rather than a
court. The requirement to forgive a loan therefore does • The lender recites the text of the prozbul before the court.
not apply to a court, in keeping with the understanding The spaces for name, date, and place of preparation are
that the basis of this mitzvah is the prohibition against filled out, and then the court signs.
showing ownership of money. No such law exists regarding • For a joint account owned by a husband and wife, both
something that belongs to a court, because the judges are their names are simply written down. If the wife has a
not owners of the object, but representatives of the public separate account or has made separate loans, the hus-
(Sifrei, Re’eh 113; Yerushalmi 10:1). band must ask to be his wife’s agent and add to the text
of the prozbul that he is also acting for his wife.

timing
A prozbul is written in the month of Elul at the end of a conclusion
shemitta year; it cannot be written after Rosh Hashanah, After filling out a prozbul, some individuals go out of their
because by then the debt has been erased. At first glance, way to make a loan, even a small one, to fulfill the mitzvah
it would seem that a prozbul should be prepared on the last of relinquishing a loan.
day of Elul, to prevent the cancellation of all loans made May Hashem always nourish us with dignity, and never
until then. However, many permit writing a prozbul from with loans or gifts from other human beings!
A member of
the Mizrachi the beginning of the month, based on the halachic rule that
Speakers Bureau unless otherwise stated, a loan comes due no earlier than Rabbi Yosef Zvi Rimon is Head of Mizrachi’s Educational Advisory
mizrachi.org/ thirty days after it is given. Therefore, any loans extended Board and Rabbinic Council. He serves as the Rabbi of the Gush
speakers during Elul are not canceled. Etzion Regional Council and is the Founder and Chairman of Sulamot.

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