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1. He will be unable to see traffic islands and signs.
2. He will be unable to measure distance adequately.
3. It will be difficult for him to discern upcoming curves in the
road in time. IS A PHYSICIAN ALLOWED
4. He will have difficulty in judging the distance from the road to TO WRITE A FALSE REPORT
the sidewalk. IN ORDER TO RELEASE
55 AN AGUNAH (“CHAINED
Therefore if a driver with 6/30 vision is seen by a physician, it is clearly WOMAN”)?
the physician’s obligation to void his driver’s license. The same proba-
bly applies to a driver with 6/21 vision who is a possible danger to the
public. However, if his vision is 6/15, where the danger is distant, it is
difficult to say that this takes on the halachic status of “a ditch in the
public domain,” or that the physican who looks away is violating “Do 1
not stand idly by the blood of your fellowman.” After all, there is no Question
significant difference between 6/12 and 6/15 vision. To the honored Rav…shlit”a
If so, should one deprive him of his livelihood because of a distant Recently, I was involved in an issue where a physician was asked to
concern? write a false document in order to save an agunah. The story was as
After I looked into this topic and discussed it with my father-in- follows:
law, Rav Y. S. Elyashiv, it seems that it would be proper to cancel A couple lived in peace and tranquility and raised a beautiful fam-
his driver’s license even at 6/15 vision, since there is danger caused ily. Then a cult of Christian missionaries caught the naive husband
by this sort of driver. The public has the right to impose restrictions in their net. They converted him to Christianity and he began to
and limitations when allotting someone a driver’s license, in order to practice Christianity at home. His wife was disgusted with him and
ensure that only those who are absolutely fit will be on the road, and asked the beis din to free her from the chains that bound her to this
so that with Heavenly assistance, no tragedy will occur. apostate. The beis din summoned the apostate husband, and asked
The public has the right to enact decrees for its benefit. In maseches him to give his wife a get. He refused, claiming he was a Christian, and
Bava Basra (8b) it says: “The people of a city have the right to regulate Christians do not give a get. The head of the beis din tried to convince
the price of wheat and wine and the salary of workers and to super- him that even among Christians there are divorces. He told the judge
vise and control the prices” (i.e. to fine anyone who does not abide by that Christians who divorce their wives are fakers, but that he is a true
the prices they set, according to the Torah law (Rashi)). If so, when Christian who will not divorce his wife. The woman cried in the beis
the authorities decreed for the public benefit and with their consent din about her terrible situation and pleaded with the dayanim to find
that a driver with less than 6/12 meter vision does not have the right her a way out. The family thought of lying to the husband, telling him
to a driver’s license, they were halachically permitted to do so. Thus, that his wife had become unfaithful to him and had become infected
revoking his license is not a violation of his right to a livelihood, since with AIDS. In such a case, even according to Christianity, it would be
his source of income violates halachah. The Torah view would be that permissible to divorce her.
312 1 Medical-HalacHic Responsa of Rav ZilbeRstein False report in order to release agunah 2 20818_efi-ab - 20818_efi-ab | 10 - B | 18-08-20 | 13:29:02 | SR:-- | Cyan 20818_efi-ab - 20818_efi-ab | 10 - B | 18-08-20 | 13:29:02 | SR:-- | Magenta 20818_efi-ab - 20818_efi
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# 20818_efi-ab - 20818_efi-ab | 10 - B | 18-08-20 | 13:29:02 | SR:-- | Magenta #20818_efi-ab - 20818_efi-ab | 10 - B | 18-08-20 | 13:29:02 | SR:-- | Yellow
