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not cover up a severe blemish in members of his household when they
are seeking a mate, lest their spouses later claim the marriage was a
mistaken transaction. [If he has done so] he should rather separate
them so they not live together in sin. Thus one must deliberate, if a
blemish was concealed before the marriage, whether the marriage is
QUESTIONS THAT ARISE valid or not after the fact.
REGARDING REVEALING A It says in the Shulchan Aruch (Even Ha’ezer #39:4 in Rama) that
75 HEREDITARY DISEASE one of the blemishes which would invalidate a marriage is epilepsy in
a woman. It also says (ibid, #5) that if one simply marries a woman
and she is found to have one of the blemishes which disqualify wom-
en, they are only doubtfully married. The Ein Yitzchak (Vol. 1, Even
Ha’ezer #34) explains that a blemish in a man is different because
1 Question a woman would rather be married than single, (Kesubos 75a) and a
woman will take any man. However, if the blemish is epilepsy, the
The mother of a twenty-year-old son, an eighteen-year-old daugh- matter is not so simple. The Rama (there, #154:5) writes: If a man
ter, a fourteen-year-old son, and a nine-year-old daughter is having is an epileptic, some say that it is not a blemish and one does not
strong misgivings related to the difficult hereditary disease, Hunting- force him to divorce his wife. Nonetheless, we do not force her to
ton’s Chorea, from which her husband suffers. There is no cure for be with him since she came with a [valid] claim. Other poskim rule
this illness, and it generally appears suddenly, between thirty and fifty that epilepsy is considered a blemish in a man and one forces him to
years of age, without any precursory signs or symptoms. The patient divorce his wife. However, not all cases are the same. Some cases are
deteriorates in stages, at an individual pace over a period of ten-fifteen more severe than others, as explained below.
years. In general, the patient concludes his life in an institution for the It also says in the Shulchan Aruch (Even Ha’ezer #117:11) that if a
mentally ill, in a state of total dementia. person finds out that his wife is an epileptic and wants to divorce her
The father is presently 45 years old, and the external manifesta- but does not have enough to pay her kesubah, we force her to accept
tions of the disease are evident for all to see. The children see their the divorce. The decree of Rabbenu Gershom, which also forbids di-
father’s symptoms but have no idea about the characteristics of the vorcing a woman by force, does not apply to her. He gives her what he
disease and its ramifications for future generations. has and pays up the rest of the kesubah when he is able to do so. If she
The mother is seeking advice and raises the following questions: refuses to accept the get, he can deny her clothing, a house and sexual
1. Is she obligated to tell the children the details of their father’s satisfaction [a man’s obligation to his wife].
illness, when the knowledge may affect them negatively, causing, The Beis Shmuel writes (ibid #21) that the Shulchan Aruch is refer-
G-d forbid, depression or other even more serious effects? ring to a situation where the man’s wife became an epileptic after they
were married. It is considered as though the husband’s predestined
2. Will the children be permitted to hide the details of the illness misfortune (mazal) caused his wife to become sick. This resembles
from their future spouses?
a man who bought a field which the river flooded; his own mazal
3. How should the treating physician conduct himself, if he is caused the disaster. Therefore, the husband is obligated to pay her
54 1 Medical-HalacHic Responsa of Rav ZilbeRstein Epilepsy 2 79
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