|
A woman who is divorced (i.e. she received a get [Jewish divorce document]) or widowed, must wait ninety days (not including the day of death/divorce, or the day of the subsequent wedding) before remarrying. This rule was imposed by the sages in order to distinguish between the children of the first and second husbands. If she were to remarry immediately and shortly afterwards she discovered that she was pregnant, the resulting child would be of uncertain pedigree. This would affect many areas: inheritance, relatives whom he/she may not marry, the child's status as Kohen, Levite, or Israelite, etc
tHis rule was imposed by the sages in order to distinguish between the children of the first and second husbandsA divorced man may remarry immediately.
A widowed man technically must wait for the passage of three major festivals (Passover, Shavuot and Sukkot) before remarrying. The Sages did not want the man's mourning for his deceased wife to interfere with the joy of his new marriage. There are, however, many exceptions to this rule. Examples: if the man has not yet fulfilled his obligation of bearing children or if he has young children who needs a mother-figure to tend to them. In case of need, a competent rabbi should be consulted to evaluate each individual case on its own merits.
|
