Talmudic & Halachic sources related to Christianity

The Bible is explicit about divorce and remarriage. In the Torah, Moses permitted a man to obtain a divorce on just about any grounds.

"If a man marries a woman who becomes displeasing to him because he finds something indecent about her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce, gives it to her and sends her from his house, and if after she leaves his house she becomes the wife of another man, and her second husband dislikes her and writes her a certificate of divorce, gives it to her and sends her from his house, or if he dies, then her first husband, who divorced her, is not allowed to marry her again after she has been defiled. That would be detestable in the eyes of the Lord. Do not bring sin upon the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance" (Deuteronomy 24:1-4).

Later on, in the New Testament, when Jesus was asked about divorce, He replied that Moses gave permission to divorce because of the hardness of their hearts. He said that in the beginning it was not this way. Jesus continued,

"Haven't you read that at the beginning the Creator 'made them male and female,' and said, "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh?" So they are no longer two but one. Therefore what God has joined together, let man not separate" (Matthew 19:4-6).

Using Jewish versus General Dates

Most halachic authorities do not broadly uphold the obligation to use a particular system of months, the Hungarian tradition treats the matter with utmost stringency. According to Chasam Sofer (Toras Moshe, Parashas Bo), there is an obligation to begin one’s letters with the number of the day of the week (counting from Sunday), and the number of the month (counting from Nissan): «This is an explicit rebuke [to those who do not use the Jewish calendar]: We should write in our letters and similar documents the first day of the week, first month of the year, and so on, to testify that Hashem created the world in six days, ‘and He rested on the seventh,’ and to remember the redemption from Egypt—and not Heaven forbid, the date of the nations.»

Chasam Sofer reiterates his stance in his homilies (Homily for Seventh of Av, 570), in which he writes: «Those who want to reform, and begin their letters with the year of the birth of the Christian messiah, are writing and signing away their portion for the world to come!» According to Chasam Sofer, there is a prohibition in using secular dates, concerning the days of the week, the months of the year, and the year itself.

This principle is clearly illustrated in the writings of Maharam Schick (Yoreh De’ah, no. 171) the foremost disciple of Chasam Sofer. He explains that besides the prohibition of using non-Jewish months (as drawn from Ramban), using the secular count of years transgresses the prohibition of «You shall not mention the names of other gods,» because the count is based on the Christian idolatry. Based on this ruling, he writes that a tombstone on which the secular date is inscribed must be smashed.

Other Opinions

Many modern day authorities take a more lenient stance than that of Chasam Soferand his disciples.

One of the most interesting and comprehensive halachic discussions of the subject is found in Yabia Omer (vol. 3, Yoreh De’ah, no. 9). Rav Ovadyah Yosef challenges the very premise whereby the secular count of years dates back to the birth of the Christian ‘savior’. Citing numerous proofs from Talmudic and other writings, Rav Yosef demonstrates that Yeshu lived long before [and at the very least four years before] the beginning of the Gregorian calendar. Quoting from Otzar Yisrael (vol. 5, p. 277) he proves that their year-count dates back to the Roman Empire, and not to the birth of Yeshu.

He adds that even if we do assume that those who use the secular dating system implicitly refer to the common presumption that the year refers to the birth of Yeshu, there would still be no prohibition of «going in their ways,» because this prohibition applies only to cases in which we do not know the rationale behind the non-Jewish ways, or cases in which the custom involves immodesty (Beis Yosef, Yoreh De’ah175). With regard to the dating system, these concerns do not arise.

He also notes that we find many Jewish leaders over the generations who used non-Jewish dates in their letters, such as Shach (who dates a letter February 3^rd, 1660),Maharam Padwa, and others. Moreover, the publication details of Torah volumes always made reference to non-Jewish dates, and never was an objection heard.

Indeed, there is known to be a letter from the Chasam Sofer on which the non-Jewish date appears. The letter was addressed to the secular government, and it was, of course, appropriate and necessary to use the secular date, yet we nonetheless see that the prohibition is not absolute. Regarding the strong wording ofChasam Sofer, Rav Ovadyah explains that he was referring specifically to those who were seeking to «reform» the traditional Jewish ways, and his strongly worded response was intended for them alone.

Finally, Rav Ovadyah concludes: «It is therefore clear that there is no prohibition whatsoever in using the secular date. Nonetheless, there remains a virtue [of using the Jewish date], and whenever there is no great need, the months and years should be written according to the dating of Israel—and particularly in our holy land. When there is a need to write the secular date, it is good to also make mention of the count of years from Creation.»

A very similar position to Yabia Omer is taken by Tzitz Eliezer (vol. 8, no. 8). Yet, the two disagree over the preferable way in which non-Jewish months should be written. According to Yabia Omer, it is preferable to write out the name of the secular month in full (January, February, and so on), and not to mention the number of the month, so as not to uproot the number of the month counting from Nissan. Tzitz Eliezer, however, writes that it is better to use the number of the month, and not to mention its name, because one should make no mention of the non-Jewish months, whose names derive from idolatry.

Although he opines that no prohibition is involved, Tzitz Eliezer writes that one who uses the non-Jewish count of years should append the word leminyanam orlemisparam (according to their count). If the Jewish count is also mentioned, he writes that the practice of mentioning both dates is unquestionably permitted.³

Summary:

• According to Ramban, there is a mitzvah to count the months from Nissan, the month on which we were redeemed from Egypt. Most commentaries maintain that this mitzvah would still apply today, though some maintain that there is no problem in using names for months, and the mitzvah only applies when one wishes to actually number the month of the year. It would seem that many authorities do not concur with Ramban, and maintain that there is no mitzvah of counting the months from Nissan.
• Authorities concur that it is preferable to use the Jewish dates, rather than secular dates, in writing letters and other documents. Some write that one should try to number the month in question (from Nissan).
• Most authorities write that there is no prohibition in using secular dates. The Hungarian tradition, however, sees the matter in a more stringent light.
• When using non-Jewish dates, most authorities maintain that one should write out the name of the month in full, rather than write a number. Some (Be’er Moshe) also write that one should seek to write the year in short rather than in full (10 rather than 2010).