עברית
Halachot and Customs
Why Is It Permitted for a Kohen to Marry a Widow
Question
A regular kohen is permitted to marry a widow.
1. How is it that the Torah permitted a widow?
2. What is the difference between a widow and a divorced woman? It seems that the two cases are similar.
Answer
To the questioner,
1. The parameters of the Torah's commandments do not operate according to our limited understanding, but are given according to the wisdom of the Creator of the world, and very often their reason is hidden and profound beyond us.
2. According to my limited understanding, the matter makes sense, since regarding a divorced woman it is written in the Torah (Deuteronomy 24:1), "for he has found some unseemliness in her" - meaning that there was some flaw in the woman in her husband's eyes, as explained in the Gemara Gittin (page 90). By contrast, with a widow, it is not apparent that there was any flaw in her; rather, her mind is inclined to remember her first husband (as explained in Sefer HaChinuch, mitzvah 273), and therefore she is not fit for the Kohen Gadol.
With blessings,
Rabbi Nachum
