Hot answers tagged age
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It certainly is difficult. Good question.
I think the Mishnah is demonstrating a technicality; that if this were done (with intent and witnesses), various laws of marriage would be binding (and then he would have to take care of her for life); not at all that this was a recommended practice!
A few points that can help a bit here:
The Torah said that ...
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R' J.H. Hertz, in his Chumash commentary, quotes someone (I forget who) who claims that the original version of the statement was in fact the other way around: Sarah was as beautiful at 100 as at 20, and as sinless at 20 as at 7.
However, R' S.R. Hirsch writes that the way we have it is correct. If I recall correctly, his point is something like this: We ...
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Vayikra 19:32:
מִפְּנֵי שֵׂיבָה תָּקוּם וְהָדַרְתָּ פְּנֵי זָקֵן
Berachos 8b:
והזהרו בזקן ששכח תלמודו מחמת אונסו, דאמרינן: לוחות ושברי לוחות מונחות בארון.
Sefer HaHinuch 257:
And for this reason, Issi Ben Yehuda said in the Gemara (Kiddushin 32b) that even a wicked old man [deserves honor]. That is, one who is not knowledgeable is ...
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Seder Hadorot tells us that Moshe Rabbeinu was born in the year 2368.
It then tells us that G-d spoke to Moshe at the burning bush on the 15th of Nissan in the year 2447. This would mean that Moshe had just turned 79 a little over a month before, on the 7th of Adar. Moshe then goes to talk to Pharoah when he is 79.
(Incidentally, the Seder HaDorot brings ...
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Rabbi Haim Vital in his introduction to Sefer Eitz Haim gives three pre-requisites to learn Kabbalah,
1) A person must be married
2) A person must have learned Gemarra for five years
3) A person must be 20 years of age.
Rav Ovadyah Hedayya(He was the Chief Kabbalist of Israel, as well as the Av Beit Din of Jerusalem, and Rav Ovadyah Yosef's Rav) in his seer ...
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Chayei Moharan perek 105 states that Rebbe Nachman of Breslev zy'a married shortly after his bar mitzva. I recall learning specifically that this was common practice at the time, but I cannot find this statement sourced in any of the commentaries. I may have heard it in a shiur covering the sefer.
In looking for it I saw a note saying that Yemei Moharnat ...
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I have no source for this, but I would guess that it has something to do with the fact that the Torah calls Yitzchak "שְׂבַע יָמִים" - "full of days" at his death (Bereshis 35:29), a description not given to the other avos at theirs. This would seem to imply that Yitzchak lived a "full" life in terms of length, i.e. he lived as long as he should have and as ...
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Levush (Orach Chaim 616:2) says that it is simply a matter of the Sages' grasp of human physiology: they knew that boys (usually) start developing signs of sexual maturity (specifically, two pubic hairs) at thirteen, and girls at twelve.
The Gemara (Niddah 45b) homiletically explains Gen. 2:22 (ויבן ה' אלקים) to mean that "women were given more ...
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Sefer Hayashar says that Haran was 42 when Sarai was born to him. Further on, it says that Haran died at age 82 (from being thrown into the fire with Avram), and that "at that time" Avram and Sarai married. So that would make them respectively 50 and 40.
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Strictly speaking, there is no upper age limit, though some have the custom to impose an across-the-board limit of age 70 (perhaps to kindly retire certain aged shochtim who won't admit to their waning stamina, and who cannot be forced out due to political considerations). On the Nirbater Rav's list of policies for the Meal Mart company under his hashgacha, ...
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As others have said, the Shach (the Sifsei Cohen), says that one must be 40 before they can learn kabbalah.
Others disagree:
Even though there is an opinion that one should not begin to study Kabbalah until the age of 40, the great masters of Kabbalah and Chassidut did not agree with this opinion. Some of the greatest teachers of Kabbalah--including the ...
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The worldwide experts in fertility and halacha are Machon Pu'ah. They have a questions & answers section on their website.
According to Rabbi Elhanan Lewis (link) it is permissible with halachic supervision.
I second the opinion to ask your local rabbi, and I think it is relevant to draw your rabbi's attention to Machon Pu'ah.
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http://www.aish.com/ci/s/48917052.html
The Rashbam explains that at 30 one is worthy of leadership. L'Havdil in order to be President of the USA you have to be at least 35. Orach Chaim 581:1 mentions that a Baal Tefila for the High Holy days should be at least 30. The Mishna Berura explains that at 30 one is humble and broken hearted.
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The Ibn Ezra discusses this in Gen 6:3
אבן עזרא בראשית ו:ג
והיו ימיו י"א שזה קצב כל האדם. ואם מצאנו יותר כן, מצאנו מעט, רק על הרוב ידבר. ואין זה אמת, כי הנה שם חיה שש מאות, וכל הדורות אחריו חיו שנים רבות. ובימי פלג חסרו השנים. ומימות דוד עד היום שבעים או שמונים שנה. והאמת מה שאמר המתרגם ארמית שנתן קץ לאדם, כטעם עוד ארבעים יום (יונה ג, ד). ואם ישובו ימלטו, ...
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In central and eastern Europe in the early modern period (even into the 19th century in Russia and Congress Poland) it was common for Jewish marriages to take place very young. This is especially true under Nicholas I, whose conscription policies (beginning 1827) specifically did not include married men. The tradition of "kest" (when a young bride and ...
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According to Seder Hadoros (Year 2217) Er and Onan were seven or eight years old when they married Tamar. I'd assume they died quite soon after.
However see Ibn Ezra to Breishis 38:1 who states that it was not possible to procreate until age twelve. He reconciles the 22 years by explaining that "At that time" could mean before the sale of Yosef. (Thanks ...
5
OK.
The reason is that according to halacha a hymen will regrow if ruptured before the age of three.1 For this reason, it is considered as if no sexual act has occurred as far as the girl is concerned, to the extent that her halachic status as a virgin has not changed. Hence, she is entitled to a minimum kesuba of 200 zuz, just as any other virgin is.2
...
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As far as I know, there are three approaches to this:
This was a natural occurrence. This is the opinion of Ramban, as is explained in this answer. This approach is also taken by R' David Tzvi Hoffman, who adds that given Avraham's lifespan at 175, his age at the time of marrying Keturah (about 140) is comparable to the age of 56 for someone of a more ...
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Regarding adult Brit for conversion where the man is not previously cirucumcised at least according to some people they do. Rav Mordechai Eliyahu writes such in his sefer on Milah Ozer Eliyahu 264:4. Rav Shlomo Shochet also writes that it is necessary in his sefer Milah Shleimah, 4:29(also see the Teshuvot he brings in chapter 12 and 13). His text is the ...
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Although, as @DoubleAA noted, Ibn Ezra, as well as other commentators, identify the relevant verse (Bereshis 6:3) to be referring to the deluge and irrelevant to the human lifespan in general, still other commentators (Abarbanel and Malbim are ones I know of) interpret this verse as placing a cap on the human lifespan. But how do they reconcile this with the ...
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I once heard an interesting approach to this Medrash. The Medrash does not mean that Sarah was as beautiful as seven year old when she was twenty. This as others pointed out is difficult to understand this way. A twenty year old is the prime of beauty. Furthermore, Why should Chazal be praising Sarah for her physical beauty. Why is this a quality that ...
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In this shiur (direct mp3 link) from Chayei Sarah 1973, hosted on Bergen County Beis Medrash Program's website, Rav Soloveitchik posits that it is a typo in Rashi, and Rashi's text should be rearranged.
I remember listening to the shiur and found it interesting that the Rav said that Rashi was quoting the Midrash correctly (i.e. the Midrash also had it ...
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The Ramban addresses this in his commentary to B'reishis 17:17. He explains that miracle of Yitzchok's birth was not the age of Avraham or Sarah (as Avraham later had children from Keturah (Hagar) when he was 140). At that time, as long as people remained fertile they could still conceive children past age hundred. Rather, the miracle was in the fact that ...
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An expansion on Shalom's answer taken from a different angle.
There is no need for apologetics those where the facts on the ground in Ancient civilizations.
There is a very basic problem with us Judging the Torah as the whole world had theses practices. Today it is Disgusting but the Torah is and was eternal and had to be relevant then too, it is a problem ...
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Rabbeinu Bachya says that she was at twenty like seven for beauty in that just like a seven year old is at a stage in which her beauty is increasing with maturation, so she was increasing in beauty at twenty when usually (at least in those days) a girl has reached her peak. He seems to find no problem with "At 100 like twenty for sin" but I did see somewhere ...
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Rav Ben Tzion Abba Shaul (Or LeTzion, Mussar, Shaar HaTorah, Maamar 7) writes that one should be 40 to learn Qabbala. Also, the Rokach writes in Sefer HaShem that one should 40 to learn the Qabbalistic Names of Hashem. However, the Kaf HaHaim Sofer (Orah Haim 155:12) writes that one should be twenty (see Mekubal's answer for the rest of his prerequisites).
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The Maskil LeDavid quotes the answer of the Mizrachi (brought by @GershonGold). However, he feels this answer is not so good since (In his version of Rashi 25:27) Rashi says that at age 13 Eisav went to houses of idol worship (unlike the version in our Chumashim, that says "Eisav went to worship idols"). If so, it would be hard to say it wasn't public.
He ...
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The Maskil LeDavid explains that Rashi implicitly addresses the repetition of "Shana" by Yishmael (see here).
Rashi (Bereshit 25:7) says that the repetition of Shana by Avraham is coming to tell us that Avraham was as free of sin at 100 as he was at 5 years old.
However, asks the Maskil LeDavid, according to some opinions, Avraham didn't recognize his ...
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The Lubavitcher Rabbi in the Sicha of Shabbos Balak 14 Tamuz 5750 explains that there are disputing Midrashim as to whether Yosef had Arichus Yamim (an extended life) or a shortened life. Midrash Mishlai 16 says בא ולמד מיוסף הצדיק, שמתוך שעמד ונתחזק בכבוד אביו במצרים זכה לעטרת שיבה, however Pirkai D'Rav Eliezer 39 says נתקצרו מחייו של יוסף י' שנים בגלל י' ...
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I have heard in the name of Rabbi Yitzchok Breitowitz that you may listen to kids music with your small children during sefira if you wouldn't listen to it by yourself (the vast majority of the stuff little kids seem to like). Perhaps a corollary is that by the time they start listening to decent music, it is time for them to stop during sefira.
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