Talmud Bavli
Talmud Bavli

Responsa for Yevamot 73:17

אביי סבר לה כשמואל דאמר הלכה כהלל ומוקי לה רבי אליעזר בן יעקב אליבא דהלכתא כי היכי דלא תקשי הלכתא אהלכתא

nor those of doubtful, with those of confirmed illegitimacy; nor those of doubtful, with others of doubtful illegitimacy. And the following are of doubtful legitimacy: The shethuki,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' [H] (rt. [H] 'to be silent'), he who knows his mother but does not know who was his father (v. Kid. 6); who 'keeps silent' about his origin. ');"><sup>41</sup></span> the asufi<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' [H] (rt. [H] 'to gather') a child picked up in the street, and whose fatherhood and motherhood are unknown (v. Kid. l.c.); 'a foundling'. ');"><sup>42</sup></span> and the Samaritan.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Kid. 74a. In all these cases the legitimacy is doubtful: in the first two, because the father is unknown; and in the last, because the Samaritans did not observe all the laws of betrothal, and any Samaritan might be the issue of an illicit union between his father and a woman who had been legally betrothed to another man. ');"><sup>43</sup></span>

Teshuvot Maharam

Q. A, of priestly lineage, married a nursing widow, Leah. Before the marriage took place, Leah, following the advice of Rabbi Jacob (of Cracow), gave her infant to a wet-nurse who made a vow Al Daat Rabbim (the interpretation of said vow to lodge with an undetermined number of people, and, therefore, incapable of annulment) not to resign her position till the infant be of age to be weaned (two years). Many have disputed the efficacy of this procedure, and gave their opinions that A must divorce Leah. Rabbi Jacob pleaded that A be not required to divorce Leah since A, being of priestly lineage, would not be able to remarry her after the two year period of nursing be over.
A. A person who married a nursing widow must divorce her, even though he was of priestly lineage and consequently could not remarry her, once he divorced her. The wet-nurse's vow is of no avail since her husband could annul it even though it was made Al Daat Rabbim.
SOURCES: Pr. 864; Tesh. Maim. to Nashim, 24; cf. R. Asher, Responsa, 53, 2; Tur Eben Haezer 13.
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