Monday, June 24, 2019

Retracting From A Conversion - Part 4

The Tur [268] writes that according to the Rif, טבילה is not effective at night [see there and in the Shulchan Aruch סעיף ג]. The Bach writes that the source is from what the Rosh writes in Yevamos [4-31] on the Gemara of "מי לא טבלה לנידותה" [that we quoted earlier]: 

"ומיהו קשה שטבילת נדה בלילה ולקמן (מו ב) אמרי' דאין מטבילין גר בלילה ותירץ רבינו מאיר ז"ל מדלא קאמר אין מטבילין גר בלילה מ"ט משפט כתיב ביה כדאמר גר צריך שלשה משפט כתיב ביה אלמא דלא גמרינן ליה ממשפט דאין לו דין משפט אלא לענין גוף הדבר שצריך שלשה אבל לא לזמן הטבילה. וגם פשטיה דקרא הכי איירי ושפטתם כתיב ביה דהוי שנים ואין ב"ד שקול ולילה לא הוי אלא מדרבנן ולכתחלה הוא דלא הא דיעבד שפיר דמי. אי נמי קבלת מצוה הוי כתחלת דין וטבילה הויא כגמר דין דהוי אפילו בלילה ומדרבנן הוא דבעינן ביום לכתחלה. ורב אלפס ז"ל כתב דלכתחלה בעינן שלשה דלא מנסבינן ליה בת ישראל עד דטביל בפני שלשה אבל בדיעבד לא פסלינן לבריה אם לא טבל בפני ג'". 


"This is difficult because the immersion of a Niddah must be at night and later on [46b] we say that a ger may not immerse at night [so how can the immersion of a Niddah count for geirus]? Answered R' Meir from the fact that it doesn't say that we may not immerse a ger at night because geirus is called משפט as it says that we require 3 judges for a conversion because it is called משפט [and a regular court case requires 3], we see that we only learn from משפט that the geirus itself requires 3 but not with regard to the time of the immersion. That is also the simple meaning of the pasuk ושפטתם  - you [plural] should judge, so that is two. There can't be an even numbered Beis Din [so we need 3]. Conducting a geirus at night is Rabbinically forbidden לכתחילה, but בדיעבד it counts. Or else, קבלת המצוות is like the beginning of דין and the טבילה is the גמר דין which may be done at night and only מדרבנן we require לכתחילה that it be done by day. The Rif wrote that that לכתחילה we require 3 and we don't allow such a ger to marry a Jewish girl until he immersed before 3 people but בדיעבד we don't disqualify his son if he didn't immerse in front of 3."

The Bach says that the implication of the understanding of the Rosh in the Rif is that the latter holds that לכתחילה a Beis Din is required and the conversion may not be carried out at night but בדיעבד no Beis Din is necessary and the conversion may be done at night. However the Bach and Gra [סקי"ז] asked that from that fact that the Rif only asked the question that the Gemara here says that a Beis Din is not needed and R' Yochanan says elsewhere that a Beis Din is needed implies that he is not at all bothered by the fact that the טבילה took place at night. So according to the Rif it seems that it is not at all a problem to convert at night. This is not like the Rosh understood the Tur that a night conversion is only valid בדיעבד!!?

The Bach and Gra remained with this question unanswered.