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How does chalitzah release a yevamah—is it simply canceling the mitzvah (מצוה) of yibum, or is it a full matir of the issur? The shiur analyzes a kal vachomer in the Gemara (גמרא) comparing chalitzah to get, unpacking whether chalitzah functions as a matir issur or a kinyan. Rashi (רש"י) and Tosafos (תוספות) diverge sharply on whether get itself works as a kinyan or purely as a dissolution of marriage, leading to different readings of the entire sugya.
The shiur opens with the famous Gemara (גמרא) on Yevamos 3a concerning a yevamah who cannot be released with a get but can be released with chalitzah. The Gemara initially suggests a kal vachomer: if chalitzah works to permit a yevamah (and matir the issur of the zika to the yavam), then kal vachomer chalitzah should also work to permit a regular married woman (issur eishet ish). The Gemara rejects this with the principle of "sefer koresu v'ein davar acher koresu"—the Torah (תורה) prescribed a specific document (get) for divorce, and no other method may be used. Rabbi Zweig explores the mechanics underlying this kal vachomer. The central question is: what is chalitzah actually doing? Is it merely removing the obligation of the mitzvah (מצוה) of yibum (a hafka'ah of the mitzvah), or is it actively permitting the yevamah by dissolving the zika (a matir issur)? If chalitzah is only a way to escape a mitzvah, the kal vachomer fails entirely—there is no logical connection between "how to avoid a mitzvah" and "how to dissolve a marriage." The fact that the Gemara makes the kal vachomer at all teaches that chalitzah must be a matir—it actively permits the woman by removing the issur of zika. The shiur emphasizes that zika itself is an issur; chalitzah is matir that issur, not just a procedural exit from yibum.
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Yevamos 3a
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Why does the Gemara present a kal v'chomer for chuppah making kiddushin based on kesef not being maichel b'terumah, only to reject it? The shiur reveals that even the rejected kal v'chomer establishes a fundamental yesod: kiddushin is a kinyan for ishus (marital relationship), not merely a kinyan in hilchos kinyanim. The second kal v'chomer—from chuppah being gomeres—raises Tosafos's famous question.
Is the kesef used in kiddushin a true kinyan (acquisition), or merely a symbolic means of establishing marriage? The shiur analyzes multiple interpretations of the Gemara's derivation from ki yikach ki'ach mi'Sayeffron, exploring whether marriage constitutes ownership, and develops three fundamental approaches: (1) The Gemara proves ishus is a kinyan, (2) ishus is not a kinyan but uses kinyan-like means, or (3) ishus is a kinyan but the kesef may not be a ma'aseh kinyan. The Rambam's position—calling kesef "midivrei sofrim"—is explained as distinguishing between cross-referencing concepts versus borrowing terminology.
Why does the Mishna alternate between the language of "kinyan" (acquisition) and "kiddushin" (sanctification) when describing marriage? The shiur develops a fundamental distinction: marriage has two separate aspects—a kinyan dimension (ownership) and a kedusha dimension (sanctified relationship). Either aspect can initiate the bond, and understanding this dual nature resolves multiple textual and halachic questions throughout the sugya.
Does kiddushei shetar require a shevah pruta? The Ran presents two approaches to the Rif's position. The shiur develops the Ran's second pshat that shetar kiddushin functions as a hachnah (exchange) rather than a mere kinyan nesina. This reading has profound implications for isuri hana'ah, mechubar, and the relationship between kesef and shetar.
