Is Polygamy Permitted Today Under Jewish Law?
Why Rabbeinu Gershom’s Ban No Longer Holds in the Jewish State
By Ronen Kolton Yehuda (Messiah King RKY)
Introduction: From Exile to Restoration
For nearly a thousand years, Jewish life was shaped by the limitations and moral adaptations of exile. Among these was the Ban of Rabbeinu Gershom, a decree from 11th-century Christian Europe that prohibited a man from marrying more than one woman and from divorcing his wife against her will.
This decree, though meaningful in its time, was not divine law — it was a temporary social regulation created under foreign influence.
Now that the Jewish people live again in their own land and within a Jewish State, the question arises:
Is polygamy — multiple wives — still forbidden under Jewish law today?
The answer, both halakhically and logically, is no.
The ban was a product of exile and Christian moral pressure — not of the Torah itself.
In a sovereign Jewish State, it no longer applies.
1. The Ban Was Born in Christian Europe
Rabbeinu Gershom ben Yehuda (960–1028 CE), known as “The Light of the Exile,” issued his famous ban in medieval Germany.
Surrounded by a dominant Christian culture that strictly condemned polygamy, he sought to protect Jews from hostility, ridicule, and social isolation.
The ban was intended:
- To prevent persecution and suspicion;
- To stabilize small, vulnerable Jewish families;
- To align with Christian moral norms for safety.
It was never Torah law — only a protective decree for Jews living under Christian rule.
2. Halakhic Principle: When the Cause Ends, the Decree Ends
The Talmud teaches:
“A decree enacted for a specific reason ceases when that reason no longer applies.”
(Rosh Hashanah 32b)
The reason for the ban was clear — Jewish subordination to Christian society.
Today, Jews are free and sovereign in their own country.
The external cause that justified the ban no longer exists.
Therefore, according to halakhic logic, the decree is void.
3. The Jewish State Restores Legal Independence
In exile, local rabbis had to legislate out of necessity.
But Torah law recognizes that true authority belongs to the nation in its own land.
Now that the Jewish people once again possess political and legal sovereignty, they are halakhically empowered to review and lift communal decrees of exile.
As Maimonides wrote:
“A later court greater in wisdom and number may overturn the rulings of an earlier court.”
(Mishneh Torah, Hilkhot Mamrim 2:4)
Thus, within a Jewish State — governed by Jewish law, not Christian morality — there is no obligation to preserve the bans of exile.
4. Restoring the Crown — “Lehachzir Atara Leyoshna”
In the biblical and early Israelite eras, polygamy was practiced lawfully and responsibly.
Abraham, Jacob, Moses, David, and Solomon all lived within that divine structure — guided by justice and sanctity, not by indulgence.
Rabbeinu Gershom’s decree replaced Torah law with exile-era compromise.
Now, within a restored Jewish State, Israel can return to its authentic halakhic roots — a system defined by Torah, not by foreign cultures.
The morality of exile cannot rule a free Jewish nation.
The law of Jerusalem must not remain bound by the ethics of Rome.
5. The Ban Was Never Universal
Historically, the ban was accepted mainly by Ashkenazic communities.
In Yemen, Morocco, and Babylonian Jewry, polygamy continued within halakhic norms for centuries.
This demonstrates that the ban was regional and temporary, not universal or eternal.
A sovereign Jewish State, representing all tribes and traditions, is therefore not bound by a medieval European restriction.
6. Conclusion: Torah Above Exile
Rabbeinu Gershom’s ban was compassionate for its era — but its era has ended.
It served Jews who lived under the Church; it was never meant for a free people in their own land.
In the modern Jewish State,
the Torah itself must again be the supreme foundation of Jewish life.
It is time to lift the decrees of exile and restore halakhah to its original balance —
the law of truth, freedom, and divine responsibility.
The Jewish people were not destined to live forever under Christian moral codes.
Now that we are home,
we may restore the crown to its rightful place — Lehachzir Atara Leyoshna.
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