Annulling a Neder (Vow)

Question

Hi there!

I have a question today about a “Neder” that I may have taken.

A couple of years ago I said “From now on, I am not allowed to derive any benefit from sins!”. This Shevuah now is having alot of negative effects and I want to see if there is a way for me to get it removed. When I made this Shevuah, I thought that it was a vow. Obviously, this is not true, but even if I would known that it was a Shevuah, I would have taken the Neder anyway. Nevertheless, the Shevuah may have had a false premise. According to the Rambam (Nedarim 2:2), a person who took a vow and then realied that it was an oath, is not bound.

However, I found this website that claims that today, the Poskim and HaRav Ovadia Yosef say that since today’s language is often mixed up, any statement like “I promise I will do this” is binding even if he made a vow (https://halachayomit.co.il/en/default.aspx?HalachaID=2686).

On the flip side, though, another source says that I do not need to keep this (https://www.mishnahyomit.com/articles/Shevuot/A%20Shevuah%20and%20A%20Neder)

My question is, which one is correct? Are there Poskim that would allow me to break my “Neder”.

Thank You!

0

Answers

  1. The Just Ask! - AskTheRabbi.org Team

    It sounds to me as if you need to annul your “Neder.” That requires three men over the age of Bar Mitzvah who are (preferably) not related to you. You should announce in front of them that you are annulling a Neder that you made a while ago. There is no necessity for all of them to know what you are annulling so long as one of them knows, although it would be better if they all did.

    Best wishes from the AskTheRabbi.org Team