Women’s Obligation: Shmitas Kesafim
Question
According to Halacha, Jews are supposed to remit the debts of other Jews every 7 years during the Shemitta year, which has a positive commandment and a negative commandment so My question is, are women also obligated in the positive commandment, or since it is time bound are they Petur? (Please provide a source)
Answers
The following was taken from Rav Yaakov Haber’s website
(https://yaacovhaber.com/calendar/jewish-holidays-and-fast-days/rosh-hashanah/a-comprehensive-guide-for-shmita-5782/)
Women forgiving a debt in shmita:
Since shmita is a positive commandment contingent on time, it would seem women are not obligated to keep it as regarding their own personal debts. The Rambam says clearly women must observer the shmita of money, just as men do. There is also a negative commandment attached to it, which creates it a situation that a woman is obligated. Rav Akiva Eiger says that a negative and positive aspect of a mitzva requires a women to observe that mitzva only applies if the Talmud specifically references that mitzva such as it does with Shabbos. Rav Eiger then points out that a positive mitzva that requires initiative (rise and do) such as tefillin or tefilla is something that a women is not obligated in. However a positive mitzva that requires no action, a passive mitzva (sit and do nothing), such as shmita, women are required to keep. Therefore women are required to observe the passive mitzva of shmita in regard to money. She can be participatory in her husbands observance of this shmita with their joint monies. However, if she has her own monies and her own accounts with lending etc. then she also has to make a pruzbol separate from that of her husband.
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