Reply To: Contemporary Plural Marriage in Judaism

Its almost 1,000 years since Rabbeinu Gershom was niftar. Considering if he didn’t implement it just before passing away, its already likely over 1,000 years since implementation.

In any event, The Shulchan Aruch (EH 1) says that the cherem was to have effect “ad sof ha’elef”, and some people have evidently taken that to mean “until the end of a millennium”, i.e. 1,000 years after it was enacted, but the correct translation is `until the end of the millennium’, i.e. the cherem expired at the end of the year 5,000, or about 300 years before the Mechaber’s own time. The Mechaber says, however, that those communities who accepted the cherem in the first place have continued to obey it even after the expiry date. The cherem now has the force of inhag, a minhag which has now lasted longer than the original cherem did.

The Noda b’Yehuda in Mahadura Kama EH 1:84 brings a Rama from Shulcha Aruch EH 1, that says that the cherem (ban) on taking two wives was originally to expire at the end of the fifth millenium (i.e. 770 years ago). He says, however, that the cherem against divorcing a woman against her will (which is the subject of that particular tshuva) was intended to remain in effect permanently. He brings similar language in Mahadura Kama EH 1:1, Mahadura Tinyana EH 2:102 and Mahadura Tinyana EH 2:103.