Levirate Marriage and the Family[ ]levirs are bound to each other until the situation is resolved through a
single act of levirate or halitza between one yevama and one levir. At
least three months should pass between the death and the action re-
solving the bond; this waiting period ensures that none of the women
are pregnant. A pregnancy results in a longer waiting period; if a viable
child is born, all of the widows are free, but a miscarriage or stillbirth
will necessitate levirate or halitza.^34
When her bond to the levir is clear, the yevama’s personal status is
ambiguous. She is simultaneously like and unlike a betrothed woman.
On one hand, she is prohibited to all men except her husband’s brother(s),
just as a betrothed woman is prohibited to all men other than her be-
trothed. However, the levirate widow, unlike a betrothed woman, has
no voice in her betrothal; her bond to her brother(s)-in-law is the auto-
matic result of her husband’s death. No ceremony is required to activate
the levirate bond; it comes into existence with the death of the woman’s
husband. In addition to waiting three months, the levirate widow must
wait while her brother-in-law decides what to do. If her husband had
severa l brot hers, t he lev irate w idow must wa it whi le t he brot hers decide
which of them will marry or release her; any preference she might have
is irrelevant.^35 The levirate bond is more complex than betrothal. While
a woman can be betrothed to only one man, the levirate widow may be
equally bound to a number of brothers-in-law; while only one of them
should marry her or submit to halitza, each may have the identical right
to choose one of these courses of action. Levirate marriage can be final-
ized without her consent, even through an act of rape.^36
Like all other women, the levirate widow faces severe penalties if she
misreads her situation. If she and her brother-in-law enter into a levirate
union and then discover that she is pregnant by her first husband, she
must leave her new husband. She must also leave if the paternity of the
child is uncertain; in either case, the couple is liable for an offering, indi-
cating an improper action on their part.^37 If she remarries or enters into
a levirate marriage on the basis of incorrect information, the children
she bears may be declared mamzerim.^38 While all widows are expected
to wait three months before remarrying to avoid such situations, the le-
virate widow is particularly vulnerable; her husband’s death creates the
expectation that she is available to the levir, and she can be forced into a
levirate marriage, which requires no ceremony and no consent.