A happy day in the life of An Orthodox Jewish woman who has been fighting for a religious divorce from her husband for almost four-years has finally gotten her wish!
25-year-old Gital Dodelson is finally free to move on with her life after she was granted a “get” by her ex-husband, Avrohom Meir Weiss.
Now, for those whom we are not Jewish the whole thing might look borderline ridiculous and here is why, Gital and Avrohom have already a civil divorce but! Despite having a civil divorce, Avrohom Meir Weiss refused to give Gital a Get-Jewish writ of divorce- by doing this Gital who is related to the Kotlers and is also a deeply religious Orthodox Jew, she becomes an Agunah – a bound woman. Without a get, Gital couldn’t’ move on with her life and remarry.
As an Agunah, Gital became a hostage to her ex-husband Avrohom Meir, and what’s even worse, she was still considered to be married to him! She writes:
“If I move on romantically without a get, I would have to leave this community — my friends and family and entire support system — because it’s committing adultery. My children and I would be ostracized and not welcomed in the community.” “Some people might argue that I should ignore the traditions of the Torah. But I’m deeply religious and won’t go against the God I believe in.”
She and her ex-husband were in a four-year battle which unchained a series of petitions, online requests, Facebook page and even a website to help Gital get her “Get”
The page was created last August and has over 13,000 likes. There is also a website “Set Gital Free” you can check out here.
Gital was given the happy news by her mother, Saki. Gital is described as a Rutgers law student, who lives in Lakewood, NJ, she married Weiss in 2009. She gave birth to a son, Aryeh.
Gital decided to separate from the father of her child in 2010 due to what she described as his controlling behavior. Other information found online claim Gital never wanted to get married to Weiss in the first place but was forced to go through with it by her parents.
They were legally divorced in 2012, but Weiss refused to grant her a religious divorce, known as a “get.”
When the news broke out a few months ago, her ex-husband Avrohom was highly criticized by media and even insulted on why he could do that to Gital.
The Facebook page above, describes Avrohom’s absurd demands to give Gital her “Get.” Her ex had a list of terms, including $350,000, changing the court ordered custody arrangement, giving him the right to unilaterally make all education decisions, plus nine other, smaller demands.
Gital told the NY Post in November
“On my last mission to ask for a get, a month ago, Avrohom said, ‘I can’t give you a get — how else would I control you?’ I think that’s the key to it all. He insists the marriage isn’t over until he says it’s over”
There is no word on what could have persuaded Avrohom to change his mind.
But now, she can put that behind her and be a free woman in all laws! Congratulations to Gital!
