6286
8
06 / 05 / 2026
The Proposal of the Abandoned Woman
My son proposed to a girl, thinking she was divorced, but we discovered that she has been abandoned by her husband for six years and is still in the process of divorce with him. She had left her home and then returned without any marital relationship, choosing to be abandoned by her husband so she could return home for the sake of her two children. After we found out, she said: I am not officially divorced, but I am religiously divorced, and I completed the waiting period six years ago, knowing that her husband did not pronounce the word of divorce, so she said. Since my son proposed to her, she said she would renew the divorce case. Now, are we sinful or is there a sin upon our son for proposing to her while she is not officially divorced?
Answer
I say, and with God's help: It is not valid for her to observe the waiting period without a divorce, and the waiting period begins from the time of divorce, not from the time of separation. It is not permissible to propose to her or talk to her about marriage unless the divorce is completed and the waiting period is over. And God knows best.
