Conversion, marriage, and creative manipulation of law in thirteenth-century responsa literature

Abstract

A responsum of Rabbi Solomon ibn Adret (1235–1310) describes the unusual case of a married Jewish woman of Seville who committed adultery. She converted to Christianity, along with her lover, and then received a divorce from her husband. Subsequently, the couple travelled to Toledo and attempted to live there as Jews and as husband and wife. Although scholars have referred to this responsum (vol. V.240), none has yet analyzed it extensively. This article looks at Ibn Adret's responsum as an example of a Jewish woman's creative manipulation of legal and social norms to achieve her goal of living with her lover as his wife and as a Jew. The couple jointly created a complex and coherent strategy to achieve this goal and to bring some semblance of legitimacy to their relationship. This article analyzes their strategy in the context of the legal and social norms surrounding conversion and marriage among Jews and Christians in Iberia. It also argues that the woman and her lover both participated in shaping and carrying out this strategy, despite Ibn Adret's attempt to present her as less culpable and less deserving of severe punishment.