The Judge’s Order
When a couple can no longer stand the sight of each other, to the extent of getting a divorce, but yet neither is prepared to leave the marital home, what is the solution? In a New York Brooklyn court, where an Orthodox Jewish couple, Pinchs and Nechama Gold, have been fighting a bitter divorce battle, Judge Eric Prus ordered that they build a wall in their house so that each will have clearly defined separate areas. He did not specify what the wall has to be constructed of, or how essential features such as staircase, bathroom, and kitchen will be divided, but the couple has been given two weeks to come up with a solution, after which the court will decide for them. Mr Gold’s brother, Rabbi Mendel Gold, dubbed the wall a “divorce wall”.
The Feuding Couple
Pinchs and Nechama Gold have been married for 21 years and have five children. The wife accuses her husband of verbally abusing her and the children and of blowing out the candles she lights for Shabbat, the day of rest in Judaism. He accuses her of hiding his medications and forcing him out of the bedroom so that he has to sleep in the dining room.
The Precedent For A Divorce Wall
About 5 years ago, a similar order was made for Brooklyn couple Chana and Simon Taub, who have since put up partitions in their three-storey terraced house.
Think About It
Is a divorce wall a good idea for feuding couples? Whose interests are being served? The bitter parents’ or the children’s? Is fighting over the marital home a good example for the children? Will the wall reduce bitterness sufficiently so that the children can be brought up in a harmonious atmosphere?
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