Rebbitzen Wein_____’s  Famous Line that a Quarter is Worth $35

By Rabbi Yair Hoffman

There is a now famous quote from Rebbitzen Wein____ that a quarter is actually worth $35.  How so?  Because in the Five Towns, if you do not place a quarter in the meter you will receive a ticket which will cost you thirty-five dollars.

Although the quote from the Rebbitzen is certainly a very important point, the question is whether the good Rebbitzen’s statement also has halachic significance.  For instance, when Mashiach arrives (it should be soon), the halacha will go in accordance with Bais Shammai and not Bais Hillel.  We will therefore be lighting 8 candles on the first night of Chanukah and not one candle.  We will not longer be allowed to have our keilim, vessels, do malacha on Shabbos and a man can no longer marry a woman with a Shaveh Prutah but will need a Shaveh Dinar.

There are 96 Prutos in a Dinar. What is the value of a Prutah? Silver is now hovering at about $29.45  a troy ounce and you would divide the price of silver by 1244) so the value of a shaveh prutah is 2.4 cents.  Multiply that figure by 96 and we would get $2.28.

And now Bingo!  We have our case and our question: 

It is after Moshiach comes.  We are paskening like Bais Shammai and a man, we will call him Shaya and he is dating a woman who we will call Esther.  Esther is in desperate need of a quarter so that she will not receive a parking ticket.  Shaya takes out a quarter which is less than a Shaveh Dinar – the $2.28 cutoff figure. But to Esther that quarter is worth far more than the $2.28 value of a Dinar. 

Shaya says, “Harei at mekudesh li b’quarter zu k’das Moshe v’yisroel” in front of two kosher witnesses.

Is the marriage valid?

The issue is one that seems to be dealt with by Rabbi Yehudah ben Samuel Rosanes (1657–1727) the Chief Rabbi of Constantinople and author of the Mishne L’Melech (Hilchos Ishus 5:1).  He wonders what the reason is for the Mishna in Kiddushin 56b to that if one marries a woman with Orlah or Kilayim or other forbidden items – the marriage is invalid.  Is it because it is worth nothing to him or worth nothing to her?  What then, Rabbi Rosanes wonders, would be the case if she was dangerously ill and she would be permitted to eat the forbidden item? 

So what is the final disposition?  Rabbi Rosanes zt”l does not answer his question, but it seems that this is a debate between the RaShash zt”l on Kiddushin 53b who says it is invalid and Rav Tzvi Pesach Frank zt”l who says it would be valid. The Rashash (Rav Shmuel Streisan zt”l 1794-1872) wanted to prove from a Tosfos Mekadesh b’Chelko that it would not be a valid marriage (Kiddushin 52b) – because Tosfos seems to indicate that we follow him and not her.   The Tosfos differentiate between the Gemorah’s case and speaking to the Shilton on her behalf which is permitted (he can charge her for this service), write that the Gemorah is going according to the opinion that Tovas HaNaah is not considered money.  For her, however, the RaShash seems to learn that it is mammon – value because she has teh benefit of eating the meat. 

Rav Tzvi Pesach Frank zt”l (1873-1960) states that the case of Tosfos would not be comparable to the Mishna L’melech’s case because the case of Tosfos is where it belongs to the Temple.   How we ultimately rule is something we should ask our own Posaik or actually not.  When Moshiach comes – Eliyahu haNavi will pasken our question.  The Rebbitzen’s husband did ask whether we will have parking tickets when Moshiach arrives.  It seems from a different Rambam, however, that we will.

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