In the previous Halachot we have discussed the primary laws of the Mitzvah of cancelation of debts which will apply at the conclusion of this year (5782). Any debt owed to someone which has been incurred by another as a loan is canceled at the conclusion of the Shemitta year and the lender will no longer be permitted to claim repayment of such debts. If the lender nevertheless goes ahead and claims such debts once Shevi’it has passed, he has transgressed a Torah prohibition.
A Wayward Thought
The Torah states (Devarim 15): “Beware that there not be a wayward thought in your heart saying, ‘The seventh year, the year of release is at hand’ and your eye shall be evil toward your needy brother, and you will not give him; and he shall cry out against you to Hashem, and you shall bear sin. You shall surely give him, and your heart shall not be grieved when you give him because for this thing shall Hashem your G-d bless you in all your work and all that you put your hand to.” This means that Hashem has warned us in his holy Torah that we do not refrain from loaning money to the needy during the Shemitta year because we will be concerned that these debts will be lost at the conclusion of the Shemitta year. The Torah indeed speaks about this matter harshly, as is evident from the aforementioned verses.
Hillel’s Enactment
The Mishnah (Shevi’it, Chapter 10, Mishnah 3) states that when Hillel the Elder saw that wealthy people refrained from loaning money to the needy during the Shemitta year and were thus transgressing the Torah prohibition of “Beware that there not be a wayward thought in your heart saying, ‘The seventh year, the year of release is at hand’ and your eye shall be evil toward your needy brother,” he enacted the “Prozbul” so that debts would not be canceled and people would once again loan money to one another (we shall soon explain what a Prozbul is). A Prozbul is nevertheless only beneficial nowadays when the cancelation of debts by Shevi’it is merely a rabbinic enactment and not by Torah law; however, during the times when the cancelation of debts by Shevi’it applied by virtue of Torah law, the Prozbul was not beneficial.
The Concept of the Prozbul
The idea behind the Prozbul is as follows: The Mishnah (Shevi’it, Chapter 10, Mishnah 2) states that debts one transfers to a Bet Din are not canceled by Shevi’it. For instance, if one comes before a Bet Din and gives them all of the contracts written by all of those who owe him money in order for the Bet Din to collect these debts for him (as is done when the borrower does not wish to repay the debt and the lender turns to a legal authority in order to exact the money from the borrower), such debts transferred to Bet Din in order to be collected by them are not canceled by Shevi’it. Indeed, our Sages in the Sifri deduce this from the verse “And that which you have of your brother shall your hand release,” that only a debt between two individuals is canceled by Shevi’it; however, debts which have already been transferred to a Bet Din and the Bet Din subsequently claims repayment of the debt from the borrower are not subject to cancelation by Shevi’it.
In a similar manner, Hillel the Elder enacted that although every individual does not physically go to the Bet Din and transfer one’s debts to them in order for them to collect them, nevertheless, every individual can write (or fill out) a contract whereby one transfers all of his debts to rabbinical judges in order for the individual to be able to collect them whenever he wishes. Two valid witnesses then sign on the Prozbul contract in order validate it. This is indeed customary in any place where there is a large concentration of Torah observant Jews that rabbis and caretakers of synagogues make sure to afford all of their congregants with the opportunity to fill out a kosher Prozbul form in order that their debts not be canceled by Shevi’it.
Definition of Prozbul
The meaning of the word “Prozbul” is composed of two Aramaic words: “Proz” meaning an enactment and “Bul” meaning for the wealthy. This means that the Prozbul is a great enactment for the wealthy in that they continue loaning money to the wealthy and thus not transgress a Torah prohibition.
Details in the Prozbul
The only kind of Prozbul that should be used is one which lists the names of three prominent Dayanim (rabbinical judges) who are acting judges in the city where they reside and enforce their judgments there. When Maran zt”l served as a Dayan (in the year 5719/1959), the Dayanim listed in the Prozbul were Hageonim Harav Ovadia Yosef, Harav Eliezer Yehuda Waldenberg, and Harav Yosef Kapach. In the year 5750 (1990), Maran zt”l wrote a Prozbul in his own handwriting and recorded that he had transferred his debts to the Dayanim, Hageonim Harav Betzalel Zolty, Harav Mordechai Eliyahu, and Harav Yosef Kapach. This was indeed the custom for generations in that the most prestigious Dayanim of the city are those who appear in the text of the Prozbul, and this is done with their consent so that people may transfer all of their debts to them via their signed Prozbul contracts.
Nevertheless, one may use a Prozbul which lists the names of prominent Dayanim even if they are judges in a different city and even if they know nothing of the fact that one is transferring one’s debts to them. For this reason, those residing in the United States may certainly fill out Prozbul contracts listing a Bet Din of prestigious Dayanim in Jerusalem or elsewhere, for one need not physically appear before the Bet Din and the Dayanim need not know of this at all, as we have explained. Merely reading the appropriate text from the Prozbul in front of witnesses and having the Prozbul contract signed by those witness gives it full halachic validity.
We, at “Halacha Yomit” have prepared a printable Prozbul document using a very prominent Bet Din in Jerusalem. As a public service, it is available for download on our website, as well as the “Insta Rabbi” app.
In the following Halacha we shall discuss some more details regarding this law.
Click here to download the Prozbul Contract in English.
(Graphic design credits to Adriel Kohananoo, Great Neck, New York.)
