THE HALAKHIC BACKGROUND OF THE RESPONSES
The answers provided only vague references to the tradition, nor citations. The answers and the published resume of debates provided a united front to Napoleon and the French public, so all the details of the discussions, including references to individual speakers were omitted. In their place we have lengthy tributes and paeans of gratitude to the Emperor. All this is understandable as Napoleon sought answers, not a halakhic dissertation. However, a fuller rationale might have been expected for the Jewish reader, either contemporaneously or later. All the rabbis present were Orthodox., but they felt no need to set forth a full rationale then or later.*® The answers to some of the questions went to the very edge of halakhic possibilities and beyond as recognized by the Reform rabbis later in the century. The following pages seek to provide a halakhic background and the diverse opinions from which responses could be drawn..
Polygamy
Polygamy has a long history in the Jewish tradition. The major obstacle to a monogamous union was polygamy which was very much part of the Bible . The lives of the Patriarchs indicated that polygamy was well established and was taken for granted..The obvious problems of the status of each wife and the status of the offsprings were raised in a realistic manner in Genesis and later within the royal families of Israel and Judea . Polygamy, of course, was only possible for the wealthy. Polygamy waxed and waned in Jewish life; Epstein indicated that it virtually ceased at the end of the Biblical period,, but resumed in Hellenistic times.” Some groups, such as the Zadokites of Damascus®’ and later the Karaites ® legislated monogamy; however the majority of the Talmudic scholars accepted polygamy.” Although the ideal of monogamous marriage existed, it was not pursued vigorously.