Conclusion –A Double Pidyon Haben?

Last time we saw that Rabbi Meir Simcha of Dvinsk was adamant that a woman would never have to perform a pidyon haben twice. Therefore, in the case of a woman born with two uteruses, a condition called uterus didelphys, the first-born son would require a pidyon haben. However, even if the woman would subsequently deliver a baby from the "other" uterus, the child would not be required to undergo pidyon haben.

We can understand the logic of this position, since the obligation of pidyon haben is that the first-born son is to be redeemed. There is no classic halachic discussion as to where the pregnancy developed and, therefore, this has no bearing on the halachic obligation. Since the woman already had one first-born, any other sons cannot be claimed to be the "first-born" .

But, as we saw last time, Rabbi Yonatan Eibeshutz cited a Midrashic source that Yocheved redeemed Moshe, even though she had previous children. After giving birth to Aharon and Miriam, she was rejuvenated, and she reverted back to her pre-birth state.

While this is a somewhat fanciful tale, it appears to indicate that there are rare cases in which the same woman would have to perform a pidyon haben twice.

My friend, Rabbi Eitan Kupietzky, wrote an article on this subject that appeared in the respected medical halachic journal Assia. He concludes the article with an interesting anecdote. He heard from students of the late posek Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv, that a case was presented to him of a woman with uterus didelphys, and the question was asked regarding the obligation of her children and pidyon haben.

Rabbi Elyashiv is reported to have ruled that if a son was born from one uterus and then a son was born from the other uterus, both boys would need to undergo pidyon haben. Rabbi Kupietzky wrote that he corroborated this story with other people close to Rabbi Elyashiv who reported that there were at least two cases of women with uterus didelphys who were instructed to perform the double pidyon haben.

While such testimonies lack sufficient proof and specific sources for the reported halachic position, Rabbi Kupietzky suggests that Rabbi Elyashiv must have taken into account the Midrashic sources cited by Rabbi Yonatan Eibeshutz.

This is far from a definitive halachic decision, but it is an indication that in the rare case of uterus didelphys, there are those who would require the first boy born from each uterus to undergo pidyon haben.

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