Posted on 09/18/15
Baltimore, MD - Sept. 18, 2015 - On Friday afternoon September 11, just a few days before Rosh Hashana, CHAI executed a Pruzbul in connection with its 168 outstanding Homebuyer and Home Improvement Loans . A Pruzbul is a Jewish legal document that protects a lender and enables the collection of a loan, following a Sabbatical Year (shmita). The Torah in Deuteronomy 15:1-9 (Parshas Re’eh) explains the mitzvah of releasing debts which cancels loans at the end of each seven year shmita cycle.
The Pruzbul document states: “I hereby turn over to you all of the debts owed to me, whether or not the debts are evidenced in writing, so that I may therefore collect these debts at any time that I desire.” The document legally transfers the loan to the Jewish Court (beit din) and enables the lender to continue to collect the outstanding debt. The enactment of a Pruzbul was instituted by Hillel the Sage.
As the Sabbatical year approached, people were hesitant to make loans as they were concerned about not getting paid back, this solved the problem. Mitchell Posner, Executive Director, executed the Pruzbul on behalf of CHAI in the presence of the three judges of the Beit Din: Aryeh Goetz, Roy Kiewe and Ed Schaffer, staff members of CHAI.