Yevamot 36: Pregnant as a Yevama?

What do we do if a woman is pregnant when her husband dies?  If she is not pregnant, the yevam can consummate their marriage or perform chalitza, which allows the yevama to either marry her yavam or to marry someone else - except for a priest (who cannot marry a chalutza).  But if she is pregnant and the marriage is consummated, the baby would mean that she is not eligible for yibum, and both of them have had forbidden relations.  If she is pregnant and they perform chalitza, the baby might not be viable, leaving her eligible for yibum.  Further, all of these circumstances have implications upon the rival wives and their ability to marry.

The Gemara discusses the many details of these circumstances, noting that all decisions much align with the Mishna.  The halachot must make sense of different rabbis' arguments, as well.  It is of note that the consideration of waiting nine months to ensure the viability of the deceased husband and yevama's child.  There is a question regarding whether or not waiting thirty days after birth is reasonable.  Some rabbis say that if the baby lives less than thirty days, the yevama is able to perform chalitza.  Further, the yevama would be forbidden to a priest had she performed chalitza.  The rabbis are more lenient in some cases, allowing women to remain married to priests ab initio.

Reish Lakish teaches about a yavam who performs chalitza with a pregnant woman and then she miscarries.  In that case, there was no child of the deceased husband and thus she might have been permitted as a yevama.  Reish Lakish's argument: chalitza must be performed with all remaining brothers before she (and her rival wives) can marry others.

We learn from Rava that there were three cases in which Reish Lakish's arguments held over those of Rabbi Yohanan.  The first is this argument, and the second regards inheritance.  The daf tells us about death-bed gifts and inheritances - a very different argument from those we have been learning in the recent past.