Rabbi Akiva Eiger and the Embarrassing Vow
A man would reveal his embarrassing vow only to a 15-year-old friend. Rabbi Akiva Eiger found a clever way for the boy to take part in annulling it.
There was an individual who had made a vow that he found somewhat embarrassing. He did not wish to disclose the details of the vow to anyone except a 15-year-old friend. A 15-year-old can’t perform hataras nedarim since he is only assumed to be an adult on the basis of his age. However, there was no alternative, since the individual didn’t want to reveal his neder to any older adults. The quandary was presented to Rebbe Akiva Eiger. He advised them to gather three older adults for hataras nedarim and this 15-year-old would join them. He reasoned that for the biblical hataras nedarim, there are three adults present. The requirement that one has to disclose the vow is only rabbinical – and for that rabbinical requirement, the 15-year-old suffices.