I divorced my wife on 21 December, 2009 orally as well as in writing. Kindly help me if the divorce has been done or not. We are ashamed of ourselves for what has happened and want to live together. Tell us what the Quran says about this issue.
Answer
In the light of your message I can tell you two things: You no more remained the husband of your wife after the expiry of iddat period which is approximately three months after you pronounced Talaq. You can be her husband again after doing a simple nikah. There is no need for going through the shameful exercise called halalah which has nothing to do with our religion.
The argument of the first opinion is the mention in the Quran that a lady ceases to be a wife anymore after the expiry of iddat period once Talaq is given and no reunion is done by the husband.
The argument for the second opinion lies in the fact that the Quran says that a lady cannot be taken back as wife after Talaq has been given two times and no reunion has taken place. That in itself means that on the first two occasions either a simple reunion is possible within the period of iddat or a simple nikah can be conducted after the iddat period is over.
Both opinions can be found on carefully reading verses 2:228-230 and 65:1-2 of the Quran.