Conversion to Judaism

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Conversion to Judaism (Hebrew גיור, giur, "conversion") is the religious conversion of a previously non-Jewish person to the Jewish religion. The procedure for conversion depends on the sponsoring denomination, and hinges on meeting the ritual and substantive requirements for such conversion. A convert to Judaism is referred to as a ger tzedek (Hebrew: "righteous proselyte" or "proselyte [of] righteousness") or simply ger ("stranger" or "proselyte"). Template:Jew

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History

In Biblical Hebrew, the word ger denotes a proselyte (and גר הגר —"sojourning stranger"—is interpreted as ger tzedek by the Talmud) or a half-convert—a non-Jewish inhabitant of the Land of Israel who observes the seven Noahide Laws and has repudiated all links with idolatry. The word ger tzedek was used to denote a full convert. In post-Talmudic times, the word ger has become synonymous with ger tzedek, likewise its English counterpart (proselyte), has come to mean a convert to Judaism.

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Motivations for conversion

A mystical interpretation of conversions to Judaism is that a convert is someone with a Jewish neshama (soul) who is simply trying to find his/her way home.

In general terms, anyone who commits to living a religiously observant life is an acceptable candidate for conversion. For a variety of reasons, rabbis have traditionally discouraged people from converting to Judaism, and most will insist that the candidate for conversion demonstrate his/her commitment in word and deed before the conversion is undertaken.

A number of reasons for converting exist: some have theological convictions consistent with Judaism; others are attracted to elements of Jewish religious life; some wish to belong to a particular Jewish community. A significant portion wish to convert because they want to marry someone who is Jewish. This latter reason (see secondary conversion) is in itself considered to be insufficient by most rabbis.

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Traditional requirements

The requirements under halakha for conversion to Judaism are that a beth din witnesses and approves:

After confirming that all these criteria have been met, the beth din issues a Shtar Giur ("Certificate of Conversion"), certifying that the former gentile is now a Jew.

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Pre-Majority conversion

Someone who was converted to Judaism as a child has an option of rejecting this at his or her Majority (Bar or Bat Mitzvah). The only thing he or she needs to do is publicly violate a Jewish commandment, or conversely publicly state, or demonstrate his commitment to remaining a Jew. See the book the Bamboo Cradle for a true example of this.

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Variations and controversy

The requirements for conversion to Judaism are intended to avoid any uncertainty about a convert's true status. The certification by a beth din was based on events the completeness of which were carefully defined.

Both the Conservative and Orthodox movements require that all halakhic requirements be met, but they differ on what constitutes a competent beth din. Orthodox rabbis generally do not accept the authority of non-Orthodox rabbis. And because Orthodox rabbis are reluctant to accept the credentials of non-Orthodox rabbis, there is a presumption that a person who converts under the guidance of a non-Orthodox rabbi will have an incomplete or erroneous understanding of the law he or she is taking upon him or herself; therefore, Orthodox rabbis generally do not accept conversions under Conservative (or Reform, or Reconstructionist) auspices.

Since the Orthodox movement is not unified, Orthodox rabbis often will not automatically accept each other's authority. This has led to a general reluctance in the Orthodox communities to prepare and perform conversions.

In America, Reform Judaism rejects the concept that any rules or rituals should be considered necessary for conversion to Judaism. In the late 1800s, the Central Conference of American Rabbis, the official body of American Reform rabbis, formally resolved to permit the admission of converts "without any initiatory rite, ceremony, or observance whatever." (CCAR Yearbook 3 (1893), 73-95; American Reform Responsa (ARR), no. 68, at 236-237.)

Although this resolution has often been examined critically by many Reform rabbis, the resolution still remains the official policy of American Reform Judaism (CCAR Responsa "Circumcision for an Eight-Year-Old Convert" 5756.13 and Solomon Freehof, Reform Responsa for Our Time, no. 15.) Thus, American Reform Judaism does not require ritual immersion in a mikveh, circumcision, or acceptance of mitzvot as normative. Appearance before a Bet Din is recommended, but is not considered necessary. Converts are asked to commit to religious standards set by the local Reform community. As such, all Reform conversions are rejected as not being conversions by Orthodox Judaism.

Progressive and Reform Judaism in Israel and a few other countries reject this approach; many Reform rabbis in these countries hold that it is absolutely necessary for a man to have a brit milah or brit dam, that both men and women require immersion in a mikveh, and that the conversion must only be allowed at the end of a formal course of study, before a Bet Din. This is a common view of many Reform rabbis in Canada, as well as a small but growing number of Reform rabbis in the USA.

In response to the tremendous variations that exist within the Reform community, the Conservative Jewish movement has attempted to set a nuanced approach. Their Committee on Jewish Law and Standards has issued a responsum (legal opinion) stating that Reform conversions may be accepted as valid when they include the minimal halachic requirements of milah and t'vilah, appearance before a Bet Din, and a course of study. (Proceedings of Committee on Jewish Law and Standards: 1980-1985, p.77-101.)

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Consequences of conversion

Once undergone, a religious conversion to Judaism is irreversible (from a Jewish perspective), unless there are convincing grounds to believe that the convert was insincere or deceptive during the conversion process. In such cases—which are exceedingly rare—a beth din may determine that the conversion was void.

A public and clear violation of Jewish law immediately following the formal conversion may give grounds for considering such an annulment if it can be demonstrated that such a violation proved that the conversion was fraudulent to begin with. A few isolated cases of annulments have been vigorously debated within the Jewish community, with several rabbinical authorities holding the practice to be in violation of halakha.

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Place in religious life

Halakha forbids reminding a convert that he/she was once not a Jew and hence little distinction is made in Judaism between "Jews by birth" and "Jews by choice".

According to Orthodox interpretations of halakha, converts face a limited number of restrictions, e.g. female converts cannot marry Kohanim (members of the priestly caste). These restrictions apply only to the converts themselves; children of a female convert born after conversion are not affected by them in any way. Converts can become rabbis (and some have).

A convert chooses his or her own Hebrew first name upon conversion but is always known as the son or daughter of Abraham and Sarah, the first patriarch and matriarch in the Torah, often with the additional qualifier of "avinu" (our father) and "imanu" (our mother). Hence, a convert named Akiva would be known as "Akiva ben Avraham Avinu" for ritual purposes in an Orthodox synagogue and "Akiva ben Avraham Avinu v'Sarah Imanu" in egalitarian non-Orthodox congregations.

(It should be noted that for purposes of a prayer for recovery from an illness, the mother's name is traditionally used, so in an Orthodox congregation one would hear "Akiva ben Sarah Imanu").

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"Jews by Choice"

The term "Jew by choice" is often used to describe someone who converted to Judaism, and is often contrasted with such terms as "Jew by birth" or "Jew by chance."

For rhetorical purposes, some polemicists have pointed out that every Jew is a Jew by choice, because it is easy for Jews by birth to assimilate and thereby lose any sense of a Jewish identity. This argument has no validity in Jewish law or custom, however.

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See also

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External links

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