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Last update - 02:54 13/06/2008
Conversion versus joining
By Ruth Gavison
Tags: Judaism, Israel, Conversion

The unacceptable retroactive disqualification of conversions conducted by Rabbi Haim Druckman brought to the surface one of the most important questions relating to the Jewish people's existence at this time: who should be considered a Jew, what are the criteria for determining Jewish identity, and above all, whether and how one can choose to join the Jewish people, and who are the gatekeepers for such a move.

At the root of the debate is an even deeper question: Can a person be part of the Jewish people without being recognized as a Jew according to halakha (Jewish religious law)? The keyword here is "recognized" as a Jew according to halakha - not necessarily someone who observes the mitzvot (religious commandments) and sees his Jewishness as a function of the basic covenant between the Jewish people and its God.

This question was only of theoretical and theological importance at times when a Jew who did not observe the mitzvot was a most unusual sight and a passing phenomenon. But in our day, when most of those who are recognized as Jews according to halakha (because they were born to a Jewish mother) do not observe the mitzvot, the question has huge significance - for individuals who feel Jewish even though they are not recognized as such according to halakha (for example, because they have a Jewish father and were raised as Jews), for those who want to link their fate to the fate of the Jewish people without observing the mitzvot, and for the Jewish people as a whole. The same is true with regard to the right to immigrate to Israel under the Law of Return and integrate into the Jewish people - which, from a sociological standpoint, may no longer be identical to the Jewish people defined by halakha.
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Unlike others, and in line with the position we adopted in the Gavison-Medan covenant on religion and state, I do not think it is right to focus on the question of what constitutes conversion, or to ask Orthodox rabbis to loosen the rules of conversion so that they will also apply to those who want to become part of the Jewish people but do not want to observe the mitzvot. In my view, conversion is a way to join the Jewish people only for those who also want to join the Jewish religion.

I personally support non-Orthodox conversions as a means of joining both the Jewish people and the Jewish religion. I think that the state should register those who have converted in this way as Jews. Nevertheless, I see no reason to obligate rabbis who do not feel that this constitutes valid conversion to recognize non-Orthodox converts as Jews according to their own religious precepts. In my view, this is a crucial internal religious matter that the state should stay away from. Therefore, registration should be transparent, allowing those who do not accept such conversions as a way of joining the Jewish religion to know what the facts are.

Yet for this very reason, we need to thoroughly and creatively examine the question of joining the Jewish people in ways other than conversion. It is important to ensure that such a process not be for the purpose of immigrating, and the proofs required for such a move should be as demanding, protracted and substantial as they are in conversion. But they should not be religious in nature, nor should they be determined by religious officials.

Recognizing the possibility of individuals adopting a social, cultural and personal Jewish identity without joining the Jewish religion, which could be undesirable to them for personal, ideological or other reasons, seems to me to be a vital and central component of the Jewish people's efforts to cope with the challenges of the 21st century, as well as of its ability to broaden its ranks, include in its midst anyone who has linked his fate to it and enrich its heritage.

There is a gamble here. There is concern that an unmonitored system for allowing such joining could weaken, not strengthen, Jewish identity. But I believe in the strength of the Jewish people and in its history, and I believe that the variety of Jewish ways of life that exist today, including an independent Jewish existence in its homeland, is likely to enable a return to growth, strength and expansion for the Jewish people, which is critical for the vitality of the Jewish people and its future.

These are not processes that the state can or should initiate. The role of the state is to enable them, and to determine, in consultation with religious, spiritual and political leaders in Israel and abroad, the conditions and mechanisms that would enable a controlled process of Jewish self-definition on the basis of nationality (as opposed to religion) for those who evince a Jewish lifestyle and Jewish commitment, even if they are not recognized as Jews according to halakha.

The completion of this process should entitle those who undergo it to immigrate to Israel under the Law of Return. And in the world of Diaspora Jewry, where such questions are not currently discussed and need not be decided in the laws of the state, it is likely to open a fascinating chapter in the history of the Jewish people.

All of this need not halt the Jewish religion's internal review of the criteria for conversion. Indeed, the very recognition of the possibility of joining the Jewish people in a manner that is not religiously based is likely to add new and important dimensions to the internal religious debate, as well as to the decisions of those seeking to join, or declare their affiliation with, the Jewish people.

The writer is founding president of the Metzilah Center for Zionist, Jewish, Liberal and Humanist Thought.
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  1.   would you set similar conditions for becoming a Professor? 11:20  |  A thinking Jew 13/06/08
  2.   what was the problem. fraud is fraud 11:22  |  Another Jew 13/06/08
  3.   Sounds like she has an identity crisis 11:25  |  Joanna 13/06/08
  4.   #1 14:08  |  A.M. 13/06/08
  5.   Gavison, not surprisingly, misses the point 14:19  |  David Teich 13/06/08
  6.   A.M. and criteria 17:09  |  Jewboy 13/06/08
  7.   #5 misses the point even more than the professor 17:12  |  A thinking Jew 13/06/08
  8.   DT and missing the point 17:17  |  Another Jew 13/06/08
  9.   Conversion 19:38  |  Ephraim Rubinger 13/06/08
  10.   two separate issues 04:38  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 14/06/08
  11.   Let`s start with the Law of Return 13:21  |  Vered, Israel 14/06/08
  12.   Chazal decided Jewish Mother not scriptural Judaism 13:37  |  John 14/06/08
  13.   Another Jew # 8, Holy Word says there is a difference 13:39  |  John Matthews 14/06/08
  14.   #12 and 13 protestant theology is irrelevant to defining Jews 22:42  |  just a Jew 14/06/08
  15.   A response to ad Homuinem attacks on Rabbis 22:55  |  Jewboy 14/06/08
  16.   Citizenship 03:29  |  Joseph 15/06/08
  17.   8: AJ, your "point" is the tip of a dunce cap 16:07  |  David Teich 15/06/08
  18.   16: No, Joseph 16:11  |  David Teich 15/06/08
  19.   Dt and delirium tremens 23:13  |  Another Jew 15/06/08
  20.   DT and continuing to miss the point. 23:18  |  Jewboy 15/06/08
  21.   19: AJ, if it`s a mishmash, why then can`t you clarify? 11:31  |  David Teich 16/06/08
  22.   20: Jewboy, another Haredi confused by words 11:34  |  David Teich 16/06/08
  23.   Dts and confusion 13:09  |  Another Jew 16/06/08
  24.   reality, and the DT`s 13:20  |  Jewboy 16/06/08
  25.   17 18 21 22 is there any argument??? 13:58  |  Joanna 16/06/08
  26.   DT and why bother 14:05  |  just a Jew 16/06/08
  27.   Jewboy: Using and comprehending are seperate functions 16:11  |  David Teich 18/06/08
  28.   Joanna, you are the proof (2nd try) 16:45  |  David Teich 21/06/08
  29.   As Orwell showed, Stalinists love word games 07:53  |  A thinking Jew 22/06/08
  30.   DT and ignoring all argument. 08:41  |  A thinking Jew 22/06/08
  31.   There is no short-cut to Jewish bliss 14:03  |  AliciaYasmeen 22/06/08
  32.   There is no such thing as a gentile Jew 14:22  |  AliciaYasmeen 22/06/08
  33.   #21 DT: 1) sacrificing and animals 16:27  |  AliciaYasmeen 22/06/08
  34.   #21 DT: 2) the kippah (skullcap) 16:35  |  AliciaYasmeen 22/06/08
  35.   #21 DT: 3) slaves 16:50  |  AliciaYasmeen 22/06/08
  36.   #21 DT: all you need do is to ask 16:55  |  AliciaYasmeen 22/06/08
  37.   30-1: Wrong AJ, you`re ignoring your sides` own contradictions 11:46  |  David Teich 23/06/08
  38.   Wow, a spammer named Alicia appears, p1 11:59  |  David Teich 23/06/08
  39.   Wow, a spammer named Alicia appears, p2 12:00  |  David Teich 23/06/08
  40.   thinking jew 14:56  |  yohann 23/06/08
  41.   DT: the spammer strikes again! 15:14  |  AliciaYasmeen 23/06/08
  42.   Yohann and rules 18:16  |  A thinking Jew 23/06/08
  43.   Alicia and a link as to why participate in such talkbacks 18:59  |  A thinking Jew 23/06/08
  44.   #43 Thinking Jew 23:07  |  AliciaYasmeen 23/06/08
  45.   #43 Thinking Jew, and what I mean by the same ground rules 23:27  |  AliciaYasmeen 23/06/08
  46.   Dear Alicia 08:31  |  A thinking Jew 24/06/08
  47.   Dear Alicia part 2 08:37  |  A thinking Jew 24/06/08
  48.   #46+7 Thinking Jew - 1 11:30  |  AliciaYasmeen 24/06/08
  49.   #46+7 Thinking Jew - 2 11:47  |  AliciaYasmeen 24/06/08
  50.   #46+7 Thinking Jew - 3 12:05  |  AliciaYasmeen 24/06/08
  51.   looking beyond politics 13:09  |  A thinking Jew 24/06/08
  52.   Poor Alicia, as ignorant as the others 20:05  |  David Teich 24/06/08
  53.   Dear Alicia 20:29  |  A thinking Jew 24/06/08
  54.   Sorry you feel left out DT. Some pointsof illogic 22:27  |  A thinking Jew 24/06/08
  55.   Alicia you got a compliment 22:58  |  Another Jew 24/06/08
  56.   DT: Spammer-Alicia strikes again! 23:14  |  AliciaYasmeen 24/06/08
  57.   A thinking Jew disproves the moniker 17:19  |  David Teich 25/06/08
  58.   Alicia, something else to study 17:31  |  David Teich 25/06/08
  59.   a shopping list of logical errors. 09:34  |  A thinking Jew 26/06/08
  60.   more errors in logic. 09:43  |  A thinking Jew 26/06/08
  61.   A final response 09:45  |  A thinking Jew 26/06/08
  62.   A thinking Jew, didn`t stop at the right store 13:18  |  David Teich 27/06/08
  63.   AJ, they aren`t more errors, it`s just more of your avoidance 13:28  |  David Teich 27/06/08
  64.   DT and logic he bought second hand 22:56  |  A Bored teacher 28/06/08
  65.   where dt learned emerges 23:03  |  A thinking Jew 28/06/08
  66.   IF DT wants sources 01:26  |  A thinking Jew 29/06/08
  67.   64: A teacher messes up active and passive 12:53  |  David Teich 29/06/08
  68.   ATJ: An anonymous poster talking about "where"? 12:58  |  David Teich 29/06/08
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