Conversion to Judaism is more than the adoption of a new identity; it means acceptance of a demanding covenant. It means joining a people with a unique history and a lifelong argument with God and tradition. The convert chooses obligation freely—an act that challenges those born into it to reconsider their own commitments. Conversion reminds us that Judaism is not inherited passively; it must be embraced consciously, through study, struggle, and moral resolve.
In Converting to Judaism, Parashat HaShavua and Parashat Ki Tisa
This week's parashah tells us of the giving of the Laws to Moshe on Mt. Sinai, and it's aftermath. But what exactly is Divine Law? And do human beings have any say in what the Law is to be? An incident much later in the Torah hints at the dynamic relationship between the Children of Israel and the Laws of God.
In Contemporary Issues, Converting to Judaism and Jewish Thought and Philosophy
Judaism and the Jewish people are intertwined and interact in ways which nobody can fully grasp. Are we a religion, or a nation? If we are a religion, how can it be that somebody who does not believe in God or refuses to observe even one commandment still remains Jewish as long as he or she is born to a Jewish mother? And if we are a nation, how does religion come in, telling us who belongs to the nation and who does not? Any attempt to find a solution to this problem will always fail. This is one of the greatest mysteries of Jewish identity.
There are probably billions of people who are full-fledged “soul Jews” but don’t know it, and very likely never will. Perhaps it is these Jews whom God had in mind when He blessed Avraham and told him that he would be the father of all nations and that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars in the sky and the grains of sand on the seashore.
In Defense of Heresy
In Converting to Judaism, Education, Jewish Thought and Philosophy and Parashat Shemot
Judaism was born out of opposition, rebellion and protest. It overthrew and outlived mighty empires and gave the world a radically new understanding of itself. Judaism has nothing to fear. It has prevailed over all those who criticized it but has also learned much about itself by listening to opposing voices. Through these voices, it has been able to sharpen its own claims and if necessary change its mind when the inadequacy of these claims has become clear. Only in this way will it continue to play a central role in the future of mankind.
The first convert and Jew, Avraham, was only asked to observe a few of the commandments, such as circumcision. An incubation period was required to allow for Judaism to develop slowly and be solidified at Sinai with the giving of the Torah. In this time frame, the great moral-religious foundations of Judaism and the conditions for creating the Jewish nation were shaped. We should allow potential converts this option to slowly work their way up to Sinai.
In Contemporary Issues, Converting to Judaism and Jewish Thought and Philosophy
Today, Israel has many thousands of immigrants who are of Jewish descent, yet not halachically Jewish. Should we convert them even though we know that they will not live a fully committed Jewish life? Or should we abandon them, basically ignoring and excluding them as we do now? I believe there is a third way, a way of reconciling these difficulties.
Rather than waiting until a potential convert is ready to take on all of Jewish law, and only then converting them, we should first convert them, and then slowly introduce them to Jewish religious values and Halacha. This should be done by way of gentle persuasion and love, with no coercion whatsoever. We must give them the option of making their own choices, introducing them to a ladder of observance that they can climb at their own pace and within their own abilities.
Just as a human being who’s never had an encounter with classical music won’t know what he’s missing until he is introduced to Mozart, Beethoven or Bach, so it is with Judaism. But it all depends on who is playing the music.
As the Israeli Chief Rabbinate and the new rabbinical initiative for an independent conversion court (which I fully support) are headed toward a major showdown, it is remarkable that neither side has considered a most crucial question: Is conversion even possible? This may sound like a rhetorical question, since the answer is in the affirmative. Yet it goes to the very core of the problem. And as long as we do not deal with it, all deliberations concerning this matter are more or less meaningless.
What makes one a Jew? Being born to a Jewish mother? Converting to Judaism? Not really. It is living by the spiritual order of Judaism that makes one a Jew; living through the Jews of the past and with the Jews of the present and future. We are Jews when we choose to be so; when we have discovered Jewishness on our own, through our search for the sacred; when we fight the never-ending spiritual struggle to find God, realize that the world needs a moral conscience, and carry that exalted burden so as to save the world and provide it with a mission.
As the State of Israel and its rabbinical courts head towards a large-scale showdown concerning conversion, it is remarkable that not one of the participants, including the orthodox, has considered this major, crucial question: Is conversion at all possible? This may sound like a rhetorical question since the answer is in the affirmative. Yet, this question goes to the very core of the problem, and as long as we do not deal with it, all deliberations concerning this matter are more or less meaningless. The reason for this is obvious: Logically speaking, conversion to Judaism should not be possible. Just as it is impossible for a Jew whose father is not a Cohen to become a Cohen, similarly, it should be out of the question for a gentile to become a Jew. Either one is born into a family of Cohanim, or one is not. Presumably, then, either one is born a Jew, or one is not. God chose the patriarchs and their descendants as His people, and it is only they who can claim to be Jews. It would follow, then, that either one is part of this nation, or one is not.
When suggesting new ways to approach religious and halachic problems in Judaism one must be conscious of the great responsibilities that such suggestions carry. One should never forget that one enters holy territory and touches on issues which could shake the foundations of Judaism and Jewish existence. Still one cannot escape one's religious responsibilities by denying that there may be ways to help Judaism find solutions to serious problems, even though they may be controversial in the eyes of many greater than oneself.