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Friday February 16, 2007

How do you become a ‘Jew by choice’?

by dan pine
staff writer

The Orthodox believe when the Israelites fled Egypt they already were ethnically Jewish. What made them religiously Jewish was the Torah. God offered the Torah to other nations, so says the teaching, but the Jews alone promised to observe the Torah, even before understanding it. Descendants of anyone who was there at Sinai are automatically considered part of the Jewish people.

Anyone who isn’t has to recreate that commitment if they want to be Jewish.

All denominations of Judaism welcome Jews-by-choice. Each, however, has its own unique hoops prospective converts must jump through.

Most Jewish conversions involve extensive study and observance. In Conservative or Orthodox Judaism, candidates must stand before a beit din (a panel of rabbis and scholars). Male converts must submit to circumcision or a symbolic equivalent (usually involving the drawing of a drop of blood). But the particulars of conversion vary from denomination to denomination, shul to shul.

“It’s not just mastering a body of knowledge,” says Rabbi Janet Marder. “It’s a personal transformation. The person has to feel Jewish, connected to the Jewish people.”

At Marder’s Congregation Beth Am in Los Altos Hills, converts undertake a three-tiered approach: academic study, participation in synagogue worship and introduction of Jewish practice at home.

“At the end,” adds Marder, “we ask them to write a personal statement that describes their study process, why they decided to become a Jew, what they’ve learned, and the Hebrew name they’ve chosen. We then take them to the mikvah, they meet with a bet din at Beth Am, then the formal conversion where the person is handed the Torah and recites the Sh’ma.”

In some Orthodox circles, conversion is discouraged. The reason: Being an observant Jew isn’t easy, and prospective converts need to fully understand that before embarking on the path to conversion. Once they accept the difficulty of converting and then sustaining a Jewish life, they are on their way to becoming official MOTs, or members of the tribe.

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