Who is a Jew?: Difference between revisions
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Orthodox [[posek|authorities]] require that conversions be performed in accord with traditional Jewish law and recognise only those conversions in which a convert accepts and undertakes to observe Jewish law as interpreted by Orthodox [[rabbi]]s. Because rabbis in the other movements do not require that converts make this commitment, Orthodox authorities do not generally accept as valid conversions performed outside the Orthodox community.<ref>[http://www.judaismconversion.org/ Conversion to Judaism – Jewish Converting<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> |
Orthodox [[posek|authorities]] require that conversions be performed in accord with traditional Jewish law and recognise only those conversions in which a convert accepts and undertakes to observe Jewish law as interpreted by Orthodox [[rabbi]]s. Because rabbis in the other movements do not require that converts make this commitment, Orthodox authorities do not generally accept as valid conversions performed outside the Orthodox community.<ref>[http://www.judaismconversion.org/ Conversion to Judaism – Jewish Converting<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> |
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Conservative authorities likewise require that conversions be conducted according to traditional Jewish law. Conducting a conversion absent the traditional requirements of immersion in a [[mikveh|ritual bath]] and circumcision for males is a violation of a Standard of the [[Rabbinical Assembly]] and grounds for expulsion.<ref>[http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/sites/default/files/public/halakhah/teshuvot/2011-2020/JewishIdentity6.2011.pdf "Proving Jewish Identity"]</ref> Conservative authorities generally recognize any conversion done in accord with the requirements of Jewish law, even if done outside the Conservative movement. Accordingly, Conservative rabbis may accept the validity of some [[Progressive Judaism|Progressive]] conversions.<ref>http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/teshuvot/docs/20012004/16.pdf |
Conservative authorities likewise require that conversions be conducted according to traditional Jewish law. Conducting a conversion absent the traditional requirements of immersion in a [[mikveh|ritual bath]] and circumcision for males is a violation of a Standard of the [[Rabbinical Assembly]] and grounds for expulsion.<ref>[http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/sites/default/files/public/halakhah/teshuvot/2011-2020/JewishIdentity6.2011.pdf "Proving Jewish Identity"]</ref> Conservative authorities generally recognize any conversion done in accord with the requirements of Jewish law, even if done outside the Conservative movement. Accordingly, Conservative rabbis may accept the validity of some [[Progressive Judaism|Progressive]] conversions.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/teshuvot/docs/20012004/16.pdf |archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20051228082854/http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/teshuvot/docs/20012004/16.pdf |archivedate=2005-12-28 |title=The Status of Non-Halakhic Conversions}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/teshuvot/docs/20012004/17.pdf |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20060628202448/http://www.rabbinicalassembly.org/teshuvot/docs/20012004/17.pdf |archivedate=2006-06-28 |title=Should the Kashrut of Conversions be Investigated?}}</ref> |
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The [[Union for Reform Judaism]] states that "people considering conversion are expected to study Jewish theology, rituals, history, culture and customs, and to begin incorporating Jewish practices into their lives. The length and format of the course of study will vary from rabbi to rabbi and community to community, though most now require a course in basic Judaism and individual study with a rabbi, as well as attendance at services and participation in home practice and synagogue life."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.templeisrael-ne.org/_kd/Items/actions.cfm?action=Show&item_id=1036&destination=ShowItem|title=www.templeisrael-ne.org|publisher=|accessdate=January 6, 2015}}</ref> Its [[Central Conference of American Rabbis]] recommends that three rabbis be present for the conversion ceremony.<ref>[http://data.ccarnet.org/glgerim7.html "Guidelines for Rabbis Working with Prospective Gerim"]</ref> The Rabbinical Court of the [[Israel Movement for Progressive Judaism]] requires an average of a year of study to become conversant in Jewish life and tradition. Following this, converts are required to immerse in a ritual bath, be circumcised if male, and accept the commandments before the rabbinical court.<ref>Zemer, Moshe. ''Evolving Halakha.'' Jewish Lights Publishing, 1999. pp. 137–138</ref> |
The [[Union for Reform Judaism]] states that "people considering conversion are expected to study Jewish theology, rituals, history, culture and customs, and to begin incorporating Jewish practices into their lives. The length and format of the course of study will vary from rabbi to rabbi and community to community, though most now require a course in basic Judaism and individual study with a rabbi, as well as attendance at services and participation in home practice and synagogue life."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.templeisrael-ne.org/_kd/Items/actions.cfm?action=Show&item_id=1036&destination=ShowItem|title=www.templeisrael-ne.org|publisher=|accessdate=January 6, 2015}}</ref> Its [[Central Conference of American Rabbis]] recommends that three rabbis be present for the conversion ceremony.<ref>[http://data.ccarnet.org/glgerim7.html "Guidelines for Rabbis Working with Prospective Gerim"]</ref> The Rabbinical Court of the [[Israel Movement for Progressive Judaism]] requires an average of a year of study to become conversant in Jewish life and tradition. Following this, converts are required to immerse in a ritual bath, be circumcised if male, and accept the commandments before the rabbinical court.<ref>Zemer, Moshe. ''Evolving Halakha.'' Jewish Lights Publishing, 1999. pp. 137–138</ref> |
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Another example of the issues involved is the case of converts to Judaism who cease to practice Judaism (whether or not they still regard themselves as Jewish), do not accept or follow halakha, or now adhere to another religion. Technically, such a person remains Jewish, like all Jews, provided that the original conversion is valid. However, in some recent cases, [[Haredi Judaism|Haredi]] [[Posek|rabbinical authorities]], as well as the current [[Religious Zionism|Religious Zionist]] [[Israel]]i [[Chief Rabbi]]nate, have taken the view that a given convert's lapse from Orthodox Jewish observance is evidence that he or she cannot, even at the time of the conversion, have had the full intention to observe the commandments, and that the conversion must therefore have been invalid. |
Another example of the issues involved is the case of converts to Judaism who cease to practice Judaism (whether or not they still regard themselves as Jewish), do not accept or follow halakha, or now adhere to another religion. Technically, such a person remains Jewish, like all Jews, provided that the original conversion is valid. However, in some recent cases, [[Haredi Judaism|Haredi]] [[Posek|rabbinical authorities]], as well as the current [[Religious Zionism|Religious Zionist]] [[Israel]]i [[Chief Rabbi]]nate, have taken the view that a given convert's lapse from Orthodox Jewish observance is evidence that he or she cannot, even at the time of the conversion, have had the full intention to observe the commandments, and that the conversion must therefore have been invalid. |
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A valid Jewish court of sufficient stature has the ability to revoke a person's or a group's status as Jews. This was done for the lost Ten Tribes of Israel<ref>Babylonian Talmud, Yebamoth 16b)</ref> and the Samaritans.<ref>Pirke De-Rabbi Elieze, chapter 36</ref> |
A valid Jewish court of sufficient stature has the ability to revoke a person's or a group's status as Jews. This was done for the [[lost Ten Tribes]] of Israel<ref>Babylonian Talmud, Yebamoth 16b)</ref> and the [[Samaritans]].<ref>Pirke De-Rabbi Elieze, chapter 36</ref> |
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===Ethnic and cultural perspectives=== |
===Ethnic and cultural perspectives=== |
Revision as of 04:06, 30 May 2015
Part of a series on |
Jews and Judaism |
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"Who is a Jew?" (
According to the simplest definition used by Jews for self-identification, a person is a Jew by birth, or becomes one through religious conversion. However, there are differences of opinion among the various branches of Judaism in the application of this definition, including:
- The effect of mixed parents: i.e. whether a person of mixed Jewish and non-Jewish parents should be considered Jewish.
- Conversion: i.e. what processes of conversion should be considered valid.
- Historical loss of Jewish identity: i.e. whether a person's or group's actions (such as conversion to a different religion) or circumstances in his or her community's life (such as being unaware of Jewish parents) should affect his or her status as Jewish or non-Jewish.
- Diaspora identity: identity of Jews among themselves, and by non-Jews throughout the Jewish diaspora.
- Claim to Israeli citizenship: the examination of the previous issues in the context of the Basic Laws of Israel.
Tannaitic Judaism
According to the Mishnah, the first written source for halakha, the status of the offspring of mixed marriages was determined matrilineally.
According to historian Shaye J. D. Cohen, in the Bible, the status of the offspring of mixed marriages was determined patrilineally. He brings two likely explanations for the change in Mishnaic times: first, the Mishnah may have been applying the same logic to mixed marriages as it had applied to other mixtures (kilayim). Thus, a mixed marriage is forbidden as is the union of a horse and a donkey, and in both unions the offspring are judged matrilineally. Second, the Tannaim may have been influenced by Roman law, which dictated that when a parent could not contract a legal marriage, offspring would follow the mother.[4]
Contemporary Judaism
All Jewish religious movements agree that a person may be a Jew either by birth or through conversion. According to halakha, a Jew by birth must be born to a Jewish mother. Halakha states that the acceptance of the principles and practices of Judaism does not make a person a Jew. But, those born Jewish do not lose that status because they cease to be observant Jews, even if they adopt the practices of another religion.[5]
Reform and Reconstructionist Judaism often accept a child as Jewish even if only the father is Jewish and if the child chooses to identify as Jewish.[6] As the various denominations of Judaism differ on their conversion processes, conversions performed by more liberal denominations are not accepted by those that are less so.[6]
Jewish by birth
According to halakha, to determine a person's Jewish status (Hebrew: yuhasin) one needs to consider the status of both parents. If both parents are Jewish, their child will also be considered Jewish, and the child takes the status of the father (e.g., as a kohen). If either parent is subject to a genealogical disability (e.g., is a mamzer) then the child is also subject to that disability. If one of the parents is not Jewish, the rule is that the child takes the status of the mother (Kiddushin 66b, Shulchan Aruch, EH 4:19).[7] The ruling is derived from various sources including Deuteronomy 7:1–5, Leviticus 24:10, Ezra 10:2–3.[7] Accordingly, if the mother is Jewish, so is her child, and if she is not Jewish, neither is her child considered Jewish. The child can be considered Jewish only by a process of conversion to Judaism. The child is also freed from any disabilities and special status to which the father may have been subject (e.g., being a mamzer or kohen) under Jewish law.[8]
All branches of
However, according to the oral tradition of Orthodox Judaism, the spouses of both Joseph and Moses converted to Judaism prior to marrying them.Reform rabbis in the United States have set standards by which a person with one Jewish parent is considered a Jew if there have been "appropriate and timely public and formal acts of identification with the Jewish religion and people," such as a Jewish naming ceremony, brit milah, or a bar or bat mitzvah ceremony. Because the Reform Movement uses a guidelines approach and its standards are not considered binding, they are understood and applied in different ways by different Reform rabbis and individual Reform Jews. The principle, in general, is understood to require a Jewish upbringing. The Reform movement's standard states that "for those beyond childhood claiming Jewish identity, other public acts or declarations may be added or substituted after consultation with their rabbi".[10] Advocates of patrilineal descent point to Genesis 48:15–20 and Deuteronomy 10:15.[11]
This policy is commonly known as
Some historical Jewish communities have disputed the Orthodox matrilineal tradition.
The divergence of views has become an issue because Orthodox and Conservative communities do not recognize a person as Jewish if only the father is Jewish, whereas Reform or Liberal community will accept that person as a born Jew.[6] For the person to be accepted as Jewish by an Orthodox or Conservative community (for example, on an occasion of their bar/bat mitzvah or marriage), they may require a formal conversion (in accordance with halakhic standards). Orthodox Judaism has a predominant position in Israel. Although Orthodox and Conservative Judaism do not recognize Jewishness through patrilineal descent, "it should also be noted, however, that in the case of a child born to a Jewish father but to a non-Jewish mother, most Orthodox rabbis will relax the stringent demands normally made of would-be converts",[13] and the Rabbinical Assembly of the Conservative movement "agreed that 'sincere Jews by choice' should be warmly welcomed into the community".[14]
Converts to Judaism
All mainstream forms of Judaism today are open to sincere converts, with most subgroups accepting converts by the process accepted within the group. Not all conversions are recognised in different movements.[15]
In
Orthodox authorities require that conversions be performed in accord with traditional Jewish law and recognise only those conversions in which a convert accepts and undertakes to observe Jewish law as interpreted by Orthodox rabbis. Because rabbis in the other movements do not require that converts make this commitment, Orthodox authorities do not generally accept as valid conversions performed outside the Orthodox community.[20]
Conservative authorities likewise require that conversions be conducted according to traditional Jewish law. Conducting a conversion absent the traditional requirements of immersion in a
The
Although an infant conversion might be accepted in some circumstances (such as in the case of adopted children or children whose parents convert), children who convert would typically be asked if they want to remain Jewish after reaching religious adulthood – which is 12 years of age for a girl and 13 for a boy, as required by Jewish law.[27][28]
Karaite Judaism does not accept Rabbinic Judaism. It has different requirements for conversion, and refrained from accepting any converts until recently.[12] Traditionally non-proselytizing, on August 1, 2007, the Karaites reportedly converted their first new members in 500 years. At a ceremony in their Northern California synagogue, ten adults and four minors swore fealty to Judaism after completing a year of study. This conversion comes 15 years after the Karaite Council of Sages reversed its centuries-old ban on accepting converts.[29]
Syrian Jewish communities do not normally carry out conversions, particularly where the conversion is suspected of being for the sake of marriage. Nor do they accept such converts from other communities, or the children of mixed marriages or marriages involving such converts.[30]
Jews who have practiced another religion
In general, Orthodox Judaism considers individuals born of Jewish mothers to be Jewish, even if they convert to or are raised in another religion.[31] Reform Judaism views Jews who convert to or are raised in another religion as non-Jews. For example "...anyone who claims that Jesus is their savior is no longer a Jew..." [Contemporary American Reform Responsa, #68].[32][33][34]
Historically, a Jew who has been declared to be a
Judaism has a category for those who are Jewish but who do not practice or who do not accept the tenets of Judaism, whether or not they have converted to another religion. The traditional view regarding these individuals, known as
A Jew who leaves Judaism is free to return to the religion at any time. In general, no formal ceremony or declaration is required to return to Jewish practices. All
The same rules in principle apply to the matrilineal descendants of such persons, though some rabbinical authorities may require stricter proof of Jewish descent than others. Whether such persons are required to undergo a full formal conversion depends on the community and their individual circumstances. For example, a male who has had a brit milah, who has a general understanding of Judaism, but who has been raised in a secular home might not be required to undergo ritual conversion. However, a male who has not had a brit milah, a male or female who has converted to or been brought up in another religion, or an individual raised in a completely secular home without any Jewish education, in most communities, may be required to undergo a full ritual conversion. For full participation in the community (for example, to marry with the participation of a rabbi), they may be required to display sincerity, such as a declaration of commitment to Judaism.[36]
Another example of the issues involved is the case of converts to Judaism who cease to practice Judaism (whether or not they still regard themselves as Jewish), do not accept or follow halakha, or now adhere to another religion. Technically, such a person remains Jewish, like all Jews, provided that the original conversion is valid. However, in some recent cases, Haredi rabbinical authorities, as well as the current Religious Zionist Israeli Chief Rabbinate, have taken the view that a given convert's lapse from Orthodox Jewish observance is evidence that he or she cannot, even at the time of the conversion, have had the full intention to observe the commandments, and that the conversion must therefore have been invalid.
A valid Jewish court of sufficient stature has the ability to revoke a person's or a group's status as Jews. This was done for the
Ethnic and cultural perspectives
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The term can refer to people of diverse beliefs and backgrounds because genealogy largely defines who is "Jewish". "Ethnic Jew" is sometimes used to distinguish non-practicing from practicing (religious) Jews. Other terms include "non-observant Jew", "non-religious Jew", "non-practicing Jew", and "secular Jew".
The term sometimes can refer exclusively to Jews who, for whatever reasons, do not practice the religion of Judaism, or who are so casual in their connection to that religion as to be effectively not Jews in the religious sense of adherent to Judaism. Typically, ethnic Jews are cognizant of their Jewish background, and may feel strong cultural (even if not religious) ties to Jewish traditions and to the Jewish people or nation. Like people of any other ethnicity, non-religious ethnic Jews often assimilate into a surrounding non-Jewish culture, but, especially in areas where there is a strong local Jewish culture, they may remain largely part of that culture instead.
"Ethnic Jews" include
The 2013 Pew Research study of American Jews found that 62% thought that being Jewish was mainly a matter of ancestry and culture, while 15% thought that it was mainly a matter of religion. Of those who stated themselves to be Jews by religion, 55% thought that being Jewish was mainly a matter of ancestry and culture, while two-thirds thought that it was not necessary to believe in God to be Jewish.[43]
The traditional European definition of Jewishness (although it was not uniform across Europe) differs markedly from the definition used by the United States.[citation needed] In the former Soviet Union, "Jewish" was a nationality by law, as with other nationalities such as Russians, Ukrainians, Georgians and others. However, there were certain restrictions on their civil liberties in the early years of the Soviet Union.[44]
The European definition is traditional in many respects, and reflects not only how the Europeans saw Jews, but also how Jews saw themselves. It has been argued[by whom?] that the Israeli law draws on external definitions of Jewishness (such as the Nazi and Soviet definitions), rather than traditional halakhic criteria.
Religious definitions
Halakhic perspective
According to the traditional Rabbinic view, which is maintained by all branches of
As a result, mere belief in the principles of Judaism does not make one a Jew. Similarly, non-adherence by a Jew to the
Those not born to a Jewish mother may become accepted as Jews by the Orthodox and Conservative communities through a formal process of conversion to Judaism in order to become "righteous converts" (Geirei tzedek—Hebrew: גירי צדק). In addition, halakha requires that the new convert commit himself to observance of its tenets; this is called Kabbalat Ol Mitzvot (Hebrew: קבלת עול מצוות), "Acceptance of the Yoke of the Commandments". Kabbalat mitzvot (Hebrew: קבלת מצוות) is used by Reform Judaism in accordance with reform responsa and halakhah.[47][clarification needed]
Both Haredi Judaism and Modern Orthodox Judaism accept a similar set of rules regarding Jewish status based on classical rabbinic Judaism, including both matrilineal descent and requirements that conversions be performed by Orthodox rabbis and that converts promise to strictly observe elements of traditional Judaism such as Shabbat and Niddah. However, their application of these rules have been different, and the difference has been increasing in recent years. Modern Orthodox authorities have been more inclined to rule in favor of Jewish status and to accept non-Orthodox Jews' word in doubtful cases involving people claiming to be Jews, while Haredi authorities have in recent years tended to presume non-Jewish status and require more stringent rules and standards of evidence in order for Jewish status to be proven, and have tended to distrust the evidence of Jews who are not personally Orthodox. Haredi rabbis have tended to look at a convert's current personal observance and to regard deficiencies or lack of Orthodoxy in current observance as evidence that the convert never intended to validly convert. In addition, the contemporary situation is further complicated by the fact that some Haredi rabbis no longer regard some Modern Orthodox rabbis as reliable.[48][49][50]
Karaite Judaism
Unlike the denominations of Rabbinical Judaism, Karaite Judaism maintains that it is the responsibility of each Jew to study the Tanakh for themselves. The Talmud / Oral Law are not canonized, neither are rabbinical opinions considered authoritative, but every interpretation is held up to the same scrutiny, regardless of its source. Karaite Judaism relies on the Tanakh to indicate that Jewishness is passed through the paternal line, not the maternal line, as is maintained by Orthodox Judaism (though a minority hold that both parents need to be Jewish). Karaite Jews are eligible for Aliyah under the Law of Return. The eligibility of non-Jewish converts to Karaite Judaism to make Aliyah under the Law of Return has not yet been addressed in Israeli courts.[51]
Reform Judaism
Modern Progressive Jewish denominations have a conversion process based on their principles. In the US, an official Reform resolution in 1893 abolished circumcision as a requirement for converts,[52] and Reform does not require converts to have tevilah, ritual immersion. A "prospective convert declares, orally and in writing, in the presence of a rabbi and no less than two lay leaders of the congregation and community, acceptance of the Jewish religion and the intention to live in accordance with its mitzvot".[53]
Controversies
The controversy in determining "who is a Jew" concerns four basic issues:
One issue arises because North American Reform and UK Liberal movements have changed some of the halakhic requirements for a Jewish identity in two ways:
- A. Children born of just one Jewish parent – regardless of whether the father or mother is Jewish – can claim a Jewish identity. A child of only one Jewish parent who does not claim this identity has, in the eyes of the Reform movement, forfeited his/her Jewish identity. By contrast, the halakhic view is that any child born to a Jewish mother is Jewish, whether or not he/she is raised Jewish, or even whether the mother considers herself Jewish. As an example, the children of Madeleine Albright (who was raised Catholic and was unaware of her Jewish identity) would all be Jewish according to halakha, since their mother's traceable female ancestors were all Jewish and all three of her children were female. However, this is not the belief of progressive Judaism, which views Jews who convert to or are raised in another religion as non-Jews.
- B. The requirement of hemophiliacs are exempt from circumcision.[54])
Secondly,
A third controversy concerns persons (whether born Jews or converts to Judaism) who have converted to another religion. The traditional view is such persons remain Jewish.
A fourth controversy stems from the manner in which the Chief Rabbinate of Israel has been handling marriage and conversion decisions in recent years. Conversions and marriages within Israel are legally controlled by the Orthodox Israeli Chief Rabbinate; therefore, a person not proven to be a Jew to the Rabbinate's satisfaction is not legally permitted to marry a Jew in Israel today. Although the Rabbinate has always refused to accept non-Orthodox conversions, until recent years it was more willing to accept the Jewish parentage of applicants based on personal testimony, and the validity of conversions based on the testimony of Orthodox Rabbis. However, in recent years the rabbinate, whose rabbis historically had a more Modern Orthodox orientation, has increasingly been filled by the more stringent Haredi camp. It has increasingly been inclined to presume that applicants are not Jewish until proven otherwise, and require more stringent standards of proof than in the past. It has implemented a policy of refusing to accept the testimony of non-Orthodox Jews in matters of Jewish status, on grounds that such testimony is not reliable. It also has been increasingly skeptical of the reliability of Orthodox rabbis ordained by institutions not subject to its accreditation, particularly in matters of conversion. Accordingly, non-Orthodox Jews born to Jewish parents, and some Jews converted by Orthodox rabbis, have been increasingly unable to prove their Jewishness to the Rabbinate's satisfaction, because they are unable to find an Orthodox rabbi who is both acceptable to the Rabbinate, and familiar with and willing to vouch for the Jewishness of their maternal lineage or the validity of their conversion.[48][49][50]
There have been several attempts to convene representatives of the three major movements to formulate a practical solution to this issue. To date, these have failed, though all parties concede the importance of the issue is greater than any sense of rivalry among them.
Non-religious definitions
The Society for Humanistic Judaism defines a Jew as "someone who identifies with the history, culture and fate of the Jewish people." In their view it is therefore possible for a non-religious individual to adopt Judaism and join a Humanistic Jewish community, and for the Society for Humanistic Judaism to adopt the person wanting to be part of the Humanistic Jewish family.[60] As Israeli author Amos Oz puts it, "a Jew is anyone who chooses or is compelled to share a common fate with other Jews."[61] Oz summed up his position more succinctly in an monologue published in Tikkun, saying "Who is a Jew? Everyone who is mad enough to call himself or herself a Jew is a Jew."[62]
Legal structure in Israel
Israel has no single document called a constitution (the Basic Laws of Israel function as an uncodified constitution),[63] however the definition of "who is a Jew" has become an important issue in Israeli politics due to the involvement of religious parties in the Knesset.
The issue of who is considered a Jew has given rise to legal controversy in Israel. There have been court cases in Israel since 1962 that have addressed the question.[64][65]
Judaism test
As of 2010, anyone who immigrated to Israel after 1990 and wishes to marry or divorce via the Jewish tradition within the state limits must go through a "Judaism test"[66] at a Rabbinical court. In this test, a person would need to prove their claim to be Jewish to an investigator beyond a reasonable doubt. They would need to present original documentation of their matriline up to their great-grandmother (4 generations)[67] (or, in the case of Ethiopian Jews, 7 generations back.[68]) In addition, they should provide government documents with nationality/religion shown as Jewish (e.g., birth/death certificates, marriage documents, etc.).
In the case of people whose original documents have been lost or never existed, it may take a lot of work to prove their being Jewish.[69] The courts rulings are not final, and any clerk has the power to question them[70] even 20 years later, changing one's citizenship status to "on hold", and putting them in jeopardy of deportation.[71]
The two biggest communities suffering from this problem are:
- Immigrants from the former Soviet Union (FSU) – a study conducted between 2003 and 2005 showed that 83% of people from the FSU who started the Judaism test process successfully finished it. An estimated 10% left the process before completion. In a later study, in 2011, a 90% success rate was achieved in the FSU immigrant community.[72][73] Many Jews in the former Soviet Union took steps to hide their Jewishness. Besides post-Soviet copies of documents are suspected by the tribunal after widespread falsification, and the archived originals are difficult to access for genealogists.[74]
- Immigrants from the United States, where government documents generally do not show religion or Jewish ethnicity.[75][76][77][78]
Law of Return
Following the birth of the modern State of Israel in 1948, the Law of Return was enacted to give any Jew the right to immigrate to Israel and become a citizen.[79] However, due to an inability on the lawmakers to agree, the Law did not define who was a Jew, relying instead on the issue to resolve itself over time. As a result, the Law relied in form on the traditional halakhic definition. But, the absence of a definition of who is a Jew, for the purpose of the Law, has resulted in the divergent views of the various streams of Judaism competing for recognition.
Besides the generally accepted halakhic definition of who is a Jew, the Law extended the categories of person who are entitled to immigration and citizenship to the children and grandchildren of Jews, regardless of their present religious affiliation, and their spouses.[80] Also, converts to Judaism whose conversion was performed outside of the State of Israel, regardless of who performed it, were entitled to immigration under the Law. Once again, issues arose as to whether a conversion performed outside of Israel was valid. The variation of the definition in the Law and the definition used by various branches of Judaism has resulted in practical difficulties for many people.
It has been estimated that in the past twenty years about 300,000 avowed non-Jews and even practicing Christians have entered Israel from the former Soviet Union on the basis of being a child or grandchild of a Jew or by being married to a Jew.[81]
However, there was an exception in the case of a person who had formally converted to another religion derived from the Rufeisen Case in 1962.[64] Such a person, no matter what their halakhic position, was not entitled to immigration under the Law. This created a divergence between political Zionist interpretation of Jewishness and that of halakha. In the 1970 Shalit case the Israeli Supreme Court ruled in favour of a family which sought to register children born in Israel from a Scottish mother as Jewish by nationality,[64] but the 1972 amendment to the Population Registry Law prevented their third child being registered as Jewish.[82]
Current Israeli definitions specifically exclude Jews who have openly and knowingly converted to or were raised in a faith other than Judaism, including Messianic Judaism. This definition is not the same as that in traditional Jewish law; in some respects it is deliberately wider, so as to include those non-Jewish relatives of Jews who may have been perceived to be Jewish, and thus faced antisemitism.
The Law of Return does not, of itself, define the Jewish status of a person; it only deals with those who have a right of immigration to Israel.
In the early 1950s, the
Israeli laws governing marriage and divorce
In relation to marriage, divorce, and burial, which are under the jurisdiction of the Israeli Interior Ministry, the halakhic definition of who is a Jew is applied. When there is any doubt, the Israeli Chief Rabbinate generally determines the issue.
In terms of social relations, most secular Jews view their Jewish identity as a matter of culture, heritage, nationality, or ethnicity.
Orthodox halachic rules apply to converts who want to marry in Israel. Under these rules, a conversion to Judaism must strictly follow halachic standards to be recognised as valid. The rabbinate even scrutinizes Orthodox conversions, with some who have converted by orthodox authorities outside of Israel not being permitted to marry in Israel.[91][92]
If one's ancestral line of Jewishness is in doubt, then a proper conversion would be required in order to be allowed to marry in the Orthodox community, or in Israel, where such rules govern all marriages.
Israeli definition of nationality
The Jewish status of a person in Israel is considered a matter of "nationality".
In the registering of "nationality" on Israeli
Until recently, Israeli identity cards had an indication of nationality, and the field was left empty for those who immigrated not solely on the basis of being Jewish (i.e. as a child, grandchild or spouse of a Jew only) to indicate that the person may not be a Jew. Many Israeli citizens who are not recognised by the Rabbinate as Jewish have been issued with Israeli identity cards that do not include their Hebrew calendar birth date.
Outside of Israel
This article is missing information about section.(November 2013) |
In 2010 the Labour Court of South Africa addressed the question of who is a Jew for the purposes of the Employment Equity Act.[94]
The question has also arisen in the United Kingdom, where religious schools are allowed to select all, or a proportion of their intake based upon religion. A 2009 ruling,
Other definitions
This article is missing information about section.(November 2013) |
There have been other attempts to determine Jewish identity beside the traditional Jewish approaches. These range from
Sociology and anthropology
As with any other ethnic identity, Jewish identity is, to some degree, a matter of either claiming that identity or being perceived by others (both inside and outside the ethnic group) as belonging to that group, or both. Returning again to the example of Madeleine Albright – during her Catholic childhood, her being in some sense Jewish was presumably irrelevant. It was only after she was nominated to be Secretary of State that she, and the public, discovered her Jewish ancestry.
Ido Abram states that there are five aspects to contemporary Jewish identity:
- Religion, culture, and tradition.
- The tie with Israel and Zionism.
- Dealings with antisemitism, including issues of persecution and survival.
- Personal history and life-experience.
- Relationship with non-Jewish culture and people.[95][96]
The relative importance of these factors may vary enormously from place to place. For example, a typical Dutch Jew might describe his or her Jewish identity simply as "I was born Jewish," while a Jew in Romania, where levels of antisemitism are higher, might say, "I consider any form of denying as a proof of cowardice."[97][clarification needed]
The Inquisition
During the time of the Spanish and Portuguese Inquisitions, conversion to Roman Catholicism did not result in total termination of the person's Jewish status. Legally, the converts were no longer regarded as Jews, and thus allowed to stay in the Iberian Peninsula. During the Inquisition in Spain and Portugal, however, many Jews were forced to convert, but thereafter were regarded by many people, though not in a legal form, as New Christians, distinguishing them as separate from the Old Christians of non-Jewish lineage. Since legal, political, religious and social pressure pushed many people to untrue conversions (public behaviour as Christians while retaining some Jewish beliefs and practices privately, a kind of crypto-Judaism),[d] they were still treated with suspicion, a stigma sometimes carried for several generations by their identifiable descendants. The limpieza de sangre ("Cleanliness of blood") required public officials or candidates for membership of many organizations to prove that they did not have Jewish or Muslim ancestry.
Secular philosophy
Jean-Paul Sartre, who was not Jewish, suggested in Anti-Semite and Jew (1948) that Jewish identity "is neither national nor international, neither religious nor ethnic, nor political: it is a quasi-historical community." While Jews as individuals may be in danger from the antisemite who sees only "Jews" and not "people", Sartre argues that the Jewish experience of antisemitism preserves—even creates—the sense of Jewish community. In his most extreme statement of this view he wrote, "It is the anti-Semite who creates the Jew." Conversely, that sense of specific Jewish community may be threatened by the democrat who sees only "the person" and not "the Jew".
Hannah Arendt repeatedly asserted a principle of claiming Jewish identity in the face of antisemitism. "If one is attacked as a Jew, one must defend oneself as a Jew. Not as a German, not as a world-citizen, not as an upholder of the Rights of Man, or whatever"; "A man attacked as a Jew cannot defend himself as an Englishman or a Frenchman. The world can only conclude from this that he is simply not defending himself at all."
Wade Clark Roof (1976), a sociologist at the University of California at Santa Barbara, proposed that social sectors in modern life, in which traditional symbols and rituals are meaningful, provide an alternative approach for explaining the social basis of religion in a secular order, in doing so, he turned to the local community as a sphere in modern society that still persists "as a complex system of friendship and kinship networks, formal and informal associations, as well as symbolic attachments, very much rooted in family life and ongoing socialization processes".[98]
"Half-Jewish"
In the United States, because of
Antisemitic definitions
The question "who is a Jew?" is also sometimes of importance to non-Jews. It has had exceptional significance historically when considered by anti-Jewish groups for the purpose of targeting Jews for persecution or discrimination. The definition can impact on whether a person may have a certain job, live in certain locations, receive a free education, live or continue to live in the country, be imprisoned, or executed.
Nazism
The question was also of importance during the rule of the
The
In Germany itself, the Ahnenpass and Nuremberg Laws classified people as being of the Jewish race if they descended from three or four grandparents enrolled in Jewish congregations. A person with one or two grandparents enrolled in a Jewish congregation could be classified as Mischling,[104] a crossbreed, of "mixed blood", if she or he was no member of a Jewish congregation at the time the Nuremberg Laws were enacted. Only people with at least two of their grandparents of "German blood" could be German Reich's citizens, other Germans dropped into the new second class group of citizens, the so-called state citizens.[105] If a person, with grandparents of the same religious combination, was enrolled as a member of a Jewish congregation in 1935 or would join later, she or he switched from the discriminatory class of Mischlinge into that of Geltungsjude, "Jew by legal validity", despite of not fulfilling the no less law-defined discriminating criterion of descending from three or four Jewish grandparents. Whereas every Mischling could anytime drop into the class of Geltungsjude by joining a Jewish congregation, the Nuremberg Laws provided for the unchanged classification of any Geltungsjude, regardless if she or he tried to evade harm by seceding from the Jewish congregation after 1935, considering such secessions as being of no effect as to the discrimination. Let alone people with three or four Jewish grandparents who themselves could never alter their law-defined racial categorisation as Jews. Any Mischling with two Jewish grandparents, colloquially called a half-Jew, marrying after 1935 anybody classified as Jew would drop into the discriminatory class of Geltungsjude. Mischlinge with one Jewish grandparent were usually forbidden to marry anybody with any Jewish grandparent.
One could not become a non-Jew in the eyes of the Nazi government by seceding from one's Jewish congregation, becoming non-practicing, marrying outside the religion, or converting to Christianity. In 1935 the Nuremberg Laws forbade new marriages of people classified as Jews with people of other classifications[e] Earlier contracted marriages between spouses of different classifications (so-called mixed marriages; Mischehe) provided the Jewish-classified spouse with an uncertain protection from some discriminations and atrocities.
There were very few Karaites in Europe during the Nazi era; most lived in the region of Turkey, Greece, and the Crimea. Karaites were not considered Jewish for the purpose of the Holocaust extermination policy;[106] according to SS Obergruppenführer Gottlob Berger, writing on November 24, 1944, discrimination against the Karaites had been prohibited due to their proximity to the Crimean Tatars, to whom Berger views the Karaites as being related. Nazis still retained hostility towards the Karaites, on grounds of their religion; and there were a number of small scale massacres of Karaites.
In
The Vichy régime in southern France defined a Jew as an individual with three Jewish grandparents or two grandparents if his/her spouse was Jewish. Richard Weisberg points out that this was a potentially broader classification than the one used in Occupied France, for example, a Mischling could not be classified a Jew under the Nazi dictate, by her/his spouse's classification if the marriage was contracted before the imposition of anti-Semitic marriage laws there, but would be deemed one under the Vichy act if he/she had married a Jew, regardless when.[107]
Israelite identity loss claims
Besides Jews themselves, there are various groups that have claimed descent from the biblical
Cochin Jews (Indian Jews)
Some sources say that the earliest Jews of
Bene Israel
The Bene Israel in India claim to be descended from Jews who escaped persecution in Galilee in the 2nd century BCE. The Bene Israel resemble the non-Jewish Marathi people in appearance and customs, which indicates some intermarriage between Jews and Indians. The Bene Israel, however, maintained the practices of Jewish dietary laws, male circumcision and observation of the Sabbath as a day of rest. From the late eighteenth century, other Jewish communities instructed them in normative Judaism.
Initially the Orthodox rabbinate in Israel said that the Bene Israel would have to undergo conversion in order to marry other Jews, as matrilineal descent could not be proven. In 1964 the Israeli Rabbinate declared that the Bene Israel are "full Jews in every respect".
The Bene Israel claim a lineage to the Kohanim, the Israelite priestly class, which claims descent from Aaron, the brother of Moses. In 2002, DNA testing revealed that the Bene Israel shared some of the genetic markers of the Kohanim. These are not exclusive to the Kohanim, but appear among them at a higher frequency. These are also shared with some non-Jewish Semitic peoples.[109][110]
Many of the Bene Israel emigrated from India to Israel, where around 6,000 Jews of this group reside. About 5,000 remain in India. They maintain 65 synagogues in Israel.[111]
Beta Israel
The
Bnei Menashe
The
The Kaifeng Jews
The
Despite their isolation from the rest of the
Today, 600-1,000 residents of Kaifeng trace their lineage to this community.[113] After contact with Jewish tourists, the Jews of Kaifeng have reconnected to mainstream Jewry. With the help of Jewish organizations, some members of the community have emigrated to Israel.[113] In 2009, Chinese Jews from Kaifeng arrived in Israel as immigrants.[116][117][118]
The Lemba
The
The Lemba follow a
New Mexico's Crypto-Jews
A small
In 1598 the first expedition was made to New Mexico, and included conversos. Others feel enlarged by learning this part of their history, but continue as practicing Catholics.
A genetic study of men in the early 2000s showed that many Hispanos of the American Southwest are descended from
In 2008, a
Other evidence of Jewish ancestry is language. According to a Jewish genealogy blog, so-called "Mountain Spanish", a Spanish
Other claims
Other claims of lost tribe status or other Jewish origin, have not yet been accepted by normative Jews.
- A tribe of Siberian Asian origin based in Central Russia connects their claims of Jewish rather than pantheistic practices with the Khazars. The latter, an invading tribe from either Mongolia or Kazakhstan that conquered and ruled Russia in the 9th century, is said to have adopted Judaism instead of Christianity or Islam, by their leaders' preference.[citation needed]
- A tribe in western Iranian Jews. Judaism has not become a major theological force in Southeast Asia. Introduced religions such as Hinduism and Islam, which converted several tribal groups, have existed in Indochina (Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam) for hundreds or thousands of years.[citation needed]
See also
Notes and references
- Notes
- Ethnic group.
- ^ See Jewish ethnic divisions.
- ^ See Y-chromosomal Aaron
- ^ See Marrano and Anusim
- ^ See Anti-miscegenation laws#Nazi Germany, Mischlinge
- References
- ^
- Ethnic minorities in English law – Google Books. Books.google.co.uk. Retrieved on 2010-12-23.
- Edgar Litt (1961). "Jewish Ethno-Religious Involvement and Political Liberalism". Social Forces. 39 (4): 328–332. JSTOR 2573430.
- "Are Jews a Religious Group or an Ethnic Group?" (PDF). Institute for Curriculum Services. Retrieved October 21, 2013.
- Sean Ireton (2003). "The Samaritans – A Jewish Sect in Israel: Strategies for Survival of an Ethno-religious Minority in the Twenty First Century". Anthrobase. Retrieved December 30, 2009.
- Levey, Geoffrey Brahm. "Toward a Theory of Disproportionate American Jewish Liberalism" (PDF).
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(help) - J. Alan Winter (March 1996). "Symbolic Ethnicity or Religion Among Jews in the United States: A Test of Gansian Hypotheses". Review of Religious Research. 37 (3).
- ^ Sharot, Stephen, "Judaism and Jewish Ethnicity: Changing Interrelationships and Differentiations in the Diaspora and Israel," in Ernest Krausz, Gitta Tulea, (eds.) Jewish Survival: The Identity Problem at the Close of the Twentieth Century, pp. 87–104
- ^ Will Herberg, David G. Dalin, From Marxism to Judaism: the Collected Essays of Will Herberg, p.240
- ISBN 0-585-24643-2.
- ^ Katz, Lisa. "Am I Jewish?". About.com. Retrieved November 8, 2013.
- ^ a b c "Who Is a Jew?". Judaism101. Retrieved November 8, 2013.
- ^ a b "In-Laws and Shabbat Law". Ohr Somayach. 2009.
- ^ The Principles of Jewish Law, Ed. Menachem Elon, p. 429m ISBN 0-7065-1415-7.
- ^ Patrilineal Descent, Jewish Virtual Library, . Retrieved September 2, 2008.
- ^ "Reform Movement's Resolution on Patrilineal Descent, The Status of Children of Mixed Marriages" from the final text of the Report of the Committee on Patrilineal Descent adopted on March 15, 1983, Central Conference of American Rabbis
- ^ Fighting for Patrilineal Descent, Jewish Justice, . Retrieved September 2, 2008.
- ^ a b p.154, Levinson, David (Ed.), Encyclopedia of World Cultures Vol 9 : Africa and the Middle East, G. K. Hall & Co., Boston, 1995
- ^ "Patrilineal Descent - Jewish Virtual Library". Retrieved January 6, 2015.
- ^ Lisa Katz. "Who is a Jew via Descent". About. Retrieved January 6, 2015.
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- . 2011. Retrieved August 16, 2011.
The Shulchan Aruch, completed in 1565, is probably the most important of the legal codes. For hundreds of years, it has been accepted as the final and authoritative codification of the laws found in the Talmud. (3 ELON at 1368–1422.) Even the work's title indicates its authority. Shulchan Aruch translates as "set table," thereby symbolically stating that the Jewish law has finally be set and settled in a clear code. (The authoritative code of Jewish law is the Shulchan Aruch along with glosses on the Shulchan Aruch added by Moshe Isserles (c. 1525–1572), also called Rama or Remu, that present legal opinions omitted by Karo, especially opinions specific to the Ashkenazic (German and Eastern European) Jewish customs. The glosses are called the "table cloth" to the "set table" of the Shulchan Aruch. The two together still form the definitive codification of Jewish law. 3 ELON at 1359–1365.)
- Jewish Encyclopedia. Funk & Wagnalls. pp. 645–647. Retrieved August 16, 2011.
Only when authorities like Samuel b. David and Shabbethai b. Meïr, notwithstanding their scholarship and independence, accepted most of the decisions of the Shulḥan 'Aruk as authoritative, did the work become what it now is, the codex par excellence of rabbinical Judaism.
- ^ Klein, Isaac. A Guide to Jewish Religious Practice. The Jewish Theological Seminary, 1979. p. 442-443
- ^ Conversion to Judaism – Jewish Converting
- ^ "Proving Jewish Identity"
- ^ "The Status of Non-Halakhic Conversions" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on December 28, 2005.
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- ^ Robinson, George. Essential Judaism: A Complete Guide to Beliefs, Customs and Rituals. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2000. ISBN 0-671-03480-4, pgs 229–232.
- ^ "S.C.J. FAQ: Section 2.3. Who We Are: What is Conservative Judaism?". Retrieved January 6, 2015.
{{cite web}}
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at position 60 (help) - ^ Karaites hold first conversion in 500 years. August 2, 2007, JTA Breaking News.
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Prior to completing the process of giur, a rabbi should require that each prospective ger/gioret make commitments within each of the following areas. These commitments should be viewed as a demonstration of a dedication to kabbalat mitzvot within the context of the brit between God and the Jewish people and as a starting point for increased Jewish involvement by the prospective ger/gioret.
- ^ a b "As Rabbinate Stiffens Rules, Orthodox Rites Face Scrutiny". Forward. June 2, 2006.
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An adult proselyte who has become a Jew voluntarily cannot annul this process in any way
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- ^ Israel#Politics
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{{cite book}}
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(help) - ISBN 978-0-7656-0103-2.
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A short documentary produced by Shavei Israel on the aliyah of Jews from Kaifeng China to Israel.
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In northern New Mexico, the descendants of Converso settlers who arrived as early as the late 16th century, still speak "Mountain Spanish." In reality, it is 16th century Ladino, and scholars who have visited them have been amazed at how well the language has been transmitted down through the generations.
- Kertzer, Morris (1996). What is a Jew?. New York: Touchstone. ISBN 0-684-84298-X.
- Siedman, Lauren (2007). What Makes Someone a Jew?. Woodstock, Vermont: Jewish Lights Publishing. ISBN 978-1-58023321-7.
External links
- Jewish Identity on Chabad.org
- Humanistic Judaism view on Who is a Jew
- Reform view of who is a Jew by the Union for Reform Judaism
- Who is a Jew by Jewish Virtual Library
- Orthodox and Non-Orthodox Judaism: How to Square the Circle by JCPA
- Rabbi Dr. Donniel Hartman: Israel cannot be arbiter of conversions to Judaism by Shalom Hartman Institute
- Matrilineal descent Conservative view
- The "Who Is a Jew?" Controversy by the U.S. Library of Congress
- Rabbi Dr. Donniel Hartman: The challenge and crisis of conversion in Israel by Shalom Hartman Institute
- Who is a Jew? from www.beingjewish.com
- "How Do You Prove You’re a Jew?" Gershom Gorenberg, New York Times, March 2, 2008
- "Rabbinical Court Puts Thousands Of Converts in Legal Limbo" Ruling Reopens Fractious Debate Over ‘Who is a Jew?’", Nathan Jeffay, The Forward, May 8, 2008
- "Israel considers question: ‘Who is a Jew?’ – Issue heads to higher court after rabbis annul some 40,000 conversions" (November 2008)
- Who is born a Jew? Rabbinical and Karaite interpretations side by side from half-Jewish.org
- Times Online, The law of the land collides with the Law of Moses
- Israel risks alienating Jewish diaspora over definition of a Jew
- The Economist, Jan. 11, 2014, "Who is a Jew?"