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| Russian emigres arriving in Israel in 1989 (My Jewish Learning) |
(T)he Central Bureau of Statistics’ definition of Jewish Israelis: the CBS will no longer count some 400,000 non-Jewish olim from Russia as “other” but as “Jews.”
This is exactly the kind of thing that fuels the Charedi protests against the current Israeli government.
They fear that taking full control of conversions out of the hands of the Chief Rabbinate will increase illegitimate conversions. Allowing independent religious courts in any given city to do their own conversions increases the chances for incompetence and fraud. Thus creating a set of converts that will in fact not really be converted. They also fear that the state will start recognizing Conservative and Reform conversions.
I have defended this change on the grounds that to the best of my knowledge the Rabbinate will still have the final say in all conversions. So that Conservative, Reform, and sham conversions will not be any more likely than they are now under full Rabbinate control.
That view is been bolstered by the following:
Minister of Religious Services Matan Kahana on Wednesday published a memorandum of the Government Conversion Law... (With) Perhaps the most important principle… is that it determines that the only conversion recognized by the State of Israel is based on Torah law.
Nonetheless, Charedi leadership and their politicians in the Keneset are still unhappy with this change. They fear that Halacha will be redefined by politics related to a national crisis. A crisis based on the 1989 mass exodus of Jews from the FSU (Former Soviet Union) who have immigrated to Israel. Who by now are fully integrated into Israeli society as are their children. To the point of serving in the IDF and dying for their country. None of whom have known anything else other than they are Jews - albeit for the most part not observant.
Except that many of them are not Jews, despite being raised to think so. To the tune of almost a half million of them. Intermarriage was rampant in the FSU. Halacha dictates that a child born of a Jewish father and non Jewish mother is not Jewish. Not even half Jewish.
This raises the very real possibility that Israel will some day in the not too distant future have a non Jewish majority. This is where the controversy has always been.
The Charedi world does not really care about that and rejects any leniency in conversions. They insist that for a conversion to be legitimate - the convert must accept Torah law as binding. That circumcision and immersion in a Mikva alone are not enough. And that any stated acceptance must be sincere. That has in fact been the accepted conversion standard for many years.
The problem is that most of those immigrants are not willing to become fully observant – if at all. Making an insincere statement of commitment is meaningless. If Israel then ends up having a non Jewish majority, so be it. Zionism – even religious Zionism - means nothing to them and may even be outright heresy!
Religious Zionists on the other hand care deeply about the Jewish character of the state. They want to insure that it remains a majority Jewish state. So a few years ago, they set up conversion courts under the auspices of their own Religious Zionist rabbis that would provide quick conversions to these immigrants.
It is common practice to not seek converts to Judaism. But when there is Zera Yisroel (the offspring has a Jewish father) they try instead to convince that individual to convert. Religious Zionist rabbis used that rationale for being more lenient about the observant practices when a father is Jewish.
It is the nationalist motives of the religious Zionists and the current of government that drives the controversy. Charedim insist that conversions be based on Torah law. They fear that conversions will be redefined by nationalist motives rather than Halachic ones.
In my view it is necessary to have all mainstream Orthodox rabbis on board with what is considered a legitimate conversion. We cannot allow a situation where converts are left in limbo – only being accepted by some Orthodox rabbis and not others. Even though I am sympathetic to the national concerns of Religious Zionists, I believe it will hurt converts to have that kind of controversy surrounding their conversions
The Chief Rabbinate under the last governing coalition took control of all conversions - and have insisted that any foreign conversions be done by approved conversion courts. Which the RCA signed onto. All their converts are accepted by the Chief Rabbinate. Conversions done outside of the RCA are not accepted (Although perhaps some are on a cases by case basis. Not sure).
The new government has changed all that. Which is why Charedi leaders are so upset They object strenuously to these changes. I’m sure they could not care less about Matan Kahana’s memorandum recognizing only those conversions done according to Torah Law. Because they object to how Religious Zionist rabbis will interpret that law.
Be that as it may, all this pales in comparison to what a government agency of the state is about to do. Officially labeling all of these non Jews - Jews. Conversions? Who needs conversions?! Let’s just call them all Jews and be done with it. Problem solved
I don’t see how any observant Jew can accept this. You cannot simply declare someone Jewish. It doesn’t work that way, unless you are a Reform Jew. You are either born a Jew or convert according to Halacha. What the Israeli government is now saying is that the definition of a Jew is the same definition as Reform.
I cannot protest this enough! This is the kind of change that justifies the Charedi charge that the state of Israel is destroying the Jewish people. It will make it almost impossible to know who is legitimately Jewish and who isn’t. Leaving the identity of future generations as Jews in doubt.
I sure hope this does not happen.
