Pesach & gerim - Jewish essence of being a ger (stranger or outsider) developed in Egypt

Shemos[1](22:20): You shall not upset a ger (outsider), nor oppress him; for you were gerim (outsiders) in Egypt.

Shemos[2](23:9): Also you shall not upset a ger (stranger) because you know the heart of a stranger, since you were gerim (strangers) in the land of Egypt.

Vayikra[3](19:33-34): When a stranger (ger) dwells with you in your land do not wrong him. Rather he should be treated as a native born resident and you shall love him as yourself because you were strangers (gerim) in Egypt. I am the L‑rd your G‑d.

Devarim[4](10:18-19): He executes the judgment of the orphan and the widow and loves the ger (stranger) giving him food and clothing. Therefore you shall love the ger (stranger) since you were gerim in the land of Egypt.

Ohr HaChaim[5](Shemos 22:20): Do not wrong a ger because you were gerim in Egypt. Rashi explains because the ger can retaliate and upset you because you were gerim in Egypt. The Ibn Ezra says that you should remember that they are like you used to be. Ramban rejects both of these interpretations and says simply that you should know that G‑d hears the cries of the poor and the oppressed just as He heard your cries in Egypt. The explanation of this verse, based on well known facts, is that the Jewish soul is rooted in holiness because they are descendants of Avraham, Yitzchok and Yaakov who are the heritage of G‑d. Everyone else has an inferior lot. It is well known that people have no concern about the debasement and ridicule of others who are different from them from the aspect that the other is inferior in holiness. This is the cause of ridiculing others. That is why G‑d commanded them not to wrong and oppress gerim. G‑d is saying that the reason that He is commanding this is because you should not say that the ger has his source in evil or that since he is by nature connected to klipah that he is inferior to you. That is because you were gerim in Egypt. This is in accord to what I have explained in Bereishis (46:3), That I will make you into a great nation there. Also concerning (Shemos 20:2) Which I have brought you out of the land of Egypt, I explained that the souls of the Jews themselves were connected to klipah. Because of this the ger is one of you without any distinction. Since the ger is not spiritually inferior to you there is no basis for wronging or oppressing him.

Ohr HaChaim[6](Shemos18:21):[[ Why did Yisro deserved being the source of the information about forming the judicial system - especially when it implies - chas v'shalom - the ignorance of G-d's people prior to his suggestions? G-d wanted to teach the Jewish people a fundamental lesson for all generations. The lesson being that there are among the nations of the world men of great intelligence and understanding and these nations have awareness of important and valuable information. G-d's intent was to show through Yisro that the election of the Jews was not because of their knowledge and insight was greater than other nations. They were not chosen because of their superior wisdom and knowledge. Their election was the result of G-d's supreme kindness and His love of the Avos. This explanation is more appropriate according to the view that Yisro came prior to the Revelation at Sinai. Accordingly G-d's message was that even though their are amongst the Nations greater wise men than amongst the Jews - the Jews were nevertheless chosen. We are those to praise Him for choosing us because of his Kindness. However, even according to the view that Yisro came after the Revelation at Sinai - a similar lesson can be learned by the fact that Yisro is mentioned in the sequence of events of the Torah prior to the giving of the Torah.

Mei Shiloach[7](Chagiga 3a): Rava explained Shir HaShirim (7:2): “How beautiful are your feet in sandals, O prince’s daughter!” He said that this is referring to the daughter of Avraham who was the beginning of gerim. The issue is that we find great things concerning a ger which are not inherent in a born Jew. That is because a ger voluntarily converted out of love of G‑d. He came from amongst the nations to find refuge in the shadow of the wings of the Shechina even though his origin has no holiness. That is because holiness is something which is ingrained in a person from his youth by his father and mother and this produces great things which are not inherent in a ger. However when a born Jew strives to learn to act out of love and to add to his understanding and desire to serve G‑d it gives him both accomplishments. In other words he has the ingrained holiness from his parents and also he has the acquired voluntary initiative of heart [that is found in gerim]. Towards obtaining the second accomplishment there is the mitzva of pilgrimage to Yerushalayim three times a year which serves to work against the mechanical observance of mitzvos. When a born Jew has acquired this voluntary initiative he is also described as the “daughter of the prince” i.e., the daughter of Avraham who was the beginning of gerim. In other words the ger is characterized by his initiative of breaking out of habitual conduct and this voluntary activity was epitomized by Avraham. However today all gerim [ both converts and those Jews who break out of a habituated lifestyle] are aware of the idea of what to strive for because they see the example of holy Jews. In contrast Avraham who was the beginning of gerim lived when the entire world were idolaters. Nevertheless he broke out of this existence even though he didn’t know where the rejection of idolatry would take him. He called out “Who created the world?” until G‑d revealed Himself to him. This is also the issue here concerning the verse “Beautiful are your feet in sandals…” In other words when Jews make the pilgrimage to Yerushalayim they also are breaking their patterns of life and display renewed vigor in their spiritual strivings. This mitzva of pilgrimage is not an isolated commandment but demonstrates the principle of the renewal of spirituality by changing the patterns of life and attaining a new perspective on doing all mitzvos according to G‑d’s will. This idea was also manifest at Mt. Sinai when the Jews said “na’aseh v’nishma” (we will do and then understand). In other words first they will act and accept the obligation to do the mitzvos in simple compliance. However they did not intend to remain on the level of mechanical action and that is why they said “nishma” (we will understanding). That meant they intended to come to understand the essence and meaning of the mitzvos and the significance that G‑d saw in commanding each mitzva…

Chazon Ish[8] (Letters I:208) responded to the assertion that the Jews in Egypt were on the highest level in Torah, mitzvos, faith and piety. The assertion was based upon the medrashism which said that the righteous women went to the fields and gave birth and left their children and there were many miracles done for them…The deduction being that surely because of these righteous women and these miracles – the entire Jewish people must of have been totally devoted to G-d and his mitvos. A further foundation of this assertion was the medrash which states that the Jews were only enslaved for 86 years and that this is insufficient time to become significantly dissolute and debased. The Chazon Ish said that these deduction have no basis since they are all against what Chazal themselves say on the subject. He concludes that the assertion that it was impossible for the Jews to become ruined since they saw miracles is not valid. In fact the Jews saw miracles when they were redeemed from Egypt and at the Sea, as well as the Maan and at the giving of the Torah – and yet they made the Golden Calf. Furthermore there were 10 miracles at the Beis HaMikdash and many miracles and wonders done by the Prophets – nevertheless this did not prevent them from having free will to serve idols. one should not interpret the early generations in such a way that it is impossible for us to comprehend and learn from them. In fact they had free will and this is main thing in avodas HaShem.

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[1] שמות (כב:כ): וגר לא תונה ולא תלחצנו כי גרים הייתם בארץ מצרים:

[2] שמות (כג:ט): וגר לא תלחץ ואתם ידעתם את נפש הגר כי גרים הייתם בארץ מצרים:

[3] ויקרא (יט:לג-לד): וכי יגור אתך גר בארצכם לא תונו אתו: כאזרח מכם יהיה לכם הגר הגר אתכם ואהבת לו כמוך כי גרים הייתם בארץ מצרים אני יהוה אלהיכם:

[4] דברים (י:יח-יט): יח) עשה משפט יתום ואלמנה ואהב גר לתת לו לחם ושמלה: יט) ואהבתם את הגר כי גרים הייתם בארץ מצרים:

[5] אור החיים (שמות כב:כ): וגר לא תונה וגו' כי גרים וגו' רש"י ז"ל פירש אף הוא יכול להונותך, כי גרים וגו', ור' אברהם פירש זכור כי הייתם כמותו ורמב"ן דחה ב' הדרכים ופירש כי תדעו שאשמע צעקת דלים כאשר שמע צעקתך וגו':

ונראה לומר על פי הקדמה הידועה, כי נשמות בני ישראל הם שורש הקדושה, בני אברהם יצחק ויעקב, חבל נחלתו יתברך, וכל זולתם הם חלק רע, ולזה לא יקפידו בזלזול אדם שאינו מהם ובאונאתו, לצד שיחשבוהו שפחות הוא מהדרגות הקדושה, ומזה יולד ענפי האונאה, לזה כאשר צוה עליהם, לבל יונום ולא ילחצום, אמר הטעם שאני מצוך לבל תונהו, שאין לך לומר שהוא בחינת שורש הרע, או כיון שהוא מוטבע בבחינת הקליפה הרי נגרע מערכך, כי אתם גרים הייתם במצרים, פירוש על דרך מה שפירשתי (בראשית מו ג) בפסוק כי לגוי גדול אשימך שם, ובפסוק אשר הוצאתיך מארץ מצרים בפרשת יתרו (שמות כ: ב) שנשמות ישראל עצמם היו טבועים בקליפה, ואם כן יהיה גר זה כאחד מכם באין הבדל, ולזה לא תונהו ולא תלחצנו:

[6] אור החיים (שמות יח:כא) וראיתי לתת לב, איך זכה יתרו, שתכתב על ידו פרשה זו, והן אמת כי הוא כיבד משה עבד ה', והנה שכרו שכבדו ה', אלא היה ה' יכול עשות לו דרך כבוד אחר לא בדרך זה שיראה חס ושלום כפחות ידיעה בעם ה', עד שבא כהן מדין והשכילם:

ונראה כי טעם הדבר הוא להראות ה' את בני ישראל הדור ההוא וכל דור ודור, כי יש באומות גדולים בהבנה ובהשכלה, וצא ולמד מהשכלת יתרו בעצתו ואופן סדר בני אדם אשר בחר, כי יש באומות מכירים דברים המאושרים, והכוונה בזה, כי לא באה הבחירה בישראל, לצד שיש בהם השכלה והכרה יותר מכל האומות, וזה לך האות השכלת יתרו, הא למדת כי לא מרוב חכמת ישראל והשכלתם בחר ה' בהם, אלא לחסד עליון ולאהבת האבות, ויותר יערב לחיך טעם זה למאן דאמר יתרו קודם מתן תורה בא (ילק"ש רמז רסח), כי נתחכם ה' על זה קודם מתן תורה לומר שהגם שיש באומות יותר חכמים מישראל אף על פי כן אותנו הביא ה' אליו ובחר בנו, ועל זה בפרט עלינו לשבח לאשר בחר בנו מצד חסדיו, גם למאן דאמר (שם) אחר מתן תורה [בא], יש טעם במה שסדר ביאתו קודם, להראות הכוונה הנזכרת, שזולת זה אין הכוונה הנזכרת נגלית, והבן:

[7] מי השילוח (חגיגה ג. פרק ראשון): דרש רבא מאי דכתיב [שיר השירים ז:ב] מה יפו פעמיך בנעלים בת נדיב. בתו של אברהם אבינו שהי' תחילה לגרים, הענין בזה כי בגר נמצא יקרות גדול מאי שאין בישראל, כי הגר עושה בנדיבות ובאהבת לבו לפי שבא מבין האומות להתחסה בצל כנפי השכינה אך בשורש אין בו קדושה כי הקדושה המורגלת באדם מנעוריו ומשורשת בו מאביו ואמו בזה נמצא ג"כ יקרית גדול וזה לא נמצא בגר, אך כאשר נפש מישראל ישתדל ללמוד לעשות באהבה ולהוסיף הבנה וחשק לעבודת הש"י לזה יש השני מעלות ביחד שהוא מורגל ומקודש בקדושת האבות וגם מוסיף נדיבות לבו, ולזה היא מצות עליות רגלים שלא ישתקעו בהרגל מצות אנשים מלומדה ואז יקראו ישראל בת נדיב בתו של אברהם אבינו שהי' תחילה לגרים היינו שהגר הוא מבורר בזה שמנדברת לבו יוצא מההרגל וליותר הי' הדבר הזה מבורר אצל א"א ע"ה כי עתה לכל הגרים אף שיוצאים מהרגלם מ"מ יש להם תפיסה למה הם נכנסין לפי שרואים את ישראל מקודשין, אבל א"א ע"ה שהי' תחלה לגרים שהיו כל העולם עובדי ע"ז והוא יצא מן הכלל אף שלא ידע עוד במה שהוא בוחר וחושק, והי' צועק מי ברא אלה עד שנגלה אליו הש"י, וכן הענין כאן מה יפו פעמיך בנעלים כו' היינו בשעה שעולים לרגל ג"כ יוצאים מהרגלם ובתשוקה חדשה ילכו וכל דבר שיצא מן הכלל ללמד לא ללמד על עצמו יצא אלא כו' היינו שלאו דוקא רק במצוה הזו הולכים לעשות בחשק חדש ולא מההרגל רק בכל המצו' רוצים בהתבוננות חדשות כפי רצון ה' בכל עת ואינם עושים בהרגל, וזהו שאמרו במעמד הר סיני נעשה ונשמע היינו בתחחלה נעשה היינו שאנו מקבלים עלינו לעשות ולקיים מצותיך בתמימות אבל לא לעמוד רק בהמעשה היינו אח"כ נשמע היינו נרצה להבין השורש וכמה רצון יגיע להש"י בכל מעשינו...

[8] חזון איש (קובץ אגרות א:רח) כתבת שישראל במצרים היו במדרגה היותר גדולה בתורה ומצוות באמונה ובחסידות ונחתכת על הא דאמרו במדרש שמות פ''א ופכ''ג שהיו נשים צדקניות יוצאות לשדה ויולדות שם ומניחין את בניהן ונעשה להן נסים רבים וכמו שהאריך במדרש שם ומתגדלים ובאים עדרים עדרים, וכתבת דודאי ע''י צדקניות אלו ונסים האלו כל ישראל מסורים לד' ולמצותיו, עוד נתמכת בהא דאמרו במדרש שיר השירים ב' עיקר שיעבודן של ישראל פ''ו שנה ובסבור אתה שאין פנאי להתקלקל בשנים מועטות אלו.

כל הדברים אין בהם ממש שהם כולם נגד רז''ל שאמרו במדרש שמות ספ''א לא היו ישראל ראויין להנצל לפי' כו' שלא היה בידם מעשים טובים כו' ומפורש ביחזקאל (כ:ז) אומר אליהם וגו' וימרו וגו' ואת גלולי מצרים וגו' ופרש"י שם שמתו בג' ימי אפלה וכדאיתא בתנחומא בשלח, ושם ר"נ אומר א' מחמש אלף, ובשמות רבה פ"ה אר"נ ב' מס' רבוא והנה היו הצדיקים מיעוט קטן מאד, ובילקוט שמעוני ואתחנן תתכ"ח ועם מקרב גוי אין כתיב כאן כו' מלמד שהי' אלו ערלים ואלו ערלים אלו מגדלי בלורית כו' וכ"ה במד"ר ויקרא פכ"ג. ובש"ר פ"א ללמדך כשמת יוסף הפרו ברית מלה אמרו נהיה כמצריים, וברמב"ן פ' בא, י"ב מ', ומן הידעו שהיו ישראל במצרים רעים וחטאים מאד כו' .....

ומה שנראה לך שאי אפשר שיתקלקלו ישראל כיון שראו הנסים של ילדי הצדקניות, ז"א דהרי ראו נסים ונפלאות ביציאת מצרים ובים ובמן ובאר ומתן תורה ועשו העגל, והיו י' נסים במקדש והרבה נסים ונפלאות ע''י הנביאים, ומ''מ לא הכריחו כל אלו את הבחירה ועבדו ע''ז, ואל לנו לדרוש במופלא ממנו, שהיו הדורות הראשונים באופי בלתי אפשר לנו להשיג שום מושג מהם, אבל היו בבחירה חפשית, שזו עיקר עבודתו ית'.

The strange coalition to bring non-Jews to Israel

The full article is in Haaretz

Israel is losing its sovereignty

The government decision to stop handling the immigration of the Falashmura starting in early June is a worthy move that comes much too late. As illustrated by a series of articles currently being published in Haaretz, a strange coalition of "liberal" American Jewish organizations, rabbis from the messianic branch of religious Zionism and Shas leaders have, for too many years, succeeded in imposing terror on the Israeli establishment and brought to Israel about 26,000 Ethiopian citizens who do not match the Law of Return's criteria for new immigrants.

The Falashmura are not Jews. For many generations, after their ancestors converted, they lived as Christians in Ethiopia. Now they want to exploit their Jewish roots in order to leave one of the poorest countries in the world and to live as welfare recipients in Israel. It is impossible to assess the social and economic price the country has been paying for years for this "aliyah," and because every additional "oleh" will naturally demand that his family be brought, this is a time bomb that only becomes more powerful over the years. Bringing them to Israel has no connection to Judaism or Zionism.

Rabbi Manny Vinas - part of movement that encourages converts

Rabbi Manny Vinas is also a research fellow of "the Institute for Jewish and Community Research" headed by Dr. Gary Tobin who recently wrote an article Stop keeping out non-Jews.

In Rabbi Vinas' biographical sketch on their website it mentions "Rabbi Manny Viñas is a first generation Cuban American. He was born and raised in Miami, Florida after his parents had emigrated to the United States as part of the large Cuban exile in 1960 following Castro's revolution. Manny's family was of converso background, practicing in Cuba many of the Jewish traditions that had been "secretly" handed down from generation to generation. In Miami, the family rediscovered its Jewish roots and formally returned to Judaism [i.e, they converted]."

Which means that Rabbi Vinas is himself a ger or the children of gerim. It also mentions "His mission is to provide a home for Latinos to engage in Jewish life by serving as a congregation for prayer and learning and as a resource for those of converso (anusim) background who wish to return to Judaism." In other words to convert non-Jews who have hispanic ancestry and might have a patrilinear connection to Judaism.

Based on the description of "Institute for Jewish and Community Research" he obviously has his sights set on more than converting just non-Jews from marrano or hispanic backgrounds.

Conversion

The Institute continues to conduct research and write about conversion. As discussed in Opening the Gates: How Proactive Conversion Can Revitalize the Jewish Community , proactive conversion is the positive process of welcoming those who are interested into Judaism. Proactive conversion requires Jews to open the ideological and intellectual gates and help non-Jews walk through them into Jewish life. Being proactive means encouraging rather than discouraging non-Jews to consider Judaism. This will require changing ideology, practices, and institutional structure to better facilitate conversion to Judaism. If the Jewish community were to lower its barriers to conversion — barriers that it claims it does not have — it might find many people open to the message of Judaism.

Perceptions of stability and growth or decline can lead to self-fulfilling prophesies, in either direction. A community that is seen to be vibrant is likely to retain its members and attract others. On the other hand, a community that ages without replacing its numbers and attracting people from outside is likely to fulfill the image of being in decline. Communities that believe they are in decline can abandon institutions, cut services and plan for a more limited future, which in turn is defined through limited vision of what might be. Communities that plan for growth can often achieve that goal.

Concerning intermarriage:

Most Jews in the United States behave like other Americans: they value their freedom of choice. However, when Jews exercise their freedom of choice with regard to their spouse or partner (if that spouse or partner is not Jewish) they may find themselves at odds with what many feel are Jewish values. Do Jewish values differ from American values?

Nearly all Jews have an opinion and all Jews have a stake concerning intermarriage. Most Jews understand that they individually represent a small part of a tiny religious minority, both in the United States and the world as a whole. Already diminished by the extermination wrought by the Holocaust, Jews worry about group survival.

People who marry out of Judaism can be pessimistically viewed as defectors who are the cause of Judaism's self-destruction. Or, optimistically, we believe they can be the renewers of the faith — those who will bolster Jewish numbers and strength by bringing in newcomers and building the Jewish community. Intermarriage requires creative programming and investment, not condemnation and rejection.

Regarding the desirability of converting non-Jews to increase the number of Jews and to create a more diverse ethnic and racial Jewish people

The Potential to Grow the Jewish People
In addition to over 6 million Jews, IJCR also found some 4.2 million adults in the United States with Jewish heritage: those with a Jewish grandparent or great-grandparent, or more distant Jewish ancestor. Of these 4.2 million, there are 700,000 people with diverse backgrounds who are not currently Jewish, but are aware of a Jewish ancestor. When asked, they claim their Jewish heritage as part of their ethnic or religious identity, even if they do not answer Jewish when asked about their current primary identity. Of course, these numbers would be much larger if more people knew more about their Jewish ancestry. Many who are not currently Jewish have historical ties to Judaism but do not know about their ethnic origins. Ethnic histories over the centuries are quite complex and are lost to many. Millions of people have Jewish ancestors, especially those of Portuguese, Spanish, and African descent, but are unaware of it.

We also found an even larger population of some 6.7 million adults who are not Jewish, but who have a connection to Judaism or the Jewish community. This includes some who are married to Jews and feel identified with the community and others who have an affinity with Judaism or Jews based on intellectual or emotional identification. They are entwined in the Jewish community but are not self-defined as Jews. This group includes some 600,000 individuals — “connected non-Jews” — of diverse backgrounds who are connected to the Jewish people through marriage, friendship, extended family, community, or personal interest.

Some of these individuals are on the path to conversion; they may even be living as Jews in terms of synagogue attendance or ritual observance but have not yet formally become Jews through a conversion or affirmation process. Some may practice Judaism and another religion but have not yet decided to practice only Judaism. Some are so entwined within the Jewish community that they feel Jewish, according to their own self-assessment. They participate in Jewish life and may be raising their children as Jews. (See Table 2)

Christian missionaries' new tactic - blur the distinction between Jews and Christians & Rabbi Vinas

One of the issues connected to conversion is the tactic used by missionaries to try and convince a Jew that he can remain a Jew and still accept Jesus. This is done by trying to minimize the differences between Jews and Christians.
See the Jews for Judaism site.

Of interest that Jewish missionaries such as Rabbi Vinas use the tactic in reverse when he tells Christians that Christianity is not that different from Judaism.

Interview with Rabbi Vinas in Spanish

Por otro lado, el rabino neoyorquino Rigoberto Emmanuel Viñas, dijo no concordar con el juicio que hacen varias organizaciones judías que acusan de antisemita a „La Pasión de Cristo‰ que será estrenada en los Estados Unidos este Miércoles de Ceniza.

Viñas, de la congregación Lincoln Park Jewish Center, expresó en una entrevista a El Diario-La Prensa, su malestar sobre la controversia creada en torno del filme y señaló que, en su opinión, no se está permitiendo que salga a la luz el verdadero mensaje de la película: „Creo que ese mensaje habla de la pasión y la energía de la religión cristiana, explicó el rabino.

On the other hand, New York Rabbi Rigoberto Emmanuel Viñas said he did not agree with the viewpoint expressed by many Jewish organizations that accused "The Passion of the Christ" of having an Anti Semitic message . The film will be premiered in the United States this Ash Wednesday.

Vinas, Rabbi of the congregation Lincoln Park Jewish Center, in an interview with El Diario-La Prensa, spoke of his discomfort with the controversy created around the film and noted that, in his view, the controversy is not letting out the true message of the film: "I think that message speaks of the passion and energy of the Christian religion, the rabbi explained.

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Interview with Rabbi Vinas in Spanish II

Y el catolicismo, arrodillarse ante los santos, ¿no es también una forma de idolatría?

And Catholicism to kneel down before the saints isn't this also a form of idolatry

El catolicismo es una religión monoteísta.

Catholicism is a monotheistic religion.

Cree en un solo Dios,

They believe in single G-d

que llaman el Padre.

by the name of the Father

La religión católica usa a María, Jesús y los santos como intermediarios para llegar al Padre.

The Catholic religion uses Mary, Jesus and the saints as intermediaries to arrive at the Father.

No es idolatría, porque no los considera dioses. Yo no considero el cristianismo una idolatría, como tampoco acepto tener intermediarios para orar al padre que me creó.

This is not idolatry because they are not considered deities. I do not consider Christianity a form of idolatry in that it neither accepts nor has intermediaries for praying to the father that I believe.

No le parece que sus diferencias de juicio para católicos y santeros son prejuicios porque la santería viene de los negros?
It does not appear that there are differences that I judge, in my opinion between catholics and santeros that are not prejudiced because the santeria (an Afro Cuban religion) came to the blacks.

Mi congregación contiene un gran número de negros judíos.
My congregation contains a large number of black Jews.

Han venido de todas partes del mundo, de Etiopía, Uganda. El judaísmo no reconoce color ni raza, sólo el espíritu humano.
They have come from all parts of the world, from Ethiopia, Uganda. Judaism does not recognize color nor race, only the human spirit.

Mi juicio sobre la santería se basa en su fe en múltiples dioses.
My judgment on the Santeria (Afro Cuban religion) is based on their faith in multiple deities.

El monoteísmo puede ser el gran remedio contra el racismo.
Monotheism is a great remedy for racism.

Si hay un sólo Dios,

If there is only a single G-d

es el mismo que nos creó
and it is the same G-d in which I believe

a todos y el que nos ama a todos iguales, judío, gentil, blanco, negro, chino, árabe y japonés

to all and to all who are loved the same, Jew, Gentile, white, Black, Chinese, Arab and Japanese.

Rabbi Vinas denies proselyzing - he just encourages non-Jews to explore Judaism

The following is found on the Voice of America web site. The link posted by anonymous does not work - but if you search for Vinas,VOA and select the cached version it does appear.

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The congregation also has quite a few converts -people who are reconnecting with their historic roots, or those who have been seeking a spiritual home, and find in the Orthodox Jewish community a life-style they like. "Thank God we have many of those," Rabbi Viñas says of the Jews by choice. "I'm actually one of the Orthodox synagogues that's known for welcoming people who are in the process of exploring their connection to Judaism. I want you to know, though, about conversion. That Judaism is very much against proselytizing. But we are for people who want to explore. So if somebody wanted to come and study and learn more about Judaism, and at the end of that process felt that they didn't want to convert, I would feel very successful, because it would mean that they had learned and experienced things and come to a decision on their own. I'm also very happy to report to you that there are quite a number of people who DO convert."

Cheshbon Hanefesh - Let's pause to take an accounting

There has of late been significant dispute and strong disagreement on this blog between our commentators - especially since Eternal Jewish Family seems to be fading from the picture. I have basically stayed out and not expressed my views on these internal dispute - even though I do have strong opinions on the matter. However by not publicly judging the views - I think a great deal of relevant information has been presented - mostly with great clarity and cogency.

It is important to keep in mind that we are dealing with a complex halachic issue which is complicated by contradictory social realities and muddled by unclear and inconsistent goals of the various authorities and communities involved. That is why I am being very cautious about what I post. My silence should not be interpreted to mean that I agree with the comment. Nor should my lack of support indicate that I doubt the veracity of the information. I have gained much insight and clarity through the sincere - though sometimes abrasive - debate. While some of the comments have been abusive and insulting - I realize the pain and genuine concern that motivated them. They would have been more effective if presented in a more respectful manner.

The information that I post - as well as the comments - are being read daily by many people around the world. The number of daily hits has been significantly increasing as well as the influence of this blog on these issues.

I just want to express my appreciation of your efforts and to update you on what is happening. I also greatly appreciate the material which has been sent to me directly - some of which has been the basis of a number of my postings.

Proselytizing by Reform Conservative & Orthodox

The following should be of interest as to what is going on

Rabbi Vinas as described in New York Times article - Baltimore Jewish Times
Rabbi Aaron Ziegler

Conservative outreach,
Jewish Outreach Institute

Reform
Procedure

Eternal Jewish Family Argentine conference cancelled II

I was just informed that the Argentine conference was cancelled at the last minute due to Rav Eliashiv's disapproval.

Hillel organization to encourage intermarriage?

Hillel - whose purpose has been to strengthen and encourage Jewish commitment on the college campus - announces that they have a new open door policy which will include non-Jews.

Aish HaTorah

Hirhurim

What you find sometimes lurking under the rocks!

The following is an example of what I usually reject. However every once in a while it is helpful to be reminded of what lurks out there. It would be nice if we could maintain a high level discussion based solely on facts. Unfortunately social action requires dealing with all types of people.

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Anti-Hypocrite Heeb has left a new comment on your post "An unintentional intermarriage - Jewish Action Mag...":

The hypocrisy & self-righteousness of Jersey Girls and other arrogant Torah-rejecting so-called frum Jews astounds me.

Since you are all the self-declared watchdogs of Taliban Jewry, do you even accept the geirus of the woman in the Jewish Action article, or even though she now did EVERYTHING correct according to all halacha, is she forever banned from being a Jew because she didn't emerge from a Jewish womb?

Just admit that you hate all goyim and that all converts to Torah Judaism, no matter how sincere and no matter how halachachly correct their conversion was, will NEVER be acceptable Jews in your eyes and the other evil ones who simply HATE!

Intermarriage is good for the Jews - the non-Orthodox view

There has been a lot of discussion amongst non-Orthodox Jews recently about how there is no intermarriage crisis since many non-Jewish spouses raise the children as Jews. Therefore intermarriage is a gentle form of proselytizing and the result is a net increase in the number of "Jews". An example of this just appeared in the Wall Street Journal

This however makes sense only if you don't accept halacha and thus Judaism is determined by psychological and sociological identity. For those who are guided by halacha - this is all very sad. It is one thing to reject one's Judaism by intermarriage. It is perhaps even more destructive to redefine Judaism and convince non-Jews to think that they are Jewish because they have a Jewish identity.

Brain death & the intermarriage-conversion problem

I have been posting almost exclusively about conversion and the intermarriage problem. Today's posting about brain death is a change - but I want to use it to illustrate a problem in the halachic process that is relevant to intermarriage and conversion. What follows is not meant as an authoritative exposition of brain death.

As many of you know there is a major fight over the definition of death in Israel due to a law regarding organ transplants. To transplant organs the donor needs to be dead - but not so dead that the organs have deteriorated. Thus it is critical to know precisely when the donor is dead enough to donate but alive enough so that his organs are useful.

There are two basic approaches - 1) as long as the heart is beating the person is alive 2) as long as the person is breathing the person is alive

The second apporach has been complicated by brain death. There are basically two types of brain death. One is the person is unconscious and is unaware of his surroundings and will never recover consciousness. This can happen because of stroke or injury which destroys those parts of the brain dealing with awareness. A person can live for years in this vegatative state with both the heart and the breathing working. Halachically he is not dead. A problem arises however if the brainstem which controls breathing is damaged and therefore the person lacks the brain mechanism for spontaneous independent breathing. Or alternatively the brain flow to the brain as a whole is stopped and he is effectively decapitated.

In the above cases is he halachically dead?

Those who insist that cessation of blood flow to the brain means the person is dead - need to show that there is no flow. One of the standard non-invasive tests is the Doppler Test which uses ultrasound to test for blood flow. Another is the PET. While this sounds very scientific - the question is how accurate is the test? A recent item about a man declared dead and his organs assigned to others - was discovered to be fully alive - despite a PET test which showed there was no blood flow to the brain. Findings for the Doppler test typically indicate a 10% report that there is no blood flow when in fact there is. One study found a 25% error rate.

Thus we have four questions: 1) how is death defined - breathing or heart 2) what is the procedure that a doctor uses to ascertain the facts related to the halachic definition. 3) how accurate are these tests and procedures and 4) what percentage of people being falsely declared dead do we accept?

An illustration of these problems can be found on the following site which is devoted to halachically correct organ donations. Look at the video of the interview with Rav Dovid Feinstein It is clear that the poskim make rulings based upon the technical information they receive from others. To what degree is this information accurate?

In one of Rav Moshe Feinstein teshuvos regarding brain death, he states, "if it is true that there is a test which indicates that the blood flow to the brain has stopped then the person is dead." The problem is that the test mentioned - radiographic test - is generally not used and if it were used it might actually cause the death of the person be examined.

Another related problem is the awareness of the range of legitimate views.
In the case of brain death, the current campaign assumes that there is only one correct view - when in fact there are poskim on both sides.

To get back to the issue of conversion and intermarrige. There is a similar problem of whether the poskim are fully aware of also the range of legitimate halachic views. For example at the November EJF conference one of the horror stories used to illustrate the need for EJF setting the standards is that in the immersion of one ger - the rabbi did not inform her not to wear contact lenses. The conclusion was that the conversion was invalid. Bizarrely enough for an organization which is supposed to follow the rulings of R' Moshe Feinstein and is headed by his son R' Reuven Feinstein - no one mentioned that Rav Moshe does not regard contact lenses as invalidating the immersion. Obviously though it should be removed lechatchila. When one of rabbis of the organization was asked about this he acknowledged he wasn't aware of Rav Moshe's psak!

I have still not gotten confirmation that Rav Eliashiv approves of the proselytizing that EJF does. There is no confirmation from Rav Reuven Feinstein that his father approved the program of EJF.

The Achiezer withdrew his approval of conversion of itnermarriage, 22 years after he had approved by noting it just doesn't work. Rav Moshe Feinstein also refused to convert intermarried couples - even though he acknowledged that theoretically it was valid. He just noted the failure rate is so high he didn't want to be part of the enterprise.

There is concern with 1) what EJF and other kiruv organizations are doing 2) to what degree are the poskim they claim to rely on fully aware of what these organizations are doing

In the absence of clear documentation and open discussion about the consequences of these programs - there is clearly what to be concerned with.

Reply to Baruch's objection to blanket criticism of conversion organizations

Baruch wrote:

" I do feel that blanket statements, be they about baeti din or organizations, should not be made, as they cause people to look with unneeded suspicion towards true geirim,"

I share your concern. However I need you to clarify the target of your comment. Who were you concerned about - that motivated your comment to my blog? Are you referring to my postings and those of other commentators who have criticized Eternal Jewish Family or were you concerned primarily about Eternal Jewish Family's blanket criticism of those rabbis and batei dinim who are not under their supervision? If you have read through the material on this blog or elsewhere on the internet you are aware that it was stated in the Washington EJF conference that that rabbis who believe the world is more than 6000 years old can not perform conversions. This assertion - which has not been challenged or rejected by EJF - threatens the validity of the geirus of those who have utilized Modern Orthodox rabbis.

In fact Rav Sternbuch told me that Eternal Jewish Family believes that I have manipulated the Bedatz against them because they are convinced that I want to destroy them because of their delegitimizing Modern Orthodox rabbis with this rule.

Perhaps you were expressing your ire with the Bedatz who issued a public condemnation of EJF? Or perhaps you are concerned with the Israeli rabbinate which publicly rejects the validity of those rabbis who don't meet their standards?

Please clarify what your concern is.

Criticizing conversion organizations - debases all gerim?

Baruch has left a new comment on your post "A Deeper Look at the current EJF Website and Troub...":

As someone who studied for seven years for geirus, beginning at the age of 14, I am very involved with the controversies surrounding the issue. It should be noted that none of the batei din on this list are, to my knowledge, officially associated with EJF. Instead, the organization simply lists them as acceptable batei din organizations and run by those with deep knowledge of the issues and upstanding members who have studied under and/or gained the trust of rabbonim such as Harav Eliyashiv shlit"a, Harav Amar shlit"a, Harav Feinstein shlit"a, and Rav Eisenstein shlit"a. I was mentored and tutored under one of the batei din listed on the EJF list and never heard anything about EJF from them. Also, my geirus was done by a beis din listed on the list, who also never made any mention of the EJF organization. Please remember that whenever you cast doubts of batei din being able to carry out geirus as a whole, you cast doubts on people like me, who studied for years, adjusted to, adapted with, and completely became part of the Torah world and have complete committment to halacha without any "motivation" by a spouse or partner. I am not saying that geirus shouldn't be more closely watched, and that there shouldn't be more assurance that gerim are truly Torah-practicing people; in fact, it would make it better for people like me. However, I do feel that blanket statements, be they about baeti din or organizations, should not be made, as they cause people to look with unneeded suspicion towards true geirim, which only reminds us over and over that we weren't born Jews, something that is expressly forbidden time and time again by the Torah.