An Historical Overview of Outreach and Conversion in Judaism
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Marketing Jewish Life Contact
CONTACT WINTER 2004/SHEVAT 5764 VOLUME 6 NUMBER 2 THE JOURNAL OF JEWISH LIFE NETWORK/STEINHARDT FOUNDATION Marketing Jewish Life contact WINTER 2004/SHEVAT 5764 VOLUME 6 NUMBER 2 Marketing Jewish Life Eli Valley Editor or the past dozen years, many American Jewish institutions have tai- Erica Coleman Copy Editor lored programming towards that elusive yet abundant breed: the unaf- Janet Mann filiated Jew. Millions have been spent on new programs that promise to Administration F reach Jews who lie outside the community’s orbit. Unfortunately, we Yakov Wisniewski have often neglected perhaps the most crucial area of focus: innovative mar- Design Director keting of programs and offerings. Instead, many of us have relied on perfunc- tory marketing plans that place the message of outreach and engagement in JEWISH LIFE NETWORK STEINHARDT FOUNDATION the media of the already-affiliated. Michael H. Steinhardt Chairman Such logic is counter-intuitive. If our target is the unengaged, then by defini- Rabbi Irving Greenberg tion they exist outside the range of Jewish media. The competition for their President attention is fierce. Like everyone else, Jews in the open society are subject to Rabbi David Gedzelman seemingly limitless avenues of identity exploration and a whirlwind of infor- Executive Director mation. The deluge of messages and options is equivalent to spam – unless it Jonathan J. Greenberg z”l Founding Director is found to be immediately compelling, it will be deleted. In such an atmos- phere, strategic message creation and placement is crucial for the success and CONTACT is produced and distributed by Jewish Life Network/ vitality of Jewish programs. -
Conversion to Judaism Finnish Gerim on Giyur and Jewishness
Conversion to Judaism Finnish gerim on giyur and Jewishness Kira Zaitsev Syventävien opintojen tutkielma Afrikan ja Lähi-idän kielet Humanistinen tiedekunta Helsingin yliopisto 2019/5779 provided by Helsingin yliopiston digitaalinen arkisto View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk CORE brought to you by Tiedekunta – Fakultet – Faculty Koulutusohjelma – Utbildningsprogram – Degree Programme Humanistinen tiedekunta Kielten maisteriohjelma Opintosuunta – Studieinriktning – Study Track Afrikan ja Lähi-idän kielet Tekijä – Författare – Author Kira Zaitsev Työn nimi – Arbetets titel – Title Conversion to Judaism. Finnish gerim on giyur and Jewishness Työn laji – Aika – Datum – Month and year Sivumäärä– Sidoantal Arbetets art – Huhtikuu 2019 – Number of pages Level 43 Pro gradu Tiivistelmä – Referat – Abstract Pro graduni käsittelee suomalaisia, jotka ovat kääntyneet juutalaisiksi ilman aikaisempaa juutalaista taustaa ja perhettä. Data perustuu haastatteluihin, joita arvioin straussilaisella grounded theory-menetelmällä. Tutkimuskysymykseni ovat, kuinka nämä käännynnäiset näkevät mitä juutalaisuus on ja kuinka he arvioivat omaa kääntymistään. Tutkimuseni mukaan kääntyjän aikaisempi uskonnollinen tausta on varsin todennäköisesti epätavallinen, eikä hänellä ole merkittäviä aikaisempia juutalaisia sosiaalisia suhteita. Internetillä on kasvava rooli kääntyjän tiedonhaussa ja verkostoissa. Juutalaisuudessa kääntynyt näkee tärkeimpänä eettisyyden sekä juutalaisen lain, halakhan. Kääntymisen nähdään vahvistavan aikaisempi maailmankuva -
Christian Understandings of Proselytism David A
Christian Understandings of Proselytism David A. Kerr ike the chameleon, proselytism displays itself in many who had themselves been strangers (gerim) in Egypt (Deut. L shades of color. The word has different nuances in 10:19). The bulk of Talmudic literature welcomes the proselyte individual languages and among languages. Importantly from into the full fellowship of Israel, subject to the requirements of the point of view of this article, it is used variously among circumcision, baptism, and the offering of sacrifice. Jesus criti different sectors of the Christian church. It refers both to the cized what he deemed the Pharisaic tendency of making the transfer of allegiance from one religion to another and to the proselyte a slave to the law (Matt. 23:15). From this it may be transfer of allegiancebetweenchurches. Attitudes to proselytism inferred that the matter of how a proselyte should be incorpo are conditioned by political, social, and cultural considerations, rated into Israel was a matter of controversy in Jesus' time. New and responses vary from one church to another, from one culture Testament references to Jewish proselytes among the first Chris to another. I attempt here to clarify some of the issues, particu tians indicate that they were welcome members of the early larly as they have emerged in Christian thinking through the church (Acts 2:10; 6:5; 13:43).6 The postbiblical histories of both second half of the twentieth century. I argue tha t the hard-sought Judaism and Christianity continued to honor the proselyte until consensus that has emerged within the ecumenical movement more recent times, when, roughly speaking from the eighteenth needs to extend itself further to include new global realities of century, the term came to have the negative connotations we Christianity.1 have noted in English literary usage. -
Conversion to Judaism After the Shoa
Barbara J. Steiner Between Guilt and Repression – Conversion to Judaism after the Shoa Conversion to Judaism and the subsequent acceptance of Jewish converts are topics that are still discussed at length among Jews in Germany today. Is it actu- ally possible to become a Jew? How should a Jewish convert conduct herself or himself? And the most significant question of all: Why do non-Jewish Germans convert to Judaism, and what connection might this phenomenon have with Ger- many’s most recent past, the persecution of and murdering of Jews? Do Jewish converts simply want to change sides in order to belong to the victims and their successors, thereby distancing themselves from their own possibly disreputa- ble family histories? Do they simply want to make everything all right again? Do Germans who convert to Judaism do so because they feel guilty?¹ These are the questions that I will thoroughly investigate in my dissertation, which deals with the conversion of Germans to Judaism after 1945.² I intend to illustrate how German converts deal with the Shoa, and how far they integrate this into their biographies as ‘New Jews.’ From a religious perspective, it is possible for anyone to become a Jew. According to Halacha (the law of Judaism), a Jew is a person who is either born of a Jewish mother, or a person who has been converted to Judaism before a Beit Din (a Rabbinical court) after a period of religious instruction. Giur (the process of conversion) can take years, and is considered by many converts to be tiring and arbitrary.³ The conversion process is a test of the seriousness of the candidate; he or she must learn about the Jewish religion and Jewish history and make every effort to fit into the community. -
Kokkinakis at the Grassroots Level
Religion Religion and Human Rights 12 (2017) 210–222 Human Rights brill.com/rhrs Kokkinakis at the Grassroots Level Effie Fokas1 Principal Investigator, Grassrootsmobilise; Senior Research Fellow, ELIAMEP (Hellenic Foundation for European & Foreign Policy) Athens, Greece; Research Associate, Hellenic Observatory, LSE Abstract This contribution considers the impact of Kokkinakis at the grassroots level: to what extent do grassroots level actors know about the case of Kokkinakis and see in it an opportunity to further their own religion-related rights claims? To what extent has the case inspired social actors such as rights activists, cause lawyers or faith group members to mobilise for their own religion-related rights, whether in court, in the halls of govern- ment, or in the streets? Has Kokkinakis left a mark on the individual citizen with con- cerns to do with religious freedoms? These questions are addressed through empirical research conducted on the indirect effects of ECtHR religion-related case law, including Kokkinakis, at the grassroots level in Greece. Keywords indirect effects – proselytism ban – grassroots mobilization – Metaxas laws – Greek Orthodox – European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) – freedom of religion or belief 1 This article draws on research conducted under the auspices of the European Research Council-funded Grassrootsmobilise Research Programme (GA No. 338463; see www.grass- rootsmobilise.eu), and while Research Associate of the LSE Hellenic Observatory. I would like to thank Grassrootsmobilise programme manager Alexia Mitsikostas for her invaluable research assistance in preparation of this text; Agis Petalas for his guidance on the relevant Greek legal norms; and Margarita Markoviti for her excellent research which underpins the present text and her helpful feedback. -
Noahidism Or B'nai Noah—Sons of Noah—Refers To, Arguably, a Family
Noahidism or B’nai Noah—sons of Noah—refers to, arguably, a family of watered–down versions of Orthodox Judaism. A majority of Orthodox Jews, and most members of the broad spectrum of Jewish movements overall, do not proselytize or, borrowing Christian terminology, “evangelize” or “witness.” In the U.S., an even larger number of Jews, as with this writer’s own family of orientation or origin, never affiliated with any Jewish movement. Noahidism may have given some groups of Orthodox Jews a method, arguably an excuse, to bypass the custom of nonconversion. Those Orthodox Jews are, in any event, simply breaking with convention, not with a scriptural ordinance. Although Noahidism is based ,MP3], Tạləmūḏ]תַּלְמּוד ,upon the Talmud (Hebrew “instruction”), not the Bible, the text itself does not explicitly call for a Noahidism per se. Numerous commandments supposedly mandated for the sons of Noah or heathen are considered within the context of a rabbinical conversation. Two only partially overlapping enumerations of seven “precepts” are provided. Furthermore, additional precepts, not incorporated into either list, are mentioned. The frequently referenced “seven laws of the sons of Noah” are, therefore, misleading and, indeed, arithmetically incorrect. By my count, precisely a dozen are specified. Although I, honestly, fail to understand why individuals would self–identify with a faith which labels them as “heathen,” that is their business, not mine. The translations will follow a series of quotations pertinent to this monotheistic and ,MP3], tạləmūḏiy]תַּלְמּודִ י ,talmudic (Hebrew “instructive”) new religious movement (NRM). Indeed, the first passage quoted below was excerpted from the translated source text for Noahidism: Our Rabbis taught: [Any man that curseth his God, shall bear his sin. -
Kokkinakis and the Narratives of Proper and Improper Proselytizing
Religion Religion and Human Rights 12 (2017) 99–111 Human Rights brill.com/rhrs Kokkinakis and the Narratives of Proper and Improper Proselytizing Brett G. Scharffs Rex E. Lee Chair and Professor of Law, Brigham Young University Law School, Provo, Utah, United States Abstract This article explores how the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) distinguishes between proper and improper proselytizing. It points out the importance of the com- peting factual narratives and how the way the facts are presented can determine how the Court responds to the proselytizing activity. Keywords Kokkinakis – proselytizing – proselyting – proper proselyting – improper proselytism – European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) – Article 9 1 Introduction One of the central moves by the European Court of Human Rights in Kokkinakis v. Greece is the distinction the Court (Court or ECtHR) makes between proper and improper proselytizing, a distinction that has bedevilled the Freedom of Religion and Belief (FoRB) jurisprudence of the Court over the subsequent twenty-five years. This is remarkable because the distinction did not exist in the Greek statute prohibiting “proselytism” or the underlying Greek Constitutional prohibition of proselytism. The distinction between proper and improper proselytizing has been important not only in subsequent cases directly involv- ing missionary activities, but also in cases involving potent religious symbols such as the Islamic headscarf and Christian crucifix. © koninklijke brill nv, leiden, ���7 | doi �0.��63/�87�03�8-���3��Downloaded56 from Brill.com10/01/2021 07:55:47AM via free access 100 Scharffs This paper will focus on the influence of this hermeneutic move in two pri- mary ways. -
Jewish Subcultures Online: Outreach, Dating, and Marginalized Communities ______
JEWISH SUBCULTURES ONLINE: OUTREACH, DATING, AND MARGINALIZED COMMUNITIES ____________________________________ A Thesis Presented to the Faculty of California State University, Fullerton ____________________________________ In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts in American Studies ____________________________________ By Rachel Sara Schiff Thesis Committee Approval: Professor Leila Zenderland, Chair Professor Terri Snyder, Department of American Studies Professor Carrie Lane, Department of American Studies Spring, 2016 ABSTRACT This thesis explores how Jewish individuals use and create communities online to enrich their Jewish identity. The Internet provides Jews who do not fit within their brick and mortar communities an outlet that gives them voice, power, and sometimes anonymity. They use these websites to balance their Jewish identities and other personal identities that may or may not fit within their local Jewish community. This research was conducted through analyzing a broad range of websites. The first chapter, the introduction, describes the Jewish American population as a whole as well as the history of the Internet. The second chapter, entitled “The Black Hats of the Internet,” discusses how the Orthodox community has used the Internet to create a modern approach to outreach. It focuses in particular on the extensive web materials created by Chabad and Aish Hatorah, which offer surprisingly modern twists on traditional texts. The third chapter is about Jewish online dating. It uses JDate and other secular websites to analyze how Jewish singles are using the Internet. This chapter also suggests that the use of the Internet may have an impact on reducing interfaith marriage. The fourth chapter examines marginalized communities, focusing on the following: Jewrotica; the Jewish LGBT community including those who are “OLGBT” (Orthodox LGBT); Punk Jews; and feminist Jews. -
OF AISH HA TORAH: BA 'ALE! TESHUVA R and the NEW RELIGIOUS MOVEMENT PHENOMENON Aaron Joshua Tapper
jJJEWIT§IHI jJ(Q)U~NAIL (Q)JF 1 0 ~ " ' Q" ,,J ' : 0 i ''' VOLUME XLIV NUi'dBERS 1 and 2 2002 ' ,j'' 0 ~ CONTENTS ';" ,p' The 'Cult' of Aish Hatorah: Ba'alei Tes!tuva and the New Religious lVIovement Phenomenon AARON JOSHUA TAPPER Fieldwork Among the 'Ultra-Orthodox': The Insider Outsider Paradigm Revisited LISA R. KAUL-SEIDMAN Outremont's Hassidim and Their Neighbours: An Eruv and its Repercussions WILLIAM SHAFFIR .Jewish Rdi.1gees in Britain and in New York HILARY L. RUBINSTEIN The.Jewish Economic Man HAROLD POLLINS :;. The .Jews of Britain, 16.)6-2ooo i ,D \VlLLIAl\1 D. RUBINSTEIN ~ ~ ' • .,., Book Reviews Chronicle i <I' J1 ...J' Editor: .Judith Freedman Jli I \ I OBJECTS AND SPONSORSHIP OF i THE JEWISH JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY I 7he Jewish Journal'!! Sociology was sponsored by the Cultural Department of the 1 World Jewish Congress from its inception in 1959 until the end of 1980. Thereafter, from the first issue of 1981 (volume 23, no. r), the Journal has been sponsored by Maurice Freedman Research Trust Limited, which is rcgisten:U as an educational charity by the Charity Commission of England and Wales (no. 326077). It has as its main purpose the encouragement of research in the sociology of the Jews and the publication of The Jewish Journal or Sociology. The objects of the Journal remain as stated in the Editorial of the first issue in '959: 'This journal has been brought into being in order to provide an international vehicle for serious writing on Jewish social affairs . .. Academically we address ourselves not only to sociologists, but to social scientists in general, to historians, to philosophers, and to students of comparative religion . -
Conversion to Judaism: a Historical Analysis on How Stringencies Arose and Why
1 Conversion to Judaism: a Historical Analysis on How Stringencies Arose and Why Zane Barrios 2 Table of Contents Abbreviations .............................................................................................................................................. 3 1) Introduction ......................................................................................................................................... 4 The Question of Conversion: Why the Stringencies? .......................................................................... 4 Elaboration on the Question .................................................................................................................. 5 An Outline of This Paper ....................................................................................................................... 6 Jewish Demographics Today ................................................................................................................. 7 2) Sources & Methodology...................................................................................................................... 9 Methodology/Theory ............................................................................................................................... 9 Sources Examined ................................................................................................................................. 13 Terminology.......................................................................................................................................... -
Religion and Geography
Park, C. (2004) Religion and geography. Chapter 17 in Hinnells, J. (ed) Routledge Companion to the Study of Religion. London: Routledge RELIGION AND GEOGRAPHY Chris Park Lancaster University INTRODUCTION At first sight religion and geography have little in common with one another. Most people interested in the study of religion have little interest in the study of geography, and vice versa. So why include this chapter? The main reason is that some of the many interesting questions about how religion develops, spreads and impacts on people's lives are rooted in geographical factors (what happens where), and they can be studied from a geographical perspective. That few geographers have seized this challenge is puzzling, but it should not detract us from exploring some of the important themes. The central focus of this chapter is on space, place and location - where things happen, and why they happen there. The choice of what material to include and what to leave out, given the space available, is not an easy one. It has been guided mainly by the decision to illustrate the types of studies geographers have engaged in, particularly those which look at spatial patterns and distributions of religion, and at how these change through time. The real value of most geographical studies of religion in is describing spatial patterns, partly because these are often interesting in their own right but also because patterns often suggest processes and causes. Definitions It is important, at the outset, to try and define the two main terms we are using - geography and religion. What do we mean by 'geography'? Many different definitions have been offered in the past, but it will suit our purpose here to simply define geography as "the study of space and place, and of movements between places". -
The Case for Conversion: Welcoming Non-Jews Into Messianic Jewish
The Case for Conversion: Welcoming non-Jews into Messianic Jewish Space by Rabbi Dr. Richard C. Nichol This booklet is written with my deepest respect to my Messianic Jewish colleagues who, with heart and soul, are seeking to build something beautiful – modern Messianic Judaism. I also hope these thoughts will be a blessing for many in our synagogues who wonder about the many issues raised in this piece. ***** The passing of time often change a person’s perspective. Several years ago I was privileged to be asked to draft a proposal for the Union of Messianic Jewish Congregations Theology Committee on the subject of the conversion of gentiles to Messianic Judaism. At that time I took a strong position against the practice. Since then I have reevaluated the issues. This essay will detail why I and a growing number of Messianic Jewish leaders have come to believe that offering a formal conversion is essential for the future health and vitality of our movement, the spiritual and emotional well-being of the people in our care, and the good of the Jewish people. Sizing up Messianic Judaism 1 In some respects the Messianic Jewish movement has made phenomenal strides. Whereas a mere thirty years ago there were very few Messianic Jewish synagogues, today there are many. Back then, nothing but a grand ideal motivated us -- our conviction that Jewish identity and belief in the Jewish Messiah, Yeshua, must come together. Today, we have our own buildings, day schools, adult education programs, and quasi- denominational structures. In our midst many Jewish people have become faithful followers of Messiah Yeshua.