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(Please remember that this series is NOT about Jewish Feminism, but rather how feminist attitudes and demands have been, and continue to be seen as a threat to the rabbinate, especially in terms of female converts)
As you may recall from previous...
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In 1807, Napoleon, concerned if Jews could ever become real Frenchmen, in exchange for full civil rights, convened what he called a "Sanhedrin" of 71 rabbis from all over his empire, presenting them with questions as to their beliefs, and how they...
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Although the various doctrines I have described seem like politics, and even hate, this is not necessarily true (although there are politicians and haters among us). We essentially have two definitions of Orthodoxy. One is all Jews who beleive in...
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When I lived in Cincinnati (1973-1975), I was on the Beit Din both for conversion and divorces (Gittin). An unusual case came before us. A couple came for a "get". After the ceremony, the woman turned to the Beit Din, and said "now I want a letter...
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Once a rabbi asked me to do him a favor of taking some new utensils to the mikveh for him, as I was headed there anyway. I said "Sure", but I decided to do an experiment. "Do you want me to immerse each utensil once, or are you strict to do it...
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We have already seen how Ashkenazi tradition puts a heavy emphasis on custom. I have also shown how the millennia of persecution, have left a tragic legacy, where mourning rites were expanded greatly. This is especially true of Ashkenazim, where...
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Jews are a religion. We are a people. We are an ethnicity. These are all true to an extent, yet none of these is the entire answer. A few years ago, geneticists published the startling finding that the original Ashkenazic community, consisting of...
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In a previous series, I brought the words of RAMBAM, showing that his views on conversion are identical to the Talmud, with the exception of the fact that he includes the acceptance of "Jewish fundamentals", which are not included in the Talmudic...
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We see in the Torah that there are two kinds of "Gerim" (converts).The "Righteous", or Full Convert, who becomes a Jew in every way, and the Ger Toshav (Resident Alien) who has the right to dwell among us, even in the Land of Israel, and who is to...
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Although RAMBAM considered Christianity "in all its forms" to be idolatrous, and such a belief would disqualify a person from being a Noachide, from at least the thirteenth century, many disagreed strongly. The bases for the disagreement are...
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