THE PATH TO CONVERSION

The process was lengthy and had many facets, some of which are the subject of short essays that I have written over the last several years and published on this website.  In chronological order, these are the events that, in retrospect and distilled through the lens of time, now seem most relevant to where I am now.

I am the youngest of a family of six children, five of whom survived to adulthood.  Fourteen years separate the births of my brother and me with three sisters and a still-born in between.  We were raised as Methodists by an active church-going and loving mother and a father who was deeply spiritual but never attended church except for weddings and funerals.  His “church” was the Masonic orders.

On both sides, going back to the 17^th century, the family comes from religious German-speaking ancestors originating in the Alsace and Wuertemburg regions of Europe.  On the maternal side, the family arrived in Maryland in the mid 1700’s as part of devout Lutheran immigrants seeking refuge from the wars and turmoil of Europe.  They were founders of several of the earliest Lutheran congregations in Maryland around Hagerstown.

On the paternal side, the family was part of a pietist Lutheran sect that emigrated to the Odessa, South Russia region near the Black Sea in the late 1700’s and first decade of the 1800’s where they established ethnic colonies and prospered until the rise of Slavic nationalism in the 1880’s.  They were excommunicated from the Lutheran Church, which they viewed as insufficiently pious, because they held their own services in their homes, believed that the world would end in the early 1800’s and, among other reasons, emigrated to Russia to be near Israel at the end of days.  They came to the Dakotas, a region similar to the Russian steppes, starting in the 1880’s.  They continued their ethnic religious communities through the third decade of the 20^th Century.

Religion, and questioning the role of religion, have always been a central part of my life.  During my confirmation class, taught in part by the wife of the pastor, I noted the different stances among the four gospel stories and opted for a particular reading of Mark that essentially eliminated any special attribution of divinity to Jesus.  The message of Jesus in Mark, as I then understood it, called on all people as the children of God to recognize their own small spark of divinity and behave accordingly to each other.  This did not go over particularly well.  But for the kindly intervention of the pastor, I might never have been confirmed.  In retrospect, I think it safe to say that the good reverend appreciated and favored both the curious and the rebellious child.

In Helena, Montana there were very few Jewish families.  The only Jew I was aware of happened to be a good friend of my father, but I had no idea what it meant to be a Jew, except that the Jews were the people in the Bible stories.  Of course, I was partial to the childhood version of the story of David, which focused almost exclusively on slingshots and bringing down evil giants, neatly summarized in a song my Aunt Lucille sang to me every time I saw her.

When I came to the east coast to go to college, things changed.  Most people I met assumed that I was Jewish, which generally translated into a positive impression of being more intelligent and informed than I am.  Most of my close friends at college were Jewish, though generally more secular than religious.  I ended up majoring in philosophy and, within the major, focusing on ethics, value theory and justice.  I continued to explore the relationship between the sacred and the secular aspects of normative issues in courses on biblical hermeneutics, zen discipline and the history of ideas.  This led to a graduate school fellowship, initially designed for aspiring theologians but re-designed for those interested in teaching at liberal arts colleges.  My Shakespeare professor, a secular Jew, was the first to bring the Danforth to my attention, though all of my professors seemed to think that it was a perfect fit for me. I started a doctoral program, but quickly realized that I was not especially interested in a totally academic life.

This trend toward increasing influence in my life by secular Jews continued in law school, where my closest advisers and mentors were all secular Jews.  When I began the practice of law itself in Washington, DC most of my close friends and professional colleagues were Jews, for the first time including more observant Jews.

I began to re-examine my religious life, or more accurately the lack of it, in 1993 when my father died.  I knew then, very clearly, that something was missing.  But I could not reconnect with the church of my childhood.  

Judaism entered my life in a much more significant way in 1998 and 1999 when I went through a divorce and then met my wife, Sarah, and her very observant, warm and welcoming modern orthodox parents.  And then after that, I met legions of Sarah’s friends and relatives, equally warm and welcoming.  In some ways it felt very much like the family I grew up in, and in all ways interesting and embracing.  I was not ready, at that time, to explore deeply a commitment to Judaism, but I very quickly became deeply committed to my new family.  Our wedding was performed by a reform rabbi, and I became familiar with some of the rituals and symbols of the form of a Jewish wedding.  My mother and all of my siblings came to Baltimore, and the two families found much in common.   We were all delighted by the confusion of many guests who mistakenly assumed that my brother, with his long grey beard, avuncular nature and portly demeanor was the rabbi who would preside at the wedding.

Leading up to the wedding and afterwards I read two books in the “Dummies” genre.  One was on Catholicism since my son had decided that his identity came from his Irish Catholic mother and his Peruvian Catholic nanny and her children, who were his best friends.  He went through a tutorial and was baptized, confirmed and took confession on an Easter Sunday.  A long time client and close friend from Chile, a prominent member of Opus Dei, became his godfather, and his nanny his godmother.  The other was on Judaism, and was recommended to me by Rabbi Mitchell Wohlberg as good starting point. 

Sarah and I lost our mothers within a year of one another.  Sarah’s mother died first and unexpectedly.   Sitting shiva and coping afterwards with the loss for ourselves and my father-in-law drew us much closer together.   He had never so much as boiled a pot of water in his life and now was faced with the daunting task of maintaining a kosher kitchen.  All of the formidable resources of the Beth T’filoh congregation, and many of his life time friends from the ultra orthodox and modern orthodox community, converged at once to resolve this and other problems of grieving and adjustment. 

Sarah immediately stepped into her mother’s role at the beginning of every Shabbat, conducted by telephone.  We talked with my father-in-law at least three times during the day, sometimes more frequently.  We made many more trips to Baltimore for the day and often overnight.  In all ways at all times she honored her father and the memory of her mother.  In our travels throughout Europe and Japan, we never failed to find a synagogue, a Jewish quarter and, especially, a haggadah for my father-in-law’s collection.  Watching and listening to them light the candles and say the prayers made me more mindful of something very important missing from my own life.  On one Super Bowl Sunday at half time, I began to do “telephone church” with my mother.  We started with Genesis reading alternate passages from parts that I selected and then talking about them.  Because of the stroke and her failing health, my mother had significant short term memory problems, but no trouble at all with long term memory, passages from the Bible or songs.  On that Sunday and subsequent Sundays, she repeatedly (and suspiciously) asked, “Why are you doing this?”  I evaded an answer for about two months, and then told her about the beginning of Shabbat.  Her response, without any sense of irony:  “I love Sarah.  I knew she would make a good Christian out of you.” 

My father-in-law turned 91 on December 24, 2010.  Sarah and I celebrated our tenth anniversary in July.  This year her birthday coincided with Shavuot.  The time had come.  

100 OR SO CONVERSION REVIEW QUESTIONS

In the Conservative Tradition, approximately a year of study and classes typically precedes the actual conversion ceremony consisting of an appearance before a beit din (a panel of three rabbis), a ritual bath in a mikvah (somewhat akin to a baptism), blessings and the giving of a Hebrew name.  What follows is a list of short answer questions that are typically covered in the conversion classes.

I.       Bible

1.      Who was the first Jew?

I am inclined to go with Abraham, though I doubt that the term “Jew” or all that it may imply today had much currency in his time. 

2.      What is the Hebrew name for the Bible?

Tanakh

3.      What are the three main divisions of the Hebrew Bible?

Torah, Neviim (Prophets) and Kutvim (Writings or Stories) hence the acronym TaNaKh.

4.      What are the names of the five books of Moses in order in Hebrew and English.

Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteromony

Beresheet,Sh’mot, Vayikra, Bemidar, Devarim,

5.      By what other Hebrew name are the five books of Moses known?

Torah

6.      Who were the Patriarchs?

Abraham, Jacob and Isaac

7.      Who were the Matriarchs?

Sarah, Rebecca, Leah and Rachel

8.      Who was the leader of the people after Moses?

Joshua

9.      List the first three Jewish kings in order.

Saul, David and Solomon

10.  What is a prophet and when did prophets live?  Name at least two important prophets.

A prophet is one who feels compelled to speak truth to power and the people to remind them to follow the ways commanded of them by the covenant, a kind of spokesman for God and a moral gadfly.  The four major prophets are Moses, Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel.  The minor prophets are Amos, Hosea, Joel, Habakuk and Jonah.

11.  What were the main themes of the Prophets?

12.  What are Kohen, Levi and Yisrael?  What responsibilities did they have and what privileges do they have today?

Kohen from the tribe of Levi were the priests of the tabernacle and the temple and, by hereditary right, continued in that role until the destruction of the second temple.  They continue to have a role at Yom Kippur and receive the first aliyah to the Torah. 

Levi are the remaining members of the tribe, assisted the priests and receive the second Aliyah to the Torah.

Yisrael was the other eleven tribes (Rueben Simon, Judah, Issachar, Dan, Naftali, Zebulun, Joseph, Benjamin and Gad) responsible for the remaining aliyah.

II.     The Synagogue and Prayer

13.  What is the Aron HaKodesh?

Symbolic of the Ark of the Covenant, the Aron HaKodesh is the receptacle of the Torah in the synagogue.

14.  What is the Ner Tamid?

The Ner Tamid, an eternal light, hangs above the Aron HaKodesh.  It symbolizes the everlasting presence of God.

15.  What are a Siddur and a Mahzor?

A Siddur is a book of prayer containing the liturgy of Judaism for Shabbat and for the weekday services. A Mahzor is a prayer book for the holidays.

16.  What is a Sidrah (Parasha)?

A reading from the Torah.

17.  What is a Haftarah?

A reading from a passage of the Tanakh that corresponds in some symbolic or other way with the Torah reading.

18.  Identify three major Jewish symbols found in most any synagogue sanctuary.

The Ark, the Torah scrolls, the bema and the menorah.

19.  What is an aliyah?  Who may receive one, and when?

In synagogue, a call to the bema to participate in the Torah service.  In life, a journey to the land of Israel.  Traditionally, an observant Jew.

20.  What is a minyan and for what prayers is it required?

A group of ten adults (formerly males only).

21.  What is the importance of the Sh’ma?  During which services is it recited each day?

A succinct expression of the core of Judaism, covenantal monotheism.  It is recited twice in the morning service (Shacharit), once in the evening service (Ma’ariv) and in the evening before retiring.

22.  What are Shacharit, Mincha and Ma’ariv?

Shacharit is the moring service, Mincha the afternoon and Ma’ariv the evening.

23.  What is the Amidah prayer?

The Amidah (sh’mona esrei – 18 though it has 19 blessings) is the central portion of every service. 

24.  What extra service is recited after the Torah reading on Shabbat and Yom Tov?

Musaf

25.  How often and when is the Torah read each week?

In services on Shabbat morning, Shabbat Minca and Monday and Thursday Shacharit.

26.  What is a tallit and when is it worn?

A prayer shawl worn when praying

27.  What are tefillin and when are they used?

Phylacteries consisting of leather straps and a leather box (containing verses from Exodus 3:16 and Deuteronomy 11:18 in addition to the Shema.  mitzvot). 

III.    The Home

28.  What is a Shochet and what are the characteristics of Kosher animals, fish, birds?

A Shochet is a ritual slaughterer.  Kosher animals must have split hoof and chew their cud.  Kosher fish must have fins and scales.  Kosher birds must be domesticated and not be birds of prey.

29.  Why do Jews observe dietary laws (kashrut/kosher)?

1)      To identify as a Jew (to me, a symbolically important reminder of making the core beliefs of Judaism the nutrients of the soul, i.e. the food of life);

2)      To teach respect for life (also, to me, to emphasis the connectivity of all life and the special responsibility of humans for all other life);

3)      It is a mitzvah (to me, training in self-discipline necessary to the exercise of free will).

30.  What is a mezuzah; what does it contain and where is it placed?

A mezuzah is, in a sense, a reader’s digest version of the Torah placed in a miniature Aron HaKodesh.  The Mezuzah is a parchment scroll with the writing on it. The box is just a box and can be made of almost anything. It's primary purpose is to protect the Mezuzah that is inside it. A Mezuzah must be handwritten. If it is printed, copied, photographed, or produced by any means other than writing, then it is invalid and may not be used.  (Many such reproductions are used anyway.)  A Mezuzah must contain in Hebrew, in a special alphabet, the following two chapters: Deuteronomy 6:4-9, and Deuteronomy 11:13-21. The essence of the mitzvah of Mezuzah is the first verse written on the Mezuzah, which is the Shema.  The mezuzah and its container are affixed to the right side of an entryway on the post as one enters, tilted at 45 degrees.  I like to think of the mezuzah as a battery charger – you touch it, say the shema and enter the house thinking of it as a kind of sanctuary.

IV.       Sabbath & Holy Days

31.  What is the blessing recited over the Sabbath candles?  When should these candles be lit?

Baruch atah adonai eloheinu melech ha-olam asher kisshanu b’mitvotav, l’hadlik ner shel Shabbat.  18 minutes before sundown.

32.  Why are there two challot on the Sabbath table?

Mana did not fall from heaven on Shabbat during the Exodus.   In remembrance, but also because Shabbat is a day of rest, two challot are blessed before Shabbat begins since none can be prepared during Shabbat.

33.  What is the kiddush and when is it recited?

Baruch atah adonai eloheinu melech ha-olam borei p’ri ha-gafen.  A blessing performed also at the beginning of Shabbat and also at the end of Shabbat services using wine, and sais before the blessing of the challot.

34.  What is the Motzie?

Baruch atah adonai eloheinu melech ha-olam ha-motzi lechem min ha-aretz.  A blessing performed at the beginning of Shabbat and also at the end of Shabbat services using challot.

35.  What is the Sh’hechiyanu blessing?

Baruch atah adonai eloheinu melech ha-olam shehechiyanu v’keyamanu v’higiyanu lazman hazeh.  It is a blessing used to celebrate special occasions (such as a conversion or the placement of a mezuzah) and is also often said at the beginning of holidays.

36.  What is Havdallah?  What objects are used in the ceremony?

Havdallah is the ceremony ending Shabbat.  A braided candle, spices and wine are used to involve all of our senses.

37.  What is the difference between the Jewish and the civil calendar?

Jewish calendar is primarily lunar (based on the cycle of the moon) while the civil calendar is strictly solar (based on the annual cycle of the earth around the sun).  Consequently, the Jewish calendar has 356 days which is adjusted in seven leap years in a 19 year cycle by adding the month of Adar between the 1^st and 3^rd months of the year.

38.  List the major Holy Days in order according to the following headings:

Holy Day                       Hebrew Date              Commemorates                     Length

Rosh haShanna             1 Tishri                        New year                                2 days

Yom Kippur                  10 Tishri                      Day of Atonement                 1 day

Sukkot                            15-20 Tishri                Wandering in Desert             7(8) days

                                                                           And Harvest                                                 

Sh’mini Atzeret             22 Tishri                      Concluding                             1 day

                                                                           Festival Day

Simchat Torah               23 Tishri                      Torah Cycle                            1 day

Hanukkah                     25 Kislev                     Temple Reded.l                      8 days

                                                                           Macabees 165 BCE

Purim                             12 Adar                      Persian Jew

                                                                           Salvation                                1 day

Pesach                            14 Nisan                     Exodus                                    7(8) days

Yom ha Shoah               27 Nisan                     Holocaust Memorial Day      1 day

Lag b’Omer                   5 lyar                           Israel Independence Day       1 day

Shavuot                         6-7 Sivan                    10 Commandments Sinai      1(2) days

Tisha b’Av                     9 Av                            Temple destructions               1 day

                                                                           586 BCE 70 CE                                  

39.  What are the “Yamim ha Noraim”?

High Holy Days

40.  What does the blowing of the Shofar represent and what does the Shofar symbolize?

In the conversion class, we were told that the Shofar symbolizes redemption, Mt. Sinai and the Messianic age.  I found the following “top ten” list on the internet:

R. Saadia Gaon's Top Ten List of Shofar Symbolism (adapted from Isaac Klein's Jewish Religious Practices):


1. The Shofar is like the trumpet which announces the coronation of a king. On Rosh Hashanah, the birthday of the universe, we accept God's Rulership- our prayers and shofar blasts are like the coronation ceremony in which Israel crowns God as Sovereign.
2. Rosh Hashana is the first of the Aseret Yemei Teshuvah (Ten Days of Repentence), and the Shofar calls us to examine our deeds and return to God, who will always accept us if we are sincere.
3. The Shofar reminds us of the Shofar which blew when the Torah was given at Sinai; thus we are reminded to study and cherish the Torah.
4. The Shofar reminds us of the voice of the prophets, whose voices rang out like a Shofar blast in calling the people to do justice and mercy and follow Holy ways.
5. The Shofar sounds like crying, which reminds us of the destruction of the ancient Temple, and thus calls upon us to work for and pray for redemption.
6. The Shofar, since it is a ram's horn, reminds us of the Akedah, the story of the binding of Isaac, when God provided a ram to be sacrificed instead. Thus we are called upon to be as faithful to God as Abraham, and be inspired by his example of sacrifice and love of God.
7. The Shofar calls us to be humble- its mighty blast reminds us of the mightiness of God and the fact that God is everywhere at all times.
8. On the Day of Judgment, a Shofar will be blown to announce God's Rulership- our Shofar blasts remind us to prepare for God's examination of our deeds.
9. The Shofar foreshadows the jubilant Jewish return to freedom and peace when we all end up in Jerusalem in the time of Messiah- it reminds us to have hope and faith in God's saving power.
10. The Shofar will be blown in Messianic times to announce the redemption of the whole world, when all nations will recognize that God is One. (cf. the Alenu prayer.)

Moral Alarm Clock

The Rambam (Maimonides) describes the Shofar as a Moral Alarm Clock: (freely translated) "Wake up, wake up, you sleepers, wake up from your sleep! Sleepers, wake up from your napping and examine your deeds, return in teshuvah, and remember your Creator! Those of you who forget the truth in your playing around with the latest frivolousness, spending all year in vanity and meaningless things, which neither profits nor saves you, you, look to your souls, improve your ways and works. Abandon the path which is bad and get rid of all your vain goals."

Other Associations:

1. A kosher Shofar must be bent, to symbolize the humble spirit of someone doing Teshuvah.

2. The notes themselves symbolize doing Teshuvah: the Tekiah, the long note, symbolizes someone who thinks they are whole and good. The Shevarim, the three notes, is the person who realizes their own brokeness (Shevarim means "broken") and who then cries out to God, which sounds like the Teruah, the little sobbing notes. Finally, after we cry out to God, we become truly whole, we have grown, symbolized by the Tekiah Gedolah, the extra long single note, at the end.

3. Shofar is associated with the New Moon, symbolizing the possibility of renewal and perpetual growth in life.

4. A Shofar is NOT made from a cow's horn, because it would remind us and God of the Golden Calf, Israel's hour of idolatry. Who wants to be reminded of that?

41.  How many days are there between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur?  What are they called?

Ten days called penitence or Ten Days of Repentance or Days of Awe. 

42.  What should Jews do during the Ten Days of Repentance?

Primarily, the days are to be used for serious introspection, prayer and reconciliation with persons one has wronged.  Another tradition is to do works of tzdekah.

43.  What is Kol Nidre?

Kol Nidre is the first service of Yom Kippur.

44.  Name the last concluding service of Yom Kippur.

Neilah.

45.  What do we mean when we say Jews “confess” their sins and what kind of “sins” are we talking about?

We mean by “confession” collective responsibility for sins of man against God.  This is done through recitation in acrostic order of many “stiff necked” offenses.  For these we ask forgiveness from God.  Sins or wrongs to another person are “confessed” to the wronged person directly, since only the one wronged can forgive and thereby allow individuals to expiate the wrong.

46.  What is “Teshuvah?”

Teshuvah literally means "return".  It is the word used to describe the concept of repentance in Judaism. Only by atoning for our sins can we restore balance to our relationship with God and with our fellow human beings.

There are several stages of teshuvah, including the sinner recognizing his wrongs, being truly remorseful and doing everything in his power to undo any damage that he has done. If a specific person has been wronged the offender must ask that person for forgiveness. The final stage of teshuvah is resolving to never commit such a sin again. According to Jewish tradition, by the third request the person who was wronged is required to grant forgiveness if the offender is truly remorseful and is taking steps to prevent similar wrongs from happening again.

Because teshuvah requires the sinner to ask forgiveness of the person offended it has been  a murderer cannot be forgiven for his or her crime. In order to do so they would have to ask the person they killed for forgiveness. There are two other offenses that come close to being unpardonable: defrauding the public and ruining a person's good name. In both cases it is nearly impossible to track down every person who was affected by the offense, for instance, every person affected by a monetary crime (think Bernard Madoff) or every Congressperson whose district was “targeted” by Sarah Palin.

47.  What is a Sukkah?

The sukkah is a structure, usually a temporary one constructed in connection with the holiday of Sukkot, that symbolizes the booths in which the Israelites dwelled during their journey through the desert. On Passover we eat matzah because our ancestors ate matzah when they left Egypt, and on Sukkot we reside in booths to commemorate those who lived in them for forty years. This explanation follows from Lev 23:42-43, the source of the commandment:

You shall live in sukkot seven days; all citizens in Israel shall live in sukkot, in order that future generations may know that I made the Israelite people live in sukkot when I brought them out of the land of Egypt, I the Lord your God.

This is the easiest of the mitzvot for the man from Montana to understand and perform, but the most difficult one for his bride from Baltimore to appreciate and accommodate.  The Four Seasons is not a suitable substitute whereas the four seasons are best suited for a sukkah.  

48.  What is a Lulav?

49.  What is an Etrog?

The yellow citron or Citrus medica used by Jews on the week-long holiday of Sukkot

50.  What is Yizkor and how often is it recited?

Yizkor is a memorial prayer which is recited on Yom Kippur, Sh’mini Atzeret, the last day of Pesach, and the second day of Shavuot.

51.  What does Hanukkah commemorate and why is it not mentioned in the Bible?

Hanukkah commemorates the re-dedication of the Temple by the Macabees because it happened in 165 CE after the Bible was completed.

52.  The Book of Esther is one of 5 writings (megillot) in the Bible.  On which holiday is it read?

Purim

53.  What is a Seder?  Name some of the rituals of the Seder, giving the reasons for their use.

A seder is a pesach dinner.  The word seder means “order.”  The ritual associated with symbolic elements of the meal are roasted egg representing the festival sacrifice; roasted bone representing the Paschal sacrifice; green, representing the spring; maror, representing bitterness; and charoset, representing mortar.  These foods and tastes are meant to evoke the conditions of slavery and escape associated with the exodus.

The pesach seder consists of 15 parts

Kaddesh

Recite a blessing over wine in honor of the holiday.

Urechatz

Wash the hands without saying a blessing.

Karpas

Dip a vegetable (usually parsley) in salt water, say a blessing and eat it.

Yachatz

One of the three matzahs on the table is broken. Part is returned to the pile, the other part is set aside.

Maggid

A retelling of the story of the Exodus from Egypt and the first Pesach. This begins with the youngest person asking The Four Questions, a set of questions about the proceedings designed to encourage participation in the seder.

Rachtzah

A second washing of the hands, this time with a blessing, in preparation for eating the matzah.

Motzi and Matzah

Recite two blessings over the matzah, break it, and give a piece to everyone to eat.

Maror

A blessing is recited over a bitter vegetable (usually horseradish) and it is eaten.

Korekh

A bitter vegetable (usually romaine lettuce) and charoset (a sweet apple-wine-nut mixture) are placed on a piece of matzah and eaten together.

Shulchan Orekh

A festive meal is eaten.

Tzafun

The piece of matzah that was set aside is located and/or ransomed back, and eaten as the last part of the meal, a sort of dessert.

Barekh

Grace after meals.

.

Hallel

Psalms of praise.

Nirtzah

A statement that the seder is complete, with a wish that next year the seder might be observed in Jerusalem.

54.  What is the Haggadah?

A Haggadah is a book that “tells the story” of the Exodus and is used at the seder.

55.  What is chametz and how does a Jew rid his house of it?

Chametz is anything ferments or leavens.  We finish our chametz prior to pesach, clean the house of it, change our dishes, and symbolically sell whatever remains.  Quite frankly, chametz is almost impossible to rid of, but the effort is really what the exercise is all about.

56.  How many weeks come between Pesach and Shavuot?  What is the period called? Why?

Seven weeks separate pesach and shevuot, called the omer (counting) period.  It is basically a countdown (countup) starting with the exodus from Egypt (and slavery) to the giving of the Torah (true freedom and servitude to God) at Sinai.

57.  What historical event is linked to the holiday of Shavuot?

The giving of the Torah on Mt. Sinai.

58.  What is Tisha B’av?  What does it commemorate?

Tish b’Av commemorates the first and second destructions of the Temple in 584 BCE and 70 CE and the expulsion of Spain in 1492.

V.          The Lifetime of the Jew

59.  When is a Brit Milah performed and who is supposed to perform it?

A Brit Milah is performed on a Jewish boy eight days after birth and by a mohel.

60.  Explain the ceremonies of Brit Milah and Pidyon Haben.  For whom do Jews usually name children?

The ceremony of Brit Milah is performed on the 8^th day after birth.  In Judaism, unlike the U.S. federal courts, the day of birth is counted, so the eighth day after a birth during daylight on a Monday is the next Monday. The mitzvah to circumcise is given at Gen. 17:10-14 and Lev. 12:3.  The ritual serves to provide an outward sign of the covenant between the Jew and God.  The father must see to the circumcision of his son, but if he fails, then the son must attend to the matter when he is of an age to understand.  Circumcision is undoubtedly the most universally observed of the mitzvoth.

Pidyon Haben is the ritual of the redemption of the first born son.  A firstborn son must be redeemed after he reaches 31 days of age. Ordinarily, the ritual is performed on the 31st day (the day of birth being the first day).  The ritual cannot be performed on Shabbat because it involves the exchange of money. The child is redeemed by paying a small sum (five silver shekels in biblical times; today, usually five silver dollars) to a kohen preferably a pious one familiar with the procedure) and performing a brief ritual. This procedure is commanded at Num. 18:15-16.

The ritual of Pidyon Haben applies to only to the firstborn male child if it is born by natural childbirth. Thus, if a female is the firstborn, no child in the family is subject to the ritual. If the first child is born by Cesarean section, the ritual does not apply to that child (nor, according to most sources, to any child born after that child). If the first conception ends in miscarriage after more than 40 days' term, it does not apply to any subsequent child. It does not apply to members of the tribe of Levi, or children born to a daughter of a member of the tribe of Levi.

61.  What is a chuppah?

A chuppah is a marriage canopy.  Traditionally, the chuppah was understood to represent the groom’s home to which the bride was brought in the wedding ceremony.  Hence, the groom goes to and waits in the chuppah for the later arrival of the bride in the wedding ceremony.  The original chuppah may have been the groom’s tallit spread over the heads of the bride and groom.  Today, the chuppah is a canopy supported by four poles and open on all sides.  The open sides are said to represent the tent of Abraham, open for hospitality to welcome guests. 

62.  What is a ketubah?

A ketubah is a wedding contract, basically meant to protect the rights of the bride.

63.  Why do we break a glass at the end of a Jewish wedding ceremony?

We break a glass to remind us of the destruction of the two temples.

64.  What is the function of a Mezuzah?  Where is it placed?

The function of a Mezuzah is to remind us of the mitzvoth and ethical monotheism.  On the right doorpost to the entry of the home and all entries in the home to rooms other than closets, wash rooms and bathrooms.

65.  When should a Jewish funeral take place?

As soon as possible after death.

66.  What is shiva?

Shiva is a seven day period of morning immediately after the death of a close relative.

67.  What is a yahrzeit?

A yahrzeit is the anniversary of the death of a close relative.

68.  What does the mourner’s Kaddish say?

The mourner’s kaddish is a prayer in praise of God, his creation and his care for the living and for Israel.

69.  What do we mean by calling Jews the “chosen people”?

We mean “chosen” in the sense of being selected by God to receive the mitzvoth and bring them (teach them) to all of humanity.  This is a great obligation, and sometimes a great burden.  Being selected does not imply any superiority over the rest of mankind.  On the contrary, being chosen implies servitude to God and, I would argue, a humility and servitude toward the rest of mankind for the purpose of bring the Torah to humanity by word and deed.

70.  Is Judaism a race, nationality or religion?

Judaism, defined as a set of mitzvot, ritual practices and observances, is unequivocally a religion.  Jews, some of whom do not subscribe to any of those defined activities, may belong to a race for legal purposes (Shaare Tefila Congregation v. Cobb, 481 U.S. 615 (1987) or a nation (Israel).

71.  What is the Jewish view concerning Jesus?

Jesus was a human being who probably lived and taught an ethical version of Judaism, and may have been an observant Jew himself.  Certainly, the followers of Jesus discounted the necessity for rigorous ritual observance, especially those who were attempting to proselytize a messianic message to non-Jews. 

72.  What do Jews believe about the Messiah?

Jesus is not the Messiah, nor has the Messiah come. 

73.  Why does Judaism oppose intermarriage?

Intermarriage is proscribed in Deuteronomy 7:3-4 because the children of an interfaith marriage would be lost to Judaism.  This does not, of course, explain why such a marriage would be proscribed when no children are likely to result from the marriage or where both parents are firmly committed to raise observant Jewish children.  As a practical matter, though, intermarriage appears to have a high correlation with the decline in the observant Jewish population.

74.  What does the word tzedakah mean and how is it practiced?

75.  Tzedakah is the Hebrew word for giving aid, assistance and money to the poor and needy or to other worthy causes. The word "tzedakah" is derived from the Hebrew Tzadei-Dalet-Qof, meaning righteousness, justice or fairness. In Judaism, giving to the poor is not viewed as a generous, magnanimous act; it is simply an act of justice and righteousness, the performance of a duty, giving the poor their due.

Some sages have said that tzedakah is the highest of all commandments, equal to all of them combined, and that a person who does not perform tzedakah is equivalent to an idol worshipper. Tzedakah is one of the three acts that gain us forgiveness from our sins. The High Holiday liturgy repeatedly states that God has inscribed a judgment against all who have sinned, but teshuvah (repentance), tefilah (prayer) and tzedakah can alleviate the decree.

According to Jewish law, we are required to give one-tenth of our income to the poor, net after payment of taxes. Taxes themselves do not fulfill our obligation to give tzedakah, even though a significant portion of tax revenues in America and many other countries are used to provide for the poor and needy. Those who are dependent on public assistance or living on the edge of subsistence may give less, but must still give to the extent they are able; however, no person should give so much that he would become a public burden.

The obligation to perform tzedakah can be fulfilled by giving money to the poor, to health care institutions, to synagogues or to educational institutions. It can also be fulfilled by supporting children beyond the age when legally required to, or supporting your parents in their old age. The obligation includes giving to both Jews and gentiles. Jews do not just "take care of our own."

We have an obligation to avoid becoming in need of tzedakah. A person should take any work that is available, even if he thinks it is beneath his dignity, to avoid becoming a public charge.

However, if a person is truly in need and has no way to obtain money on his own he should not feel embarrassed to accept tzedakah. No person should feel too proud to take money from others. In fact, it is considered a transgression to refuse tzedakah. One source says that to make yourself suffer by refusing to accept tzedakah is equivalent to shedding your own blood.

76.  What does the word mitzvah mean?

The word "mitzvah" means "commandment." In its strictest sense, it refers only to commandments instituted in the Torah; however, the word is commonly used in a more generic sense to include all of the laws, practices and customs of halakhah, and is often used in an even more loose way to refer to any good deed.

Although there is not 100% agreement on the precise list of the 613 (there are some slight discrepancies in the way some lists divide related or overlapping mitzvot), there is complete agreement that there are 613 mitzvot -- the numeric value of the word Torah (Tav = 400, Vav = 6, Resh = 200, Heh = 5), plus 2 for the two mitzvot whose existence precedes the Torah: I am the Lord, your God and You shall have no other gods before Me. These 613 mitzvot can be broken down into 248 positive mitzvot (one for each bone and organ of the male body) and 365 negative mitzvot (one for each day of the solar year).

One accepted list of the 613 mitzvot is Maimonides’ list in his Mishneh Torah. In the introduction to the first book of the Mishneh Torah, Maimonides lists all of the positive mitzvot and all of the negative mitzvot, then proceeds to divide them up into subject matter categories.

I was somewhat relieved, after a cursory review of the Maimonides’ list, that many applied only to the Kohanim or Nazirites, could not be performed out of Israel, are impossible to either perform or avoid after the destruction of the Second Temple or have otherwise lapsed by decree.  I am in the process of ascertaining the active list and identifying those which I am able to perform.

77.  What is a major difference between Orthodox, Conservative and Reform Judaism?

Grossly simplified, the orthodox practice adheres to the strict observance of the laws as written in the Torah as the unalterable requirements of God; the reform practice distinguishes between ethical and ritual, the ethical being eternal and requiring observance, but the ritual being temporal and therefore, in some sense, optional; the conservative practice observing and respecting tradition as having great sanctity and alterable if done carefully from within the halakhic system.

VI.       Jewish History

78.  When was the first Temple destroyed?  By whom?

586 BCE by the Babylonians

79.  When was the second Temple destroyed?  By whom?

70 CE by the Romans

80.  Who was Hillel?

Hillel was a great sage who lived in the 1^st Century BCE.  According to Telushkin’s recent book, especially to be admired for temperament as a teacher and as role model as well as for his great learning. 

81.  Who was Akiba?

Akiba was a great sage later in the first century, noted for his humility, who helped to establish order among the laws of the Mishna. 

82.  Who was Bar Kochba?

Bar Kochba led the last rebellion against Rome, 132-135

83.  What is the Talmud?  Name both parts.

The Talmud (“instruction”), often called the oral Torah),  has two components: the Mishnah (c. 200 CE), the first written compendium; and the Gemara (c. 500 CE).  The Talmud explicates and expands upon the Torah, often filling in gaps in the chronology or the teaching contained in the Torah, for example many of the laws and practices of kashrut.

84.  What and where was the Golden Age of Spain?  When did it end?

The so-called Golden Age of Spain refers to the period of Muslim rule on the Iberian peninsula (roughly 9^th to 11^th centuries CE) during which Jews (according to Graetz) received more tolerant treatment than they did from Christians.   This view is now disputed, though what happened during the Spanish Inquisition leading to the final expulsion of the Jews from Spain in 1492 clearly exceeded the level and intensity of cruelty under Muslim rule.  

85.  What was the Spanish Inquisition?

The Inquisition was the attempt of the Catholic Church to detect and rid Spain of Jews who had falsely claimed to convert (converses) to Catholicism.  It led to the expulsion on Tish b’Av (according to tradition) of all the remaining Jews in 1492.

86.  Who was Moses Maimonides?  What did he write?

Moses Maimonides and his family fled from Spain in the 12^th Century, and eventually settled in Cairo, Egypt, where Maimonides became the physician to the Caliph’s harem.  For a time, his scholarly work , including the Mishna Torah, was supported by the family trade, run by his brother, in valuable jewels.  Much like St. Thomas Acquinas, Maimonides’ writings were heavily influenced by Greek, and specifically, Aristotelean thought.  The Greek influence as well as his attempt to systematize the Talmud led to difficulties with other prominent Jewish leaders of the time.  Eventually, however, the writings of Maimonides, including his many response, were afforded a great deal of respect and deference.

87.  Where do the Ashkenazim come from?

The Askenazim come from most recently central and eastern Europe, but originated in the area along the Rhine river from Alsace in the south to the Rhineland in the north of present day Germany.

88.  Where do the Sephardim come from?

Sephardim are usually described either as the descendants of the Jews expelled from the Iberian peninsula or those Jews who follow the liturgy of the Jews that were expelled from the Iberian peninsula. 

89.  What is a Ghetto?  Where did the term originate?

A ghetto is, like the Venetian island from which the name is derived, a place where Jews were forced to live.

90.  Who was Rashi?

Some say Rashi  was a Talmudic scholar who spoke the definitive commentary of the Talmud and the Tanakh.  What is written is, supposedly, the notes of his students.  I am skeptical that there is such a thing as a definitive commentary.  The original printed Bible text by Daniel Bomberg in 1517 included Rashi's commentary. There are now more than 200 commentaries on his commentary. He lived in France in the 12^th Century and survived the First Crusade.

91.  What is the Shulchan Aruch?

The Shulchan Aruch is the code of Jewish law.  The title means “a set table.”

92.  Who was Shabbatai Zevi?

Shabbatai Zevi was a false messiah who assembled a large following, did much mischief and was forced by the Sultan to convert to Islam.  Singer’s The Satan of Goray provides an imaginative account of the effect of the false messiah on a rural Polish village.

93.  How did the Emancipation affect Jews?

This is a very complex question.  To a certain extent Emancipation lead, almost inexorably, to assimilation of a great many Jews.  Initially, emancipation also fostered a blooming of Jewish intellectual achievement that greatly benefitted Jews and the communities in which they resided.  At the same time, the structures that kept Jews as an identifiable people and religion began to erode, and the civil as well as religious powers of the rabbinical community diminished.  Eventually, emancipation and the achievements of the Jews made them a visible target for the virulent anti-semitism of the early twentieth century culminating in the Holocaust, and then establishment of Israel.

94.  What was the Kishinev Pogrom?

According to the Encyclopedia Judaica:

The name of Kishinev became known to the world at large as a result of two pogroms. The first, iniciated and organized by the local and central authorities, took place during Easter on April 6 - 7, 1903. Agents of the Ministry of the Interior and high Russian officials of the Bessarabian administration were involved in its preparation, evidently with the backing of the minister of the interior, V. Plehve. The pogrom was preceded by a poisonous anti-Jewish campaign led by P. Krushevan, director of the Bessarabian newspaper Bessarabets, who incited the population through a constant stream of vicious articles. One of the authors of the most virulent articles was the local police chief, Levendall. In such a heated atmosphere any incident could have dire consequences, and when the body of a Christian child was found, and a young Christian woman patient committed suicide in the Jewish hospital, the mob became violent. A blood libel, circulated by the Bessarabtes, spread like wildfire. (It was later proved that the child was murdered by his relatives and that the suicide of the young woman was in no way connected with the Jews.) According to official statistics, 49 Jews lost their lives and more than 500 were injured, some of them seriously; 700 houses were looted and destroyed and 600 businesses and shops were looted. The material loss amounted to 2500000 gold rubles, and about 2000 families were left homeless. Both Russians and Romanians joined in the riots. Russians were sent in from other towns and the students of the theological seminaries and the secondary schools and colleges played a leading role. The garrison of 5000 soldiers stationed in the city, which could easily have held back the mob, took no action. Public outcry throughout the world was aroused by the incident and protest meetings were organized in London, Paris, and New York. A letter of protest written in the United States was handed over to president Theodore Roosevelt to be delivered to the czar, who refused to accept it. Under the pressure of public opinion, some of the perpatrators of the pogrom were brought to justice but they were awarded very lenient sentences. 

L.N. Tolstoy expressed his sympathy for the victims, condemning the czarist authorities as responsible for the pogrom. The Russian writer Vladimir Korolenko described the pogrom in his story, "House No. 13" as did H.N. Bialik in his poem, "Be-Ir ha-Haregah" ("In the Town of death").

On October 19 - 20, 1905, riots broke out once more. They began as a protest demonstration by the "patriots" against the czar's declaration of August 19, 1905 and deteriorated into an attack on the Jewish quarter in which 19 Jews were killed, 56 were injured, and houses and shops were looted and destroyed: damages amounted to 3.000.000 rubles. On this occasion, some of the Jewish youth organized itself into self-defence units. The two pogroms had a profound effect on the Jews of Kishinev. Between 1902 and 1905 their numbers dropped from around 60000 to 53243, many emigrating to the United States and the Americas, while many more left after the second attack.

The economic development of town was brought to a standstill

95.  What is Hassidism?

Hassidism began in 18^th Century Poland.  According to Wikipedia:

Hasidic Judaism or Hasidism, from the Hebrew חסידות -Chasidut in Sephardi Chasidus in Ashkenazi, meaning "piety" (literally "loving kindness",, is a branch of Orthodox Judaism that promotes spirituality and joy through the popularisation and internalisation of Jewish mysticism as the fundamental aspects of the Jewish faith. It was founded in 18th Century Eastern Europe by Rabbi Israel Baal Shem Tov as a reaction against overly legalistic Judaism. His example began the characteristic veneration of leadership in Hasidism as embodiments and intercessors of Divinity for the followers. Opposite to this, Hasidic teachings cherished the sincerity and concealed holiness of the unlettered common folk, and their equality with the scholarly elite. The emphasis on the Divine presence in everything gave new value to prayer and deeds of kindness, alongside Rabbinic supremacy of study, and replaced historical mystical (kabbalistic) and ethical (musar) asceticism and admonishment with optimism, encouragement and fervour. It sought to add to required standards of ritual observance, while relaxing others where inspiration predominated. Its communal gatherings celebrated soulful song and storytelling as forms of mystical devotion.

Hasidism comprises part of contemporary Ultra-Orthodox Judaism, alongside the previous Talmudic Lithuanian-Yeshiva approach and the Oriental Sephardi tradition. Its charismatic mysticism has inspired non-Orthodox Neo-Hasidic thinkers and influenced wider modern Jewish denominations, while its scholarly thought has interested contemporary academic study. Each Hasidic dynasty follows its own principles; thus Hasidic Judaism is not one movement, but a collection of separate individual groups with some commonality. There are approximately 30 larger Hasidic groups, and several hundred minor groups. Though there is no one version of Hasidism, individual Hasidic groups often share with each other underlying philosophy, worship practices, dress and songs.

96.  What does Zionism mean?  Why did it begin?

Zionism is a movement of the late 19^th Century, born in part as a reaction to the Dreyfus Affair, to establish a Jewish homeland in Palestine.  Oddly enough, the first homeland proposed by the British was to be in central Africa.

97.  Who was Theodore Herzl?

Herzl was a journalist until his coverage of the Dreyfus Affair impressed on his mind the importance of a homeland to the survival of the Jews.  This then became the obsessive driving force of the rest of his life.

98.  When was the modern State of Israel established?

May 14, 1948

What is Yom Ha’atzmaut?

99.  How many states did the U.N. Partition Plan try to establish?

Two

100.    Why did the Partition Plan fail?

The Arab community refused to accept two separate states and immediately attacked the Jews.

101.    What is a kibbutz?

A kibbutz was a communal agricultural settlement based on radical egalitarian premises.  Many of the early leaders of Israel came from the kibbutzim.  However, the unit of social organization is not nearly so vital as it was in the beginning days of the State of Israel.

102.    What is the Knesset?

The Israeli Parliamnet consisting of

103.    What is Yom Hashoah?

104.    he full name of the day commemorating the victims of the Holocaust is "Yom Hashoah Ve-Hagevurah"--literally the "Day of (Remembrance of) the Holocaust and the Heroism." It is marked on the 27th day in the month of Nisan--a week after the seventh day of Passover, and a week before Yom Hazikaron (Memorial Day for Israel's fallen soldiers).

The date was selected by the Knesset (Israeli Parliament) on April 12, 1951. The full name became formal in a law that was enacted by the Knesset on August 19, 1953.

105.    How many Jews are there in the world today?

Rough numbers:  US 6 million  Israel: 5 million  Former USSR: 1.5 million Rest of the world: 1 million

According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics there were 13,421,000 Jews worldwide in 2010.