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Post by jetheb on Aug 2, 2015 13:57:26 GMT -5
Today Jewish is decided by mothers nationality. In OT it seems to be decied by fathers.
Any idea why?
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Post by jetheb on Aug 3, 2015 12:53:53 GMT -5
No! I don;t know either. Or when the change took place
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Post by Cindy on Aug 5, 2015 12:55:13 GMT -5
I do remember reading about that just recently in one of my studies... I'm on the minor prophets now, so it's gotta be in there somewhere... although I tend to jump all over the place when I'm digging, but I'll look and see if I can find it again and let you know. Give me a couple of days though as it may take me awhile to find it.
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Post by Cindy on Aug 6, 2015 7:07:49 GMT -5
I looked in my library and couldn't find it and decided that for now it would simply be easier to look it up on line so I did, and found some very interesting information, that reminds me of what I'd read. I'll continue to look for what I'd found, but in the meantime here's some great information about the subject.
Who is a Jew According to Halacha (Jewish Religious Law)?
According to Jewish law, a child born to a Jewish mother or an adult who has converted to Judaism is considered a Jew; one does not have to reaffirm their Jewishness or practice any of the laws of the Torah to be Jewish. According to Reform Judaism, a person is a Jew if they were born to either a Jewish mother or a Jewish father. Also, Reform Judaism stresses the importance of being raised Jewish; if a child is born to Jewish parents and was not raised Jewish then the child is not considered Jewish. According to the Orthodox movement, the father’s religion and whether the person practices is immaterial. No affirmation or upbringing is needed, as long as the mother was Jewish.
Besides for differing opinions on patrilineal descent, the various streams also have different conversion practices. Conversion done under the auspices of an Orthodox rabbi, entails Jewish study, brit milah (for men), mikvah (for both men and women) and a stated commitment to follow the laws of the Torah. Conservative conversions use the same requirements as the Orthodox do; however, conversions by the Reform movement and other streams do not have the same requirements. Since the conversion practices are not uniform, many Orthodox Jews do not recognize Reform or Conservative conversions as valid and, hence, do not consider the converts Jews. Once a person has converted to Judaism, he is not referred to by any special term; he is as much a Jew as anyone born Jewish.
About Matrilineal Descent
Many people have asked why traditional Judaism uses matrilineal descent to determine Jewish status, especially because for tribal affiliation, priestly status and royalty, patrilineal descent determines membership.
The Torah does not specifically state anywhere that matrilineal descent should be used; however, there are several passages in the Torah where the child of a Jewish woman and a non-Jewish man is considered a Jew, and several other passages where the child of a non-Jewish woman and a Jewish man is not considered a Jew.
In Deuteronomy 7:1-5, G-d prohibits intermarriage, saying "he [ie, the non-Jewish male spouse] will cause your child to turn away from Me and they will worship the gods of others." The Torah does not include a similar concern is for the child of a non-Jewish female spouse. From this, one can infer that a child of a non-Jewish male spouse is Jewish and can be turned away from Judaism, but the child of a non-Jewish female spouse is not Jewish andturning away is not an issue. Also, Leviticus 24:10 speaks about the son of an Israelite woman and an Egyptian man as "among the community of Israel" (i.e., a Jew).
On the other hand, in Ezra 10:2-3, the Jews returning to Israel vowed to put aside their non-Jewish wives and the children born to those wives. They could not have put aside those children if those children were Jews.
Several people have asked how King David could be a Jew given that one of his female ancestors, Ruth, was not a Jew. However Ruth converted to Judaism before marrying Boaz and bearing Obed. (In Ruth 1:16 she states her intention to convert.) After she converted, Ruth was Jewish, and her children born after the conversion were Jewish as well. Even so, Ruth is David's paternal ancestor, so Ruth's Jewish identity or lack thereof would not impact King David's status as a Jew because King David's Jewish status is determined matrilineally.
more: www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/whojew1.html
Who Is a Jew, According to the Torah?
How do we define who is a born Jew and who is not? If one of your parents is not Jewish, are you still Jewish?
Before I continue, I want to make clear that I am referring to the Chidren of Israel; also called the Israelite Nation; AKA the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; in other words, the descendants of any of the Tribes of Israel. I am not using the term "Jew' to mean "from the Tribe of Judah." When I say in this article that someone is a Jew, I mean that he or she is, according to the Torah (i.e., what we call Jewish Law or Judaism), a descendant of any of the Tribes of Israel. When I say someone is not a Jew, or is not Jewish, I mean that the Torah, by which I mean Jewish Law, does not consider that person to be a member of our Nation.
This subject is hotly debated among non-Orthodox Jewish groups, but I don't really intend to discuss the politics of it very much. I want to simply explain the Orthodox stance, and demonstrate that it is and was the original Jewish definition.
The original and current Jewish definition of a born Jew is someone whose mother is Jewish. Even though the Torah forbids a Jewish woman to marry a Gentile man, if she does, her children will still be Jewish.
The Torah also forbids a Jewish man to marry a Gentile woman, and if he does, his children by that woman will not be Jewish.
This annoys a great many people who wish to consider themselves Jewish, despite their non-Jewish mother. It is not my intention to annoy anyone. It is my intention to explain Judaism, and not to rationalize any dilution or changes in Jewish Law.
This one continues to explain the whole thing from the Torah and it's quite interesting! But I can't post it all here as it's too long, so I'll just give you the link:
www.beingjewish.com/identity/whoisajew.html
Who is a Jew?
A Jew is any person whose mother was a Jew or any person who has gone through the formal process of conversion in full compliance with Jewish law.
It is important to note that being a Jew has nothing to do with what you believe or what you do. A person born to non-Jewish parents who believes everything that Orthodox Jews believe and observes every law and custom of the Jews is still a non-Jew, even in the eyes of the most liberal movements of Judaism, and a person born to a Jewish mother who is an atheist and never practices the Jewish religion is still a Jew, even in the eyes of the ultra-Orthodox. In this sense, being a Jew is more like a nationality than like other religions; it is like a citizenship.
Although all Jewish movements agree on these general principles, there are occasional disputes as to whether a particular individual is a Jew. Most of these disputes fall into one of two categories.
First, traditional Judaism maintains that a person is a Jew if his mother is a Jew, regardless of who his father is. The liberal movements, on the other hand, consider a person to be Jewish if either of his parents was Jewish. Thus, the child of a Jewish father and a Christian mother is a Jew according to the Reform movement, but not according to the Orthodox movement. The matter becomes even more complicated, because the status of that child's children also comes into question.
Second, the more traditional movements do not always acknowledge the validity of conversions by the more liberal movements. The more modern movements do not always follow the procedures required by the more traditional movements, thereby invalidating the conversion. In addition, Orthodoxy does not accept the authority of Conservative, Reform, and Reconstructionist rabbis to perform conversions, and the Conservative movement has debated whether to accept the authority of Reform rabbis.
more: www.mechon-mamre.org/jewfaq/whoisjew.htm
I thought this one was interesting too:
Who is a Jew? (Legal Issues)
Israeli law, the Law of Return, traditional and liberal halakhah (Jewish law), all address the “Who is a Jew?” question, and their conclusions have many practical ramifications. Traditional Jewish law stipulates that marrying a non-Jew is forbidden and that the marriage is non-binding.
While some Reform rabbis will officiate at intermarriages, Orthodox, Conservative, and some Reform rabbis will not. In Israel, getting married and being buried in a Jewish cemetery can only be done if the person in question is considered legally Jewish. In order to be counted in a minyan, a prayer quorum, one must be Jewish, and so too if one wants to be called up to the Torah for an aliyah. So who chooses who is a Jew?
Historically, Judaism has held that a Jew is anyone born to a Jewish mother or converted to Judaism in a halakhic manner (that is, according to Jewish law). A halakhic conversion usually means that one is converting out of personal conviction–he or she believes the Torah to be the absolute truth–and has studied Jewish laws and traditions.
After this study period, a convert must be approved by a beit din–a court of observant Jews–and immerse in a mikveh (ritual pool). Men must also receive a circumcision or, if already circumcised, hatafat dam brit (symbolically taking a drop of blood).
In the Conservative movement, conversion is similar to the traditional approach, though not identical. There is a specific course of study for the prospective convert, usually about 18 weeks, conducted in a private or classroom setting. If a Jewish mate is involved, he or she is expected to attend the course as well. Many Conservative rabbis will accept converts who are motivated by marriage, but some abstain from this practice.
The Reform movement encourages those who want to be married to a Jew to convert and the couple is required to attend classes and events together in preparation for the conversion. Prospective converts are paired with mentors within the community who they can look to for guidance leading up to the actual conversion. Many Reform rabbis don’t require an immersion in the mikveh or brit milah for men, instead presenting the rituals as options, and allowing the convert to choose what seems most appropriate.
In more recent times, new dimensions have emerged to the discussion of who is legally considered Jewish. In 1983 the Reform movement passed a resolution that accepted the Jewish identity of children of Jewish fathers and non-Jewish mothers. Recognizing what is known as patrilineal descent, the Reform movement ruled that these children were Jewish if they participated in the various Jewish lifecycle ceremonies which usually mark the life stages of a Jew.
In Israel, the question of Jewish legal status has become even more controversial. Anyone with a single Jewish grandparent or a Jewish spouse is allowed to move to Israel under the Law of Return. But the Israeli Chief Rabbinate controls the marriage process for Jews in Israel, and their definition of Jewishness accords with traditional halakhah. Thus, it is common to find people who are granted citizenship as Jews under the Law of Return, but are unable to legally marry as Jews (or marry Jews) in Israel.
more:
www.myjewishlearning.com/article/who-is-a-jew-legal-issues/
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