re: Jerusalem Beit Din on Diaspora Conversions

Asked by Ben Avraham · August 2, 2006 · Ethics

Question

Kavod Harav: In your reply to the question you stated: "I don't know the specifics of the 'Jerusalem Beth Din' policy. However if one had an Orthodox conversion, he is Jewish. Otherwise, he is not Jewish. I can't imagine that there would be any confusion about the differentiation. CYA" The problem is that the Jerusalem Beit Din has determined that "most" conversions done in the US by Orthodox Rabbis were not done in accordance with Halacha. For example, in the US it is common for a Rabbi to permit Conversion to someone who is already involved romantically with a Jew (perhaps even secularly married to the Jew already). The Jerusalem Beit Din has said that to convert someone in this circumstance is against Halacha. There are other cases where well known Rabbis signed conversion certificates for people they never even met. [in this case, we are not speaking of someone disreputable either.] So the question becomes "What is the status of an individual who has had a conversion which the Jerusalem Beit Din will not recognize?" Can somebody be a Jew in the US and not be a Jew in Israel? What do you do about marrying such a person? Counting them for a Minyan etc...? Thank you

Answer

Answered by Chaim Yisrael Abadi

to the question you stated: "I don't know the specifics of the 'Jerusalem Beth Din' policy. However if one had an Orthodox conversion, he is Jewish. Otherwise, he is not Jewish. I can't imagine that there would be any confusion about the differentiation. CYA" The problem is that the Jerusalem Beit Din has determined that "most" conversions done in the US by Orthodox Rabbis were not done in accordance with Halacha. For example, in the US it is common for a Rabbi to permit Conversion to someone who is already involved romantically with a Jew (perhaps even secularly married to the Jew already). The Jerusalem Beit Din has said that to convert someone in this circumstance is against Halacha. There are other cases where well known Rabbis signed conversion certificates for people they never even met. [in this case, we are not speaking of someone disreputable either.] So the question becomes "What is the status of an individual who has had a conversion which the Jerusalem Beit Din will not recognize?" Can somebody be a Jew in the US and not be a Jew in Israel? What do you do about marrying such a person? Counting them for a Minyan etc...? Thank you