“My house shall be a house of prayer for all people.” This phrase, taken from the prophet Isaiah, adorns the facade of many historical Reform temples in our country. One has to wonder why would such a verse be chosen out of so many in our tradition. Why such a universalistic statement?
Reform Jews have been accused of being “assimilationist,” of trying to become like gentiles while assuaging their guilt for leaving Judaism. I would venture to say that in fact the reality is the opposite.
The goal of Reform Judaism is to make it easier for non-Jews that value our way of life to join us in the Eternal Covenant between God and the People of Israel. We do not set out to be missionaries, yet it is wrong not to share what we have with others that may want it and would benefit from it.
Historically Judaism has taken different approaches to the issue of welcoming proselytes. At first, Judaism was one of the greatest proselytizing religions; then due to Roman and Christian persecution around the 4th century, Jews stopped welcoming converts. In current times, the attitude is still negative toward converts. However, I believe it is beginning to change and should change even more.
There is a famous Midrash that asks: Why did God cause us to be exiled and suffer so much among the peoples of the earth? The answer it provides is that God intended us to bring into our midst worthy proselytes.
Another Talmudic text states that proselytes are like boils to Israel. Rabbi Avraham Haguer (the proselyte) expands on that text by saying that converts are detrimental to the Jewish people only in that they are such good and committed Jews. When God realizes that those born Jews are so lax in their commitment to Judaism as compared with converts, then God punishes those Jews.
Born Jews must change their attitude of surprise about why anyone would wish to convert unless they are getting married. Just because we grew up with Judaism as our birthright, we fail to see what a precious legacy it is.
I have also heard many people say that “converts are not like us born Jews.” I totally agree with that statement but for the opposite reason. Generally converts show far more commitment and devotion.
They help replenish the ranks of our people and we should applaud them for it. Converts cannot weaken or change the “racial constitution” of the Jewish people because race doesn’t exist, it is a cultural construct. Jews are not a race! Jews don’t have a pattern of characteristics. Rather we are mutts, having characteristics of all the peoples that hosted us as well as Mediterranean characteristics.
Having already performed almost 400 conversions (mostly abroad) I wish to make a call to our community to truly make our own homes, our synagogues, houses of prayer for all people even as we are respectful of the beliefs and practices of others.
