I’m not here saying that closing the doors is the answer, not at all. It’s just that the article, as well as the Joint conference failed to expose some of the issues the community has to deal with at the moment. Judging from afar is easy but living the situation brings to light that there are several issues that can’t be solved just by saying in an outraged tone that this is what’s needed to save Judaism. Is this influx of people a good thing for Judaism in general? Of course, there’s no denying that but it doesn’t make the steps needed to incorporate these groups of people easier.

The first time I heard about this issue my response was very much like everyone’s here. They are Jewish, what is the problem? And there isn’t as problem at so but things can’t happen by the snap of a finger. A community is a living entity and needs time and compromises from part and part for a change like this to occur.

Rav Alfredo Goldschmidt said he posed the question of Maim Haim to varius age groups and got the most positive reply from the elderly. They said, give it time. That’s all I’m saying, give it time.

I say “bravo” to your posts!

With great respect to the Jewish community member from Columbia, who posted that her community is a “family” and is reluctant to accept large numbers of outsiders, and would prefer to process them one at a time, and has “its own way of doing things” --

Friends, we must make a choice. Will the Judaism of the future see welcoming, growing shuls and lively secular organizations?

Or will many segments of our community worldwide continue to operate like a high school clique, guaranteeing dwindling numbers of Jews?

Friend from Columbia, your community has been very comfortable with being a small group where everyone knows everyone else. That is understandable, and it is human nature. And your Jewish community is not the only one behaving like that!

This occurs frequently in America as well.

But it endangers Judaism’s survival. No one is requiring that your Columbian Jewish community love every new individual—but if you reached out to them, and made friends with some of them—you would be helping Judaism.

Cordially,
Robin Margolis
http://www.half-jewish.net

By the way, I am not hijacking Judaism! Shabbat Shalom!

With all due respect Mr. Edwards, I am a convert, to Judaism, my great-grand father came from Spain (Sepharad) and settled in Mexico in the mid 1800’s. He was killed by the system that persecuted Jews in Spain. I know that the Jewish traditions and rituals might have been broken in the family, was due because many Jewish families were forced to either convert to X-tianity or die, and here is where Kiddush Hashem takes place, the Sanctification of G-d’s Name. Nobody has tried to hijack X-tianity, it’s the other way around! Many Xtians tried and still try to convert Jews to that faith.

In the case of my family, not my great-grandfather, because he was already dead but my grandfather instead, on my mother’s side; converted to Protestantism, the closest that is to Judaism, Seventh Day Adventist. This was done to protect the family and “pretend” to be converted to Xtianity. However, I had to return to what it was cut and taken away from my roots. And Mr. Edwards, with all due respect, whether you’ll like it or not, today and in the near future, many, many, and I mean MANY will RETURN to the faith of our father’s!!! We’re all dispersed in all four corners of the earth. Please inform yourself about who we are!!! We are AM YISRAEL and we are the so called Marranos (by the way, a very derogatory term)!!! So be prepared because this phenomena is real as my Land is!

You are totally correct.  Of course, there must be a mechanism to ensure that the converts’ motivation is sincere.  But along those lines, I think we should make a huge push into countries like China and India, whose inhabitants do not have the burden of a past experience with Christianity and Islam, and who might find Judaism very appealing and alluring.  Just think: if just a few percent of those billions of people converted, the number of Jews in the world would explode.  What’s wrong with that?  It could only be good.  If just 2% of Indians and Chinese converted, the number of Jews in the world would increase by 40 million.  Who could complain about that?

Most of the people against them joining our communities (that as the article said, they haven’t really requested it either) have concerns about the type of convertion they did. The Rabbanut doesn’t accept them yet and many people took offense in the fact that they went over the communities leadership and got a mass conversion that way.

The Jewish communities in Colombia do help people that want to convert, who come as individuals seeking to be part of Judaism. This group, however, came as 104 people, wishing to convert as a community instead of each taking an individual path.

Another of the concerns is that the communities are not prepared to take such a huge influx of people, not only in terms of infrastructure but as I said, the communities here work as a family, and we know that accepting someone new into a family always takes time, let alone 200.

When Rav Alfredo Goldschmidt talked about a filter it was mentioned that Maim Haim is very strict about who they let into their community, being a “first filter” themselves. Then why are they allowed the right to take pause and evaluate possible members and the Jewish communities are deemed as discriminatory when they do the exact same thing?

As it is Maim Haim have their own community now. Slowly the try to join some of the activities done but there are feelings of resentment on their part still palpable. Speaking as someone who was present in the Joint conference, the resentment in Dr. Prieto’s voice was evident. It may be justified. I’m not a community leader, I don’t know how things were handled with them at the start, but as a member, when I hear someone with that attitude, who speaks ill of the community I love so much, it does make me weary. If they are trying to approach the community, especially those of us who don’t know them yet and haven’t really made our minds, doing it with resentment is not a smart way to go about it.

Casting judgment from afar is easy. I’m not saying we shouldn’t let them in, I’m just saying it’s not as easy as opening the synagogue doors. As it has being asked for us to put ourselves in their positions, I ask of everyone to put themselves in ours and understand that these things take time.

Instead of feeling happy and inspired that so many people want to live as Jews—replenishing small Latin American Jewish communities—and some of these people also want ot make aliyah --

the primary concern of the previous posters seems to be: how can we reject as many converts as possible?

I constantly see posters on JTA articles bewailing intermarriage, assimilation, etc.—and then posting rejections of anyone—converts, adult children of intermarriage, etc.—who tries to join the Jewish community, on the grounds that their credentials aren’t perfect enough.

We have to decide: do we want large and growing Jewish communities worldwide? Or do we want to continue to dwindle in numbers, but preserve an illusory ethnic “purity” of accepting only people whose bloodlines and conversions can please all Jews?

Speaking as the Coordinator of the Half-Jewish Network, the largest organization for adult children of intermarriage, I deal routinely with Jewish organizations that would rather keep getting smaller than accept adult children of intermarriage.

Rejecting people whose bloodlines aren’t totally Jewish or whose conversions aren’t by your favorite rabbi guarantees negative Jewish population growth.

We need to think of Judaism’s future!

Sincerely,
Robin Margolis
http://www.half-jewish.net

If these would be converts follow the usual Hispanic method they will claim to be Jews then start doing it “their way” and if they get told they have to follow the ways of Judaism they will start screaming unfair and bias etc until you either cave in or walk away from them.  If these people are truly dedicated to conversion to Judaism (which I’m told there really isn’t any such thing other then being accepted as Ger) then they will follow the guidelines and practice the faith as has been done for generations.

Judaism does not people who “convert” for convenience, but for conscience, and are dedicated upholding the laws as taught to them.

All religions have groups which interpret teachings slightly differently, but you should still welcome them into your group - even if you disagree. I’ve sat down and argued with groups I disagree with, but I think that shunning them or passive-aggression is unreasonable.