The Establishment Voice

Abstract

To probe orthodoxy’s stance towards children of Jewish fathers became a burning quest as I researched this book, leading me to speak to 20 prominent orthodox rabbis in five countries, as well as several of other denominations.

If I were writing a script for history and my wishes were to be fulfilled and I had an option saying, ‘Here you’ve got a whole tribe of patrilineal Jews, would you write into the script with a happy ending: all of them have suddenly embraced Judaism and decided to convert to be true to the God of their fathers? Or alternatively, they realise that Judaism rejects them in a way and therefore, without animosity and without hate, decided to embrace the culture in which they were surrounded?’ I would be quite matter of fact and say,’Let them stay the way they are.’

Dayan Isaac Berger, London

In some very deep sense they are Jewish, in another sense they are not Jewish. Their sense of themselves, their own way of looking at the world and their whole sense of identity is Jewish so what we have to do is just have the law catch up with their own consciousness. The law should catch up, the law should enable them to enter in as easily, as warmly, as lovingly as possible.

Rabbi David Hartman, Jerusalem