Who is a Jew?
The question of who is a Jew? (Hebrew: " Mihu Yehudi " מיהו יהודי ) is an inner-Jewish controversy, which is particularly important in Israel.
The inseparability of religious and national components of Jewish existence until the late 18th century, not seized in question principle. Then the question became increasingly virulent in the wake of Jewish emancipation and secularization.
The topic is found within the Israeli public attention since 1962 at the latest, as several legal cases with the theme of belonging apart translated to Judaism. It affects people who converted to Judaism, but not by an Orthodox rabbi, and persons whose fathers are Jews, while their mothers, at least according to orthodox Jewish conception, are not Jewish.
Who is a Jew with only one Jewish parent?
In the Hebrew Bible, the descent is patrilineal, but the rabbis have a matrilineal descent in the Mishnah introduced, which has since been considered halachically, may, in accordance with the principle of Roman law, " pater semper incertus " which takes into account the fact that at that time only the maternity was apparent.
While the Orthodox and Conservative Judaism accepted as Jews by birth who has a mother who was seen at the time of birth of the child halachically Jewish, is accepted in addition to the matrilineal and the patrilineal descent in communities of Progressive Judaism, provided the child will be raised Jewish.
Conversion debate
In the conversion debate is about the question in which cases a Giur is to be regarded as valid. The representatives of the Orthodox position took the view that only one shot was valid in Judaism, which was confirmed by an Orthodox rabbinical court, while the liberal position advocated this for a recording by a liberal rabbi.
In 2008, flared up in Israel on the debate particularly acute after the Supreme Rabbinical the decision of the local Rabbinatsgerichtes of Ashdod confirmed, after which the conversion of a woman, which was carried out by the settlers Rabbi Chaim Druckman, should be declared invalid. This was accused of halacha to have knowingly and willfully broken and forged documents. But that were more thousands of conversions questioned. Background of this dispute is a political conflict between national religious -minded and on the other hand, ultra-Orthodox, anti-Zionist rabbis. As a result of these difficulties, the discussion of a globally recognized rabbis body was picked up.
The debate of the living conditions
In the debate the circumstances it comes to the question of the manner in which actions - such as the conversion to another religion - or life circumstances - such as ignorance of Jewish descent - touch a person's identity as a Jew.
The case Kaniuk and the consequences
As the first Israeli Yoram Kaniuk has judicially enforced, that in his passport under the category of religion instead is "Jewish" " without religion." Hundreds of other Israelis followed him in it now, and even a new verb was formed in Hebrew for this operation: lehitkaniuk. Citation Yoram Kaniuk (interview, October 2011): " For many years I resist the idea that you can be part of Israeli society only about religion, I am of the opinion that state and religion should be separated from each other in Judaism. . is a very problematic thing because you had to be religious for hundreds of years, if you wanted to be Jewish. and on the other hand I defend myself. I love Israel and the Jewish culture and want to be a part of it. I just do not want forced be to do that in a very specific way. "