Ashkelon, Israel – Nira and Yaron had been trying to have a baby for eight years. They did everything – in-vitro fertilizations, egg donations, treatments in Israel and abroad. Nothing worked. The only way they would be able to have a family was by adoption.
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The Taf adoption agency found a baby for them after a few weeks of searches, and they were called to Belarus to adopt an abandoned 11-month-old baby boy. Their happiness knew no bounds. When they returned to Israel, they immediately began the process of having the baby converted to Judaism.
They turned to the rabbinic court in Ashkelon, the seat of the head of the conversion administration, Rabbi Yosef Avior. The rabbi told them that if they wanted to have the baby converted, they would have to become observant Jews. The couple told Avior that they live a secular lifestyle but that they observe commandments: Yaron puts on phylacteries every morning and Nira observes the basic commandments for women.
Nira and Yaron pledged in writing at the meeting that they would raise little Yair in the same way. It took a while, but at the age of 17 months, Yair underwent circumcision with the approval of the conversion administration.
When Yair got older, the couple decided to adopt another child. They raised the money, NIS 160,000, from family and friends and flew to Belarus again. When they returned to Israel with Yair’s little brother, Dan, once again they went to see Rabbi Avior. This time, he refused.
“I do not recall that the older brother goes to a religious school,” he said, adding that until that happened, he would not covert the baby.
It turns out that Nira and Yaron are not alone. The rabbinate in Israel requires adopted children to go to Orthodox schools, and many parents produce false certificates to overcome this obstacle. However, Nira did not want to lie, and the parents decided to register their son in a religious school. But Yair wept bitterly when he heard he would have to leave his school friends and move to an Orthodox school far from home.
Nira went back to the rabbi and said she could not send him to an Orthodox school after all. The rabbi then said that if she did not, he would revoke Yair’s Jewish status. He maintained his refusal to convert Dan.
“The rabbis told me, ‘at home you can pray to a statue and eat pork; the child has to go to a religious school,” Nira said. After several months, the rabbis also turned down Nira’s request to perform and supervise Dan’s circumcision ceremony. The couple therefore paid for a private procedure, at a cost of NIS 4,000.
“This is clearly religious coercion,” Yaron says. “I am no less good a Jew than a religious person. We went to the army, we observe commandments, we work hard and we went through hell until we received these children. Why are they doing this to us? Who are they to say whether we are Jewish enough?”
His wife, Nira, says, “I asked Avior why he was doing this to me. He answered, ‘it’s not me, it’s halakha [Jewish law].’ I have girlfriends who don’t even believe in God. They’re allowed to raise children here?”
The irony in this story comes to the fore in a letter sent to adoptive parents when they return to Israel: Under letterhead reading: “Prime Minister’s Office – Conversion Administration – Special Rabbinic Tribunals for Conversion,” the letter congratulates the parents with the Talmudic maxim: “He who raises an orphan in his home is regarded as if he had actually brought him into this world.”
It seems that words are one thing and actions are another. The Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement that Yair’s Jewish status was not at all in question and therefore had not been rescinded, and the conversion of his brother had not yet started.
“The special sensitivity of the conversion of children is clear to the heads of the conversion administration, particularly in the case of adopted children. Therefore the conversion administration established a special panel in the conversion tribunal that is expert in the matter of children’s conversions. The panel acts according to the personal directives of the head of the conversion administration, Rabbi Haim Druckman,” the statement said.
this rabbi has no sensability, a rav needs to a mensh and be sensative. if he isnt hes not a rav period. why do many israeli rabbis lack decency?
This arrogance of this rav is beyond contempt. Hopefully, the government will correct this disgraceful behavior by a power hungary zealot. The parents should not be coerced into sending the child to a chareidi or orthodox school if that is not their derech.
#1 & #2
B4 you have learned hilchos geirus & especially ger Koton. How dare you comment?
Part of Geirus is Kabolas mitzvos, the same goes for those who bring a Koton to become a Ger Koton,[who could bring a koton is another story], without authentic Kabolas hamitvos including Derabonons, minhagim, & charomim, & Dor Dor vedorshov,there cannot be a Kosher Geirus.
In case of a Ger Koton he must be raised observant of all mitvos until Bar Mitzva, & not rescind his geirus.If he is not observant & continues not to keep mitzvos, at Bar Mitvah his actions will automatically revoke his geirus.
Fortunatly Geirus isn’t israeli citizenship, it is accepting & keeping all the Torah, no Rav how ever much mercy they may have on this couple can change the rules of geirus. The only way Ger Koton could work is if the koton is later raised observant.
I also feel sorry for them, but if they raised money for the adoption let them raise money for an apartment in an observant neigbourhood.
So, the geirus is valid if they worship idols but not if he goes to a state school?
There’s definitely something wrong here.
The Wolf
The law is simple.
The Geirus has no actual effect until the boy or girl becomes of age (13/12 respectively), at which time they get to decide if they want to be Jewish or to go back to their non-Jewish status. In order to assure that the child qualifies to make such a decision when the time comes, he/she must be aware of all religious laws and the ramifications involved. That is why a religious education is required, because otherwise the child will not qualify later on at the real giyur being ignorant of the laws of the religion he is supposedly accepting.
It is actually suprising and contradictory that they don’t enforce the same on the parents given the influence they ultimately have on the childs lifystyle. That is why we can’t really rely and accept the giyur that the Rabbanut does approve.
if that child gets converted and at 13 chooses not stay jewish, do you think his parents would not mind? of course they would, the rabbi is trying to avoid that scenario. so ultimately who is coercing religion?
I don’t know where you get your halachic information from, but it is simple halachah that a ger has to accept all of halachah. A ger koton has to have his guardians keep halachah. In this case, being sent to a school that is not a religious school sets the child up not to observe mitzvos; simple as that.
I happen to live in Israel. Simply put, a non-religious school is as bad for Yiddishkeit and in some ways worse, than an American public school. In an American PS, at least we know the kid is not getting a religious education. In Israel, however, almost everyone is Jewish, they all speak Hebrew, and live in Eretz Yisroel, so the child / parent may think that it is a Jewish education. It is not; it is far from a kosher education.
As such, it is painful but true: a child being raised in such an environment is being set up not to follow halachah and as such the Rav is correct. These parents should make a decision as to what is important to them: halachah and Judaism or social Judaism.
That’s the way it is in the states too, except they would be required to move to a Torah-observant community first. It may seem like a double standard, but it’s just the way it is. If you want to have a halachic geirus, you have to abide by halacha. There is no reason for this story to be publicized unless the family is trying to garner sympathy. BTW I think the rabbi was being (hurtfully and unnecessarily) sarcastic about ‘bowing to idols and eating pork’, but he is right about the children needing to go to a religious school. They should be thankful it’s not 10K/year per child like it is in the U.S.!
“I am no less good a Jew than a religious person.”
Lady, if you are not shomer torah u’mitzvos, you SURE ARE LESS of a “good” jew. Sorry to break it to you but facts are facts.
Another instance where the Rabbi’s further scare away yidden.
a real conversion requires kabalas hamitzvos. poliical correctness does not a jew make.
We need to keep our own sifrei yochsin and let the medine do what it wants to do. I don’t recognize the medine at all so any ger they claim is Jewish is bechezkas goy unless I know otherwise either myself or via a reliable rov (which does include Torah rabbonim who hold state positions for parnosso or kiruv reasons, such as Rav Lau and Rav Grossman shlita as well as most of the Chabad, chassidish, and Shas official rabbonim).
By the way – a conversion can NOT be rescinded! There is no such halacha!
I woudnt believe everything this mother has to say. She obviously does not like the chareidim and now has the ability to publicly demonstrate that hate. Never believe words spoken in hate. Some comments seem slightly exagerated!
#4 is absolutely correct.
The Halachah of the Torah decides who is a Kosher convert,
NOT the Israeli Prime Minister’s office.
This is a tragic case. The halacha is clear: the child must go to an orthodox school. #5 knows no halacha. The interesting thing is that Rav Avior is a dati-leumi rav. He’s a very nice man, but he he is certainly very meikel in these cases. If he says you cant’ do it, then you can’t do it. The famous R. Sherman psak castigating R. Druckman included R. Avior.
The Parents are actually trying to do harm to the child. As of now, it’s fine if he is Mechalel Shabbos & the like, as long as he keeps the Seven Noah Laws.
If he is converted, he will be liable for Chilul Shabbos & all other commandments. So as long as they don’t plan to keep Shabbos, why convert.
This is a classic example of why shul/state separation is so important. The only reason this is an issue is because conversion is a requirement for practical participation in Israeli secular citizenship — and if that’s the case it must be governed by democratic, challengable and changeable laws. On the other hand, if someone decides they want to convert themselves/their family because they have discovered a commitment to yiddishkeit, that’s between them and their rabbi and he is entitled to set whatever standards he deems appropriate.
Its the co-mingling of these separate realms that is so dangerous and explosive.
I think halacha says one needs to be religious, not one needs to go to an orthodox school.
Maybe they want a good secular education and be religious to. It sounds like blackmail to me.
With all the people claiming to state halachah pesuka why isn’t anyone offering an exact quote from any source???
A true convert has to accept the Torah fully and keep all the mitzvos. A child under bar/bas mitzva can’t really be converted, but, if he/she is adopted and given the proper chinuch, when he/she turns bar/bas mitzva he/she can opt whether or not to remain Jewish. If the child is not brought up frum his conversion is not a real conversion, because he is not going to keep all the mitzvos. I knew someone who was adopted by a “frei” couple and he thought he was Jewish, which he wasn’t, later he went to Eretz Yisroel, got interested in authentic Yiddishkeit and converted properly. He was frum for a number of years while living in E”Y, unfortunately he stopped being shomer Torah umitzvos,, but since he was really a ger the right way, he still is a Yid and is responsible for his actions.