Who is a Jew?
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Half Jewish
My fathers family is Jewish, my mothers family is catholic and protestant. But Neither of my parents believe in organized religion. I had a Bris (Circumcision) and became a Bar-Mitzvah, but often I hear that I cannot be Jewish because…
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A Jew who wasn’t raised Jewish
If following the female bloodline in a family which is Jewish, would a granddaughter who’s grandmother was jewish on her mother’s side still be considered Jewish in a strict sense? Yes, 100%, according to my definition, even if she wasn’t…
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Judaism Passed Through the Mother
What is the reason that a son of a non-Jewish woman and a Jewish father is not considered Jewish? The Talmud (Kidushin 68b) traces the source of this law to Deuteronomy 7:3-4. This verse specifies that intermarrying with non-Jews is…
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Judaism Passed Through the Mother
Judaism defines as a Jew any person born to a Jewish Mother. The status of the Father is not considered, which is very humbling to the Fathers. But how, when Judaism being a Patriarchal society, in which the men are…
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To be a Jew
Do you have to be born in Jerusalem or Israel to be considered a Jew? Or can anyone become a Jew if they choose to? According to the Torah, a person is Jewish if they are born of a Jewish…
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Am I Jewish?
My ancestors on my mother’s side were Jewish. Though I don’t practice the Jewish religion, does that make me Jewish? Yes, if it was strictly the maternal line. That is, if your mother’s mother’s mother was Jewish, then you are…
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Matrilineal Descent, Source
Why doesn’t the father determine the religion of the son? The Talmudic and Biblical sources for matrilineal descent is: Mishnah (Kiddushin 3:12), which says that the child of a gentile woman is like her. This is derived from the passage…
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A Jew without Judaism
Hello Rabbi. Thank-you for your time. My question simply stated is; can their truly be such thing as “atheist Jews” and “secular Jews” in their true corresponding ajoining words? To be a Jew is to atleast go as far as…
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Why do I need a Jewish Mother?
If my father was a Jew and my mother not, then why would I not be considered a Jew? What is my status? Shalom! According to Jewish law, a person’s status follows the mother. The reason for this is because…