HELPING JEWISH FAMILIES GROW'
B
Rabbi Michael Gold
Special to The AppleTree
e fruitful and multiply" is the first command-
ment in Judaism; children are at the center of
the Jewish vision of family life.
Today, more and more Jews are choosing to fulfill
that mitzvah through adoption. Adoption is a wonder-
ful way to build Jewish families. It provides homes
for children whose birth parents cannot raise
them and children for parents unable to
achieve pregnancy.
At the same time, it raises numerous
halachic, as well as practical, ques-
tions for Jews. There is a certain irony
in the Jewish view of adoption. Jew-
ish sources teach two contradictory
messages.
On one hand, the Torah and Tal-
mud are filled with wonderful exam-
ples of adoption and beautiful
aggadic sayings about people who
raise children born to others.
On the other hand, because of the
strong emphasis in Judaism on bloodlines
and lineage, adoption as a formal legal
procedure is totally unknown.
In the Torah, Abraham adopts his servant Eliez-
er, and Mordecai raises his orphaned cousin Esther.
The Talmudic sage Abaye often quotes wise sayings in
the name of his foster mother. Perhaps the most beauti-
ful statement about adoption concerns Michal, the wife
of King David. According to the Torah, Michal never
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had children (II Samuel 6:23); yet it also mentions her
five sons (II Samuel 21 :8). Noticing this discrepancy,
rabbis in the Talmud remark, "Her sister Merab gave
birth to them and she raised them; therefore, they are
called by her name. This teaches that whoever brings
up an orphan in his home is regarded, according to
Scripture, as though the child had been born to him."
(Sanhedrin 19b)
A similar passage occurs in the midrash, where
the question arises as to what Hebrew name
to use for a woman raised by a foster
father. The decision is to use the foster
father's name, because "he who brings
up a child is to be called its father,
not he who gave birth." (Exodus
Rabbah 46:5)
Adoption as practiced in mod-
ern society usually means the
removal of all rights and responsi-
bilities of the biological parent,
and their transfer to another couple
or individual. For all intents and pur-
poses, the child's biological lineage
is broken. This procedure has its roots
in ancient Roman law, where the con-
cern was finding an heir for a childless
couple. In contrast, British common law, com-
ing from a society that placed great emphasis on
lineage and class, never developed an adoption proce-
dure. Imagine that Prince Charles and Princess Diana
had adopted a baby boy; he certainly would not be in
line for the throne.
Jewish law is far closer to British common law than to