V iten- #1014-10"9-

Does an adopted child have the
same obligations toward his or
her adoptive parents as their own
birth child? Are there obligations
toward birth parents? Most
authorities equate the obligations
of biological and adoptive chil-
i dren toward their adoptive par-
ents. The questions of obligations
to birth parents remain unan-
swered .
A particularly emotional question
is the adoption by Jewish families
of children who are not white.
Halachically, this is not even an
issue.
Judaism is not a race, and so
such a child, if properly convert-
ed, is fully Jewish. The concern
lies with the sociological attitudes
in the Jewish community, where
many are not prepared to fully
I embrace as Jews those of another
race. We can only hope that as
increasing numbers of non-white
I children join the Jewish community
1 this problem will disappear.
Despite the halachic issues
I raised by the emphasis of lineage,
I there is a certain wisdom in the
Jewish position. A generation ago,
officials tried to erase an adopted
child's biological identity, as if the
child began life at the moment of
adoption.
Today, experts recognize that a
human being never loses her bio-
logical identity, even if she grows
up in a stable, loving, adoptive
home. Many contemporary Jewish
social workers today will help a
child in a search for birth parents,
recognizing the importance of
blood lines. This emphasis on lin-
eage is precisely the Jewish posi-
tion. Yet ultimately the true parents
are those who raise the child,
imparting their values and wisdom
and love. By Jewish law, the child
is called by their name. For infer-
tile Jewish couples, adoption is a
wonderful way to fulfill the mitzvah
(commandment) to "be fruitful and
multiply." ❑

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Detroit Jewish News

8/21
1998

75