World

Israeli rabbi rejects Toronto conversion.

Paul Lungen

Canadian Jewish News

614th mitzvah. This is the exact opposite of
that. It's the antithesis of everything he ever
worked for. It's dividing the Jewish people."

Toronto

T

he son of a prominent philosopher
who urged Jews to retain their
identity in order to deny Hitler a
posthumous victory has had his own Jewish
status denied by a Jerusalem rabbinic court.
In a case that was expected to merely
finalize a divorce between Yossi Fackenheim
and wife, Iris, a dayan (judge) ruled that
Fackenheim's conversion as an infant 29
years ago, performed by an Orthodox rab-
binic court in Toronto, no longer had any
effect. Fackenheim, the son of renowned
scholar Emil Fackenheim, said the judge
came to that conclusion after questioning
him about his level of observance and his
record of attending synagogue.
The decision not only affects his status as
a Jew, it also brings into question the Jewish
status of many other Orthodox converts,
Fackenheim, 29, stated.
"I have friends who live in fear that their
conversion may be revoked , ) ' he said on the
phone from London, where he is studying
for a master's degree.
Fackenheim, who has lived in Israel since
childhood, said he is appealing the decision
on a number of fronts. He has complained
about the presiding judge's findings to the
Chief Rabbinate of Israel as well as to a rab-
binic court ombudsman and to Rabbi Eli
Ben Dahan, director of Israel's rabbinical
courts. The Chief Rabbinate has deferred
to the ombudsman, who is conducting a
review of the decision. Fackenheim has also
retained the Israel Religious Action Center
for legal assistance.

In Court
During the hearing, Rabbi Hagar ques-
tioned Fackenheim closely when he saw
his profile, which indicated he had been
born of a non-Jewish mother but had been
converted at eight days of age by the Toronto
belt din (rabbinic court). He asked whether
Fackenheim kept Shabbat, ate kosher food,
observed all the mitzvot (commandments)
and attended synagogue
regularly. He asked
when Fackenheim
had stopped living an
Orthodox lifestyle (it
occurred when his
mother was stricken
by Alzheimer's when
he was around 12 to14,
though he did have
a bar mitzvah at 13.
Based on the answers,
Rabbi Hagar con-
cluded Fackenheim had
renounced his faith and there was no need
for a divorce since Halachah does not recog-
nize marriage between Jews and non-Jews.
At the request of Fackenheim's ex-wife
and to ensure she faced no future ques-
tions about her marital status, Rabbi
Hagar agreed to issue a get (divorce
decree), but with a document attached that
stated the rabbinic court did not recognize
Fackenheim as a Jew. The divorce decree
refers to Fackenheim as —Yosef who goes
by the name Yossi the convert: which is a
hop, skip and a jump from Yossi the goy;'
Fackenheim said.

Ironic Twist
The irony of the situation is not lost on
Fackenheim, whose father, Emil, a Holocaust
survivor and a Reform rabbi, posited one
of the most influential concepts of post-
Holocaust Jewry. Known as the 614th corn-
mandment, it stated, in part: Deny Hitler a
posthumous victory by remaining Jewish.
Adding to the irony was that his father
went to the Orthodox so we would not have
problems [about Jewish status] down the
line. Now Orthodox converts have the rug
pulled out from under them',' he stated.
Fackenheim is outraged at the ruling
and at the presiding judge of the Jerusalem
Rabbinic Court, Rabbi Yissachar Dov Hagar.
"He stepped all over my identity and my
father's memory,' he said. "I think he'd be
furious. I think he'd be livid. You know the

Varied Reaction
The decision surprised Rabbi Reuven
Tradburks, a member of the conver-
sion committee of the New York-based
Rabbinical Council of America (RCA), an
umbrella organization representing 1,000
Orthodox rabbis in North America. He
questioned Rabbi Hagar's re-examination of
Fackenheim's childhood conversion.
"To look at personal behavior, to look at
the validity of a conversion 29 years ago is
highly objectionable' Rabbi Tradburks said.
Current behavior should have no impact
of the validity of a conversion. "Conversion
can only be valid or invalid at the moment it
is confirmed," he said.
If the convert sincerely accepts Judaism
at the time of the conversion and later com-
pletely abandons the faith the conversion

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remains intact, Rabbi Tradburks, president
of the Toronto Vaad Harabonim (Orthodox
council), added.
Rabbi Martin Lockshin, a professor at
York University, said the decision "definitely
shows the arbitrary and dangerous nature
of the Haredi-dominated beit din system in
Israel ... This type of action is unprecedent-
ed in Jewish history and must be decried:'
Rabbi Lockshin suggested the impact
of the rabbinic court's decision could be
far-reaching. "All of the converts converted
in Toronto 29 years ago and 39 years ago

"Now Orthodox

converts have the

rug pulled out from

under them."

- Yossi Fackenheim,

converted as an infant

and 49 years ago and all the descendants
of the females among those converts now
have to worry that some Haredi judge will
declare them to be gentiles. This is uncon-
scionable and unthinkable."

New York Weighs In
Rabbi Avi Shafran, director of public affairs
for New York-based Agudath Israel of
America, said legitimate conversions should
be beyond challenge. "What matters is
whether the conversion was done properly
— including the reasonable conclusion
that the convert is undertaking halachic
observance. If such a conclusion is reason-
ably reached by the beit din, the convert
is Jewish, even if he or she lapses at a later
time. If, however, it seems the convert never
had any intention to be observant, the con-
version is subject to being undermined.
"It indicates that the single standard of
Halachah — which is the sole true unifier
of the Jewish people — is being taken seri-
ously by Israel's rabbinate"
Rabbi Tradburks said Rabbi Hagar's
decision should have no impact on current
and future conversions conducted under
Orthodox auspices in North America. The
RCA agreed about two years ago to tighten
the requirements for conversion and adopt a
universal set of criteria that would conform
to standards agreeable to the Israeli rabbin-
ate. It has also developed a cadre of rabbinic
authorities who are delegated with approving

all Orthodox conversions in North America.
However, two years ago, when the Toronto
Beit Din was considering adopting the
new standards, Rabbi Tradburks told the
Canadian Jewish News,"I don't believe there
will be changes for child conversions that
have already been done."
Rabbi Hagar's ruling likely points to the
tension between the Israeli rabbinate and
North American rabbis over acceptable
standards for conversion. "The Israeli rab-
binate did not accept what was the norm
in North American for many years': Rabbi
Tradburks said.
Until North American batei din changed
their standards two years ago to match
Israeli practices — requiring converts
be Torah-observant Jews — they oper-
ated under the influence of Rabbi Moshe
Feinstein, who argued that a day school edu-
cation and a traditional Jewish home would
be influential enough to ensure a converted
child practices Judaism, even if the parents
were not particularly observant.
"The Israeli rabbinate never really accept-
ed that': Rabbi Tradburks stated. "That
could be what Rabbi Hagar is challenging."

Another Hurdle

Complicating the issue was a decision last
year by an Israeli rabbinic court that called
into question the legitimacy of thousands
of Israeli conversions conducted under one
of Israel's most respected Orthodox halachic
authorities, Rabbi Chaim Druckman.
Despite the high regard for Rabbi
Druckman, a Haredi rabbinic appeal court
last year annulled the marriage of an
Ashdod man whose wife was converted
by Rabbi Druckman 15 years earlier. The
appeal court ruled the conversion was
flawed and insincere and that consequently,
the couple were never married.
Rabbi Lockshin said the Fackenheim
decision should worry the Toronto beit din,
which operates under the Vaad Harabonim.
"While it is true that the Vaad Harabonim of
Toronto has been seriously `Haredized' over
the last 29 years, they should realize that
even their own semi-Haredi conversions are
also subject to disqualification from Israeli
Haredi judges. This is not an idle concern.
"Modern Orthodox Jews and mod-
ern Orthodox rabbinical organizations
must not cede to Israeli Haredim,"
Rabbi Lockshin continued. "They
must strengthen the hands of modern
Orthodox forces in Israel and encourage
them to set up alternate rabbinical sys-
tems that will allow Israelis to circumvent
the Haredi-dominated system." —