The newspaper “Besheva”, which will be published tomorrow (Thursday), will appear as a weekly Torah column by Rabbi Eliezer Melamed. This week, the column of the Rosh Yeshiva Har Bracha will deal with a particularly charged topic: the attitude toward conversion today and whether, in order to prevent intermarriage, it is possible to convert a resident who intends to live as a traditional person.
Rabbi Melamed, who has been under attack by mustard rabbis in recent weeks, writes that in times of distress and in order to prevent a mixed marriage, it is also possible to convert a person who intends to live only traditionally, as most Jews in Israel live.
Rabbi Melamed writes in his weekly column: “The question is whether in times of distress, in order to prevent a non-Jewish Jewish marriage, it is possible to convert a resident who intends to live as a traditional Jew, and as most Jews in the country do today. This was the case until a few years ago, because it was so famous, and the defense of the converting rabbis was that they really believed that the settlers would keep the commandments. “Rabinovich ztl regarding small conversions and the size of the challenge, and the books of Rabbi Chaim Asmalam Shlita, and many others with them, I gave my heart to read the books, and I found that this is indeed the opinion of many of the great rabbis of the last.”
Rabbi Melamed explains that he relies on Rabbis Uziel Rabbi Moshe Shmuel Glasner, Rabbi Yosef Mashash, Rabbi Israel Bari and the Maharsham, as a reason why he changed his mind about the halakhic issue, which is so prevalent these days. , Which was quite clear that they would not lead a religious lifestyle, and AFP did so because it was a time of distress – they were ordered to convert.
“Therefore, it seems that there is no halakhic possibility to prevent the rabbis who think these great opinions, to act according to their method. Nor can it prevent the families concerned with rescuing one of their children, “Such a large soul and soul are allowed to act according to a minority of arbitrators. It is easy and material when it is possible that this was the opinion of most of the rabbis who met with these questions in practice.”
“Also, it is not possible to prevent the representatives of the State of Israel from trusting these views, when the non-conversion of those who identify themselves as Jews and wish to convert and strengthen their Jewish identity – causes damage to the Jewish identity of the State of Israel and severe social distress.”