I have a question…

One of my cousins on my father’s side is Jewish. She converted 45 years ago when she married a Jewish man, and they’ve raised their son and daughter as Jewish, including Bar and Bat Mitzvah. She keeps a kosher home still, even after her husband passed away, and was going to the synagogue regularly (before Covid). She keeps a mezuzah on her door. She recently told me that a kid (twenty-something) told her "well, you’re not [b]really[/b] Jewish, and your kids aren’t really Jewish either. Their mother has to be Jewish, not just their father." My cousin told him, "My children [b]were[/b] born to a Jewish mother." She was very offended. Once you convert, don’t you become part of the community ? 🤔

This page is a permanent link to the reply below and its nested replies. See all post replies »

Harmonium1923 · 51-55, M

Jewish guy here. If you formally convert to Judaism you are 100% part of the community and from a religious perspective you are no different than anyone born into the religion. She is Jewish through that process and her children are Jewish because they were born to a Jewish mother.

bijouxbroussard · F

@Harmonium1923 Thank you, my friend. Liz converted before she married David in 1979. They were living in New Orleans until Katrina, and then the family fled to Atlanta. They were embraced in the new synagogue. David passed away in 2008, but she and their children were an active part of the community and never made to feel unwelcome until this fellow and his family arrived.