by Maayana Miskin
Since opening a program for conversion into Judaism, the IDF has become a center of Jewish learning, with thousands of soldiers who are not Jewish according to Jewish law taking part in courses on Judaism and roughly 800 per year choosing to undergo conversion.
In total, 17,000 non-Jewish soldiers have learned about Judaism in the army’s Nativ program, and almost 5,000 of them have converted to Judaism. Most Nativ participants have a Jewish parent or grandparent, but are not Jewish according to halacha (Jewish law), which states that Jewish status is passed through the mother.
Two-thirds of the soldiers who convert through Nativ are women, meaning that their children will be considered halachically Jewish.
The data on immigrant soldiers and conversions was revealed Wednesday in a meeting of the Immigration and Absorption Committee. MKs discussed the role immigrant soldiers play in the army, and ways in which the IDF can ease the immigrant absorption experience.
One out of five IDF soldiers was not born in Israel, according to IDF data. In 2010, 40,000 soldiers were immigrants. Sixty-five percent of immigrant soldiers were born in the former Soviet Union, and 12.5% were born in Ethiopia.
Lieutenant-Colonel Carmit Naftali discussed the Amir program for soldiers from Ethiopia, which has roughly 700 participants each year. For the first seven weeks of their service, soldiers in the Amir program are trained separately and prepared for service in elite positions. During the last three months of service, the program helps soldiers prepare for higher education or professional training.
Of the immigrant soldiers, 2,100 were “lone soldiers,” who do not have parents living in Israel. Advisor Tzvi Oud said he believes there are actually 3,000 lone soldiers, more than are listed as such in IDF databases.
The IDF could benefit more from the lone soldiers by making sure that immigrants are put in positions that reflect their talents, Oud said. Currently, he said, soldiers who arrive in Israel after undergoing academic training elsewhere may be assigned to a position in which their previous training is not put to use.
Sam Kadosh, who works with French-speaking Israeli students, suggested that the army work more closely with the leaders of immigrant organizations. By doing so, he said, the IDF could reach out to young men who are considering aliyah (immigration) but are unsure about whether or not to serve in the military.
Arnold, I was referring to freedom of speech. Bellman is now into heavily censoring my comments. He means it personally and I take it personally.
I never said on his blog Belman can’t do what he pleases. I just thought you might like to know he does.
Most I think are of Jewish women who marry Muslims, which I understand is on the rise.
And the number of Jews who convert to Islam is … (I’m guessing none to very low)
The number of American or British soldiers who convert to Islam is … (probably way too many)
Yamit,
Back in the years when I was doing an undergraduate degree in journalism and communications (University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, 1962), I came across a comment by A J Liebling, who wrote essays about journalism and journalists:
“Freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one’.
Arnold Harris
Mount Horeb WI
Arnold my comment was censored for no good reason and arbitrarily personal.
I know you support free speech.
A simple question. How many of these converts remain dedicated to being Torah observant Jews the day after their conversion? Like I said, a simple question.
And also hats off to the ones who dont convert. They probably have good valid reasons and because they live in Israel its easier for them to say no.
I will give you the benefit of the doubt that you mean well, but
I agree totally, BO. Moreover, I would accept the conversion of any Moslem, Christian, Hindu, Buddhist, Shintoist, Wotanist, or even any Gaia worshipper who wants to join the Jewish nation and who serves the armed forces of the Jewish nation. For that matter, any man or woman who fights for Israel is head and shoulders above any would-be Jew from any other background.
And the only way to beat assimilation away from Judaism is to practice outright missionary work among non-Jews. Given enough time, not a few of the Christian Evangelists will get the idea that the authentic old time religion they seek is not Jesus at all but the God of the Jewish nation, as revealed to the generations of Avraham and as commanded by ha-shem to Moshe Rabbeinu and the Hebrew tribes at the foot of Mount Sinai, and as accurately described to this very day by Tora.
As for the US Navy in World War II, chances are that all those sailors got circumcised because they heard from somewhere they would be laid more often. Young soldiers, sailors, and airmen on active duty think a lot about going home to mom’s good apple pies, but they know they have to wait for ETS day, like everyone else. But getting screwed by the local and willing talent is something they can chase on any weekend.
(I was in the US Army for three years late in the Korean War; two of those years on active duty and one in the reserves.)
Arnold Harris
Mount Horeb WI
yes this is very good and no doubt the number of converts per year will increase. But there are thousands more who do not consider the option of converting (mostly men) because the standart of halakha is too high or because they fear their conversion wil not be good enough for some radical jews. I believe national unity is primordial and orrhodox conversions should be easier and/or better known
It does not surprize me, that thousands of Israeli soldiers want to become part of the majority, national religion. During World War II, the most commonly performed medical procedure in the US Navy was circumcision. Was that evidence of religious zeal? Or of trying to “look like everyone else” in the showers? I often hear comments by Jewish extremists, against the preaching activities of Christians and others in Israel, citing fears that the Jews there are in danger of being “assimilated”. Assimilated to what? to minority status? In Europe and America, there is a legitimate case for Jews to be concerned about assimilation; but in Israel, the reverse is the case: people want to become Jews there, by hook or by crook, because conversion is the route to acceptance.
Israeli Jews are converting to Judaism by the thousands. Good for them. Kol hakavod.