Following the High Court decision to register fictitious
converts and the Chief Rabbinate's efforts to monopolize
religious services in Israel, particularly conversion, the
Vaad HaRabbonim LeInyonei Giyur founded by the late HaRav
Kreiswirth is reminding the public of a letter written by the
Brisker Rov in 5716 (1956): "The Conservatives' evil ways are
already apparent and well known to all. Though much like
their fellow heretics in the Reform Movement, they pose a
greater danger because they are more involved in religious
affairs and are more likely to mislead amei ho'oretz,
who do not know their right from their left."
In recent years the Chief Rabbinate of Israel has opened a
network of specialized conversion botei din that
perform wholesale conversions without confirming whether the
candidate has earnest intentions to observe Torah and
mitzvos. Such conversions have the same status as
Conservative and Reform "conversions," according to the
gedolei haposkim, but since they are labeled
"Orthodox" they actually pose a greater threat.
Ironically the rabbonim responsible for these assembly-line
conversions denounce the Reform and Conservative movements,
but continue to work in cooperation with them. There are
4,500 students enrolled in 254 classes operating under the
Joint Conversion Institute sponsored by the Jewish Agency and
that include Conservative and Reform representatives.
Although banned by maranan verabonon the Israeli Chief
Rabbinical Council, the Israeli Chief Rabbinate has joined
forces with them and the specialized conversion botei
din work with them in close cooperation.
In an announcement published recently in the Mafdal daily
Hatsofe, Rabbi Chaim Druckman, one of the forerunners
of the Joint Institutes, says he continues to work with them
and claims he has the support of certain rabbonim--although
rabbonim from across the spectrum prohibit the Joint
Institutes outright. Botei din that convert Joint
Institutes candidates based on knowledge of Judaism alone,
without attention to intention to observe Judaism, receive
all of the necessary certificates and documentation from the
Israeli Chief Rabbinate and the Ministry of Religious
Affairs.
The Vaad warns that the battle against conversions performed
in specialized conversion botei din must continue
unabated since most of the "converts" never make any
commitment to Torah and mitzvos, rendering the conversion as
invalid as Conservative conversions, even
bedi'eved.
The Vaad says it has data indicating the Conservatives
perform less than 100 "conversions" per year while the
specialized botei din perform over 2,000 fake
conversions per year, the vast majority of which have no
halachic value whatsoever, although they claim to be done in
accordance with halochoh. The Vaad says the battle should be
waged over both the quality and the quantity of these
conversions.
Despite media reports that the IDF Rabbinate plans to perform
large-scale conversions for every soldier who requests to
convert, the Vaad notes that at present no more than a few
hundred conversions are performed annually. This also poses a
potential threat since these conversions are officially
recognized by the Chief Rabbinate and the Religious Affairs
Ministry.
According to the Vaad spokesman maranan verabonon say
the military conversion system should by dismantled and the
conversion process--from the preparation through the final
conversion process--should vested only with established
botei din composed by talmidei chachomim with
yiras Shomayim.
