First Karaite Jewish Conversions in Over 500 Years

By: Nehemia Gordon

A conversion for the ages

On July 31, 2007 we came one step closer to the final redemption. On this historic day about 100 people gathered at the Karaite Jewish synagogue in Daly City, California for the first Karaite Jewish "Conversion Ceremony" in over 500 years. The Tanach is very clear that Gentiles can enter into the covenant of Israel as full-fledged Israelites (Exodus 12:43-49; Isaiah 56:1-8). However, in the Middle Ages most Karaite Jews lived under Islamic rule and were forbidden
by their Gentile captors to perform conversions under penalty of death.

Over the centuries this created a mentality that the biblical concept of conversion was - much like animal sacrifices - something that could only be restored with the Final Redemption. The same mentality kept Jews for many centuries from returning to the Land of Israel and restoring the Hebrew language. In the 19th century the Hebrew language was restored and in the 20th century we returned en masse to our ancestral Land. We can now add to these miraculous events the restoration of the biblical institution of conversion.

The 14 Gentiles who participated in the conversion ceremony came from as far away as the Czech Republic and Australia. All had one thing in common: a
burning desire to worship Yehovah and be a part of his chosen people
Israel. Many had tried converting to Judaism through Orthodox Rabbanism only to be confronted with the bizarre doctrine that the Almighty revealed two Torahs to the Children of Israel, one written and one oral. When they asked where the Oral Torah was mentioned in Scripture they were warned that such questions were dangerous. This led to further investigation and eventually to Karaite Judaism.

For many years the Karaite Jewish community did not formally accept Gentile converts, even though traditional Karaite Jewish prayers include a public benediction for the "righteous sojourners", an ancient Hebrew phrase for what today we call "converts". A few years ago the Karaite Jewish community made a decision that it was time to put one more nail in the coffin of the Exile by accepting converts in accordance with the Tanach. The Torah teaches us that the "sojourner" - that is, the Gentile who becomes circumcised and enters the
covenant - "becomes as a native-born of the land" (Exodus 12:48). The
Torah goes on to teach us that "there shall be one Torah for the native-born and the sojourner who sojourns among you" (Exodus 12:49). The prophet Isaiah teaches us that it is Yehovah himself who gathers in Gentiles into the covenant of Israel in the very same way which he gathers the dispersed of Israel from the four corners of the earth (Isaiah 56:8).

A reporter from the San Francisco Jewish Bulletin covered the Conversion Ceremony event in Daly City, California and his article appeared as this weeks cover story. There are a few minor inaccuracies in the article. For example, Karaite Jews do not refrain from using lights on the Sabbath and in the conversion ceremony the converts swore fealty to the God of Israel and the People of Israel (not to Karaite Judaism). Despite these minor issues the article is balanced and objective. The article is available online at:

http://www.jewishsf.com/content/2-0-/module/displaystory/story_id/33163/format/html/displaystory.html

About The Author:

For more information on the Karaite understanding of conversion, please see my audio study at: www.karaitejudaism.org/talks.htm

Articles on Judaism: http://www.whatsjew.com/articles/

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