The Bet Din chose to use the questions in the Moreh Derekh as the framework of our interviews with candidates for giyyur. Fairly early in the process, we realized that these questions needed to be modified. While these questions make sense in the context of the experience in the United States, many were not applicable in the different circumstances in which we found ourselves in rural Uganda. More often than not, our questions had to be translated into one of the local dialects – and explained – by the Abayudaya leader who was serving as the interpreter for the Bet Din. 1. Are you converting to Judaism by your own free will and volition, without coercion or undue external influence? We asked this question but in a shortened, modified form. 2. Do you renounce all beliefs you may once have had in any other religion? 3. In becoming Jewish, are you giving up all religious practices, holidays, and life cycle events such as baptism and communion that might be associated with your former religion? These two questions were completely irrelevant, in the overwhelming majority of cases. Few genuine “converts” – individuals who had been practicing, since childhood, a religion other than Judaism – came before the Bet Din. (Note: The process of admission into the community is very different in Uganda from what it is here. There, persons who want to become Abayudaya take on the practices of the community – they live as Abayudaya – until the leadership of the community feels that they are ready to be absorbed into the community. That is, the learning takes place by doing, and once the “lessons” – and the values – have been adopted, the individual is assimilated into the community.) We rephrased the questions as follows: Have you been Abayudaya all your life? Frequently, the response would be, “Yes, I have been Abayudaya all my life, and my father was Abayudaya, too.” Many individuals had grandparents and, in some cases, great-grandparents, who were or had been Abayudaya. In the few cases where the answer was “no,” we would ask the candidates about their former religion and what led them to become Abayudaya. We also asked them how long they had been associated with the Abayudaya Community and if they were still practicing any aspect of their previous religious heritage. 4. Do you accept the God of Israel as the one universal and indivisible God? 5. Do you commit yourself to observing the mitzvot of Judaism, as defined by Jewish law, to the best of your ability and knowledge? The first question was not relevant: a belief in God is a given in that community. Furthermore, both questions were too abstract to be grasped by most individuals. Our rephrasing: (4) What did your parents teach you about God and what God has done for the Abayudaya? (Answers included God is the Creator; God is the source of everything good in this world; God gave our ancestors the Land of Israel; God freed our ancestors from slavery; God saved us from Idi Amin.) (5) What did your parents teach you about what God expects of Abayudaya? (Kashrut and Shabbat observance were the answers given most frequently.) 6. Do you commit yourself to the further study of Judaism and to continued growth in the observance of its mitzvot? We asked this question, although we knew the answer: Yes, to both parts, but resources – books but even more so, teachers – are needed to enable to them to realize this commitment. 7. Will you support all those who seek to reestablish and revitalize our Jewish homeland by making the land and State of Israel a part of your life and the life of your family? Identification with Israel – the Land and the State – is very strong among the Abayudaya. There is also a great deal of awareness of current events affecting Israel. Many people dream of visiting Israel as Eretz HaAvot – the ancestral home – but understand that it is beyond their means. Few mentioned aliyah as an active, current consideration. Support of Israel, at this point, has to be moral; they have barely enough money to support themselves. 8. If blessed with children, do you pledge to raise them exclusively in the Jewish religion by providing them with a quality Jewish education and timely involvement in Jewish life-cycle events? The Abayudaya are as committed to the Jewish education of their children as they are to their own. The community has two schools of its own, which promote Jewish identity and knowledge through both formal and informal programs and activities. As for life cycle events, circumcision for males at the proper time is universal. Bar/Bat Mitzvah is virtually unheard of, although plans are underway to make it part of the community’s culture. 9. Do you commit yourself to associating with the Jewish community by joining a synagogue? Totally irrelevant: being Abayudaya means being part of a community of Jews. 10. Do you bind your personal destiny to the destiny of the Jewish people? Much too abstract. Our rephrasing: Until now, your community has been people who are like you and who live near you. Do you take us and Jews everywhere as your brothers and sisters? (In response, one woman fixed us with her gaze and responded, “No, the question is really, do you take us to be your brothers and sisters?) From a report to the Rabbinical Assembly, submitted on behalf of the Bet Din by Rabbi Howard Gorin | Back | Bet_Din.htmlshapeimage_2_link_0