What Does It Take to Become a Jew? The Role of the Beit Din

Our Rabbis taught: ‘And judge righteously between a man and his brother, and the proselyte that is with him’ (Deuteronomy 1:16) ; from this text did R. Judah deduce that a man who becomes a proselyte in the presence of a Beth din is deemed to be a proper proselyte; but he who does so privately is no proselyte.

Said Rabbi Hiyya bar Aba, said Rabbi Jochanan: A convert requires three, since the word “mishpat – judgment” (Numbers 15:16) is written regarding it.

Rabbah stated: It happened at the court of R. Hiyya b. Rabbi — (and R. Joseph taught: R. Oshaia b. Rabbi; and R. Safra taught: R. Oshaia b. Hiyya) — that there came before him a proselyte who had been circumcised but had not performed the ablution. The Rabbi told him, ‘Wait here until tomorrow when we shall arrange for your ablution’. From this incident three rulings may be deduced. It may be inferred that the initiation of a proselyte requires the presence of three men; and it may be inferred that a man is not a proper proselyte unless he had been circumcised and had also performed the prescribed ablution; and it may also be inferred that the ablution of a proselyte may not take place during the night.

All aspects of conversion, be it informing the convert of the commandments in order to receive them, circumcision or ritual immersion require three who are capable of judging, and must be during the day. However, this refers to ab initio (beforehand) [requirements], but after the fact, if he had been circumcised and immersed before two or at night, even if the immersion was for a purpose other than conversion, for instance a man for an emission or woman who immersed herself after menstruation, the person would be a convert and permitted to marry. However, the acceptance of the commandments is impeded if it is not done during the day and with three. Rabbi Isaac Alfasi and Maimonides, however, hold that even after the fact if immersion or the circumcision was done before two or at night, it impedes [the conversion] and the convert is prohibited to marry, but if such a convert does marry a Jewish woman and he sires a son from her, we do not render the son not Jewish.

Since the immersion of a convert requires a court of three, one should not do the immersion on Shabbat or Yom Tov nor at night. But if he immersed at night, he is a convert.

Our Rabbis taught: A certain heathen once came before Shammai and asked him, ‘How many Toroth have you?’ ‘Two,’ he replied: ‘the Written Torah and the Oral Torah.’⁷ ‘I believe you with respect to the Written, but not with respect to the Oral Torah; make me a proselyte on condition that you teach me the Written Torah [only]. [But] he scolded and repulsed him in anger. When he went before Hillel, he accepted him as a proselyte. On the first day, he taught him, Alef, beth, gimmel, daleth; the following day he reversed [them] to him. ‘But yesterday you did not teach them to me thus,’ he protested. ‘Must you then not rely upon me? Then rely upon me with respect to the Oral [Torah] too.’

On another occasion it happened that a certain heathen came before Shammai and said to him, ‘Make me a proselyte, on condition that you teach me the whole Torah while I stand on one foot.’ Thereupon he repulsed him with the builder’s cubit which was in his hand. When he went before Hillel, he said to him, ‘What is hateful to you, do not to your neighbour: that is the whole Torah, while the rest is the commentary thereof; go and learn it.’

On another occasion it happened that a certain heathen was passing behind a Beth Hamidrash, when he heard the voice of a teacher reciting, And these are the garments which they shall make; a breastplate, and an ephod. Said he, ‘For whom are these?’ ‘For the High Priest,’ he was told. Then said that heathen to himself, ‘I will go and become a proselyte, that I may be appointed a High Priest.’ So he went before Shammai and said to him, ‘Make me a proselyte on condition that you appoint me a High Priest.’ But he repulsed him with the builder’s cubit which was in his hand. He then went before Hillel, who made him a proselyte. Said he to him, ‘Can any man be made a king but he who knows the arts of government? Do you go and study the arts of government!’ He went and read. When he came to, and the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death, he asked him, ‘To whom does this verse apply?’ ‘Even to David King, of Israel,’ was the answer. Thereupon that proselyte reasoned within himself a fortiori: if Israel, who are called sons of the Omnipresent, and who in His love for them He designated them, Israel is my son, my firstborn, yet it is written of them, ‘and the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death’: how much more so a mere proselyte, who comes with his staff and wallet! Then he went before Shammai and said to him. ‘Am I then eligible to be a High Priest; is it not written in the Torah, ‘and the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death?’ He went before Hillel and said to him, ‘O gentle Hillel; blessings rest on thy head for bringing me under the wings of the Shechinah!’ Sometime later the three met in one place; said they, Shammai’s impatience sought to drive us from the world, but Hillel’s gentleness brought us under the wings of the Shechinah.

And from here there is to learn: Everything is according the discretion the court (literally: according to the sight of the court)