Rabbi Shlomo Dichovsky serves as the director-general of the nation’s rabbinical court system. He is a senior dayan and has served on the Rabbinical Supreme Court. Israel Radio asked the rav to comment on last week’s High Court ruling supporting the giyur of the former head of the state’s Conversion Authority, Rabbi Chaim Druckman.
The rav stated that he and Rav Sherman held a long discussion regarding one’s ability to retroactively pasul one’s conversion if one ceases to be shomer Shabbos at some point in one’s life. Rabbi Dichovsky began by explaining all legitimate batei din are of the same opinion, that giyur is contingent on one accepting Ohl Torah U’Mitzvos. That said, he added that he feels if one stops being shomer Shabbos in 2, 5, or 20 years after giyur, the beis din cannot retroactively cancel giyur since one cannot know what kavana one had when one went to mikve. Rabbi Sherman feels the beis din can and must retroactively pasul one’s giyur. This is the core of the dispute which is obviously significantly more complicated.
Regarding the High Court’s ruling, Rav Dichovsky stressed the court did not address the giyur or Halacha, simply the fact that it gives validity to the state’s giyur and the man who stood at the helm. He feels however the High Court was deficient in three areas, that it did not invite Rabbi Druckman to explain his point of view; (2) the court did not invite any of the converts who were ruled not Jewish by Rabbi Sherman, and (3) the case that prompted the entire matter was not a giyur issue but a divorce case before the Rabbinate that involved a former convert.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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2 Responses
The High Court doesn’t hold “trials” with witnesses and cross-examinations like lower courts. It hears petitions from citizens and organizations who think governmental or government-supervised entities are misbehaving. This petition concerned Rabbi Sherman’s beis din. That’s why the Court didn’t summon the head of the treif “conversion authority or any of the phony “geirim.” Oy lonu.
Dear So called loyal jew
Your ignorance is evident and your screen name is so wrong that it proves that we,klal Yisroel, are in trouble if you are a loyal jew. You need to klap al chait for so long that your hand will fall off before you receive kapparah from Hashem. Rav Druckmn is an Ohav yisroel as apposed to you. He loves all Yiden, yes even you.
You need to look at all the good that Rav Druckman has done and then maybe you can open your rotten mouth. He has more das Torah in his little pinky toe then you will ever have in your whole body.