Matrilineality in Judaism
Thus, being Jewish through the paternal line typically necessitates conversion to Judaism to validate one's identity as a Jew in the fullest sense.
Historical evidence marshalled by Professor Shaye J. D. Cohen indicates that a change from a patrilineal to a matrilineal-based principle for the offspring of mixed unions of Jew and gentile took place in the 1st century (c. 10–70 CE) times.
[2] Yet, the precise date of the shifting from patrilineality to matrilineality is disputed, according to many modern academic opinions, it was likely instituted in either the early Tannaitic period (c. 10–70 CE) or in the time of Ezra (c. 460 BCE).
The Conservative Judaism movement actively reaches out to intermarried families by offering them opportunities for Jewish growth and enrichment.
[8] 69% of respondents to the Ratner Center survey agreed that they would regard personally as a Jew anyone who was raised Jewish—even if their mother was Gentile and their father was Jewish (Wertheimer, 59).
This 1983 resolution departed from the Reform Movement's previous position requiring formal conversion to Judaism for children without a Jewish mother.
Most notably, the Israel Movement for Reform and Progressive Judaism has rejected patrilineal descent and requires formal conversion for anyone without a Jewish mother.
[28] The Talmud adduces the law of matrilineal descent from Deuteronomy 7:3–4, which warns that as the consequence of intermarriage "he (the gentile father) will turn away your son (i.e., the child born to your Jewish daughter) from following Me".
[31][24] The stories of the Patriarchs and Matriarchs in Genesis are generally compatible with matrilineal descent, if one makes the assumption that Abraham's extended family was "Jewish": The stories are generally incompatible with patrilineal descent, in that a single father (Abraham or Isaac) had children, some of whom were considered the ancestors of Jews and others of non-Jews.
[50] Then in selling her late husband's land in Judah and the estates of her sons, Naomi set up the stipulation that her financial redeemer also marry her former daughter-in-law.
[56] Tamar, daughter of King David attempted to persuade her half-brother Amnon not to rape her, by suggesting that he could legitimately marry her instead.
Rashi (1040–1105 CE) attempted to resolve this problem by noting that Tamar's mother was a non-Israelite—Maacah, daughter of Talmai king of Geshur.
[66] The Hellenistic Jewish philosopher, Philo of Alexandria (c. 20 BCE–50 CE) calls the child of a Jew and a non-Jew a nothos (bastard), regardless of whether the non-Jewish parent is the father or the mother.
It was Eve (Hebrew Chavah) who was so called "because she was the mother of all living (chay)" (Gen. 3:20), whereas Adam was not named "Chayim" as "the father of all life".
It must also be remembered that Jewish law, unable to sanction or recognise a mixed marriage as religiously valid, technically regards the child as born out of wedlock and therefore legally having a mother only.
[72] Rabbi Louis Jacobs wrote in a review of an article by Professor Shaye J. D. Cohen on matrilineal descent in Judaism:There has been a development of the law in these instances from Biblical and pre-Rabbinic times.
The attempt to find reasons for the change, however, has proved to be elusive and is quite unnecessary since it can be explained entirely economically by the logic of the law itself and is typical of Rabbinic thinking in general.
Since the idea of conversion to Judaism did not yet exist, it never occurred to anyone to demand that the foreign woman undergo some ritual to indicate her acceptance of the religion of Israel.
[4]Cohen does admit one circumstance in which the Bible accepted the matrilineal status of children of an Israelite woman and non-Israelite man: a "matrilocal" marriage in which the husband moved to the wife's location and joined her clan, rather than the more typical reverse.
[4] In his review of Cohen's article, Rabbi Jacobs accepts that the law may have changed in the early Tannaitic period (c. 10–70 CE): "From the historical evidence marshalled by Professor Cohen it would appear that the change from the patrilineal to the matrilineal principle for the offspring of mixed unions of Jew and gentile took place in the early Tannaitic period.
"[3] Cohen, too, suggests another possible explanation: that rabbinic thought viewed maternal descent to be biologically fundamental, as shown by the Mishnah (though not the Tosefta or Babylonian Talmud), in which the species of animals for purposes of kilayim follows the mother,[77] and applied the same standard to humans as well.
[4] Cohen's position was also criticized by Robert Gordis, who questioned whether such a dramatic change (i.e. from patrilineality to matrilineality) would have been occurred without being mentioned in the extensive sources from the time.
Schiffman further asserted that a matrilineal principle likely already existed at the time of Ezra, due to the natural relationship between mother and child.
According to Schiffman, in the First Temple period those women who moved to Israelite territory effectively underwent "informal conversion" to join the Jewish people.
But upon the loss of national territory with the Babylonian captivity, Jewish status became an individual matter, and the matrilineal principle was established.
Studies have shown that American adults whose fathers are Jewish and whose mothers are not can readily identify lasting damage to their identity formation, family relations and faith due to patrilineal rejection, regardless of whether they were raised as Jews.
[83][84] It is not uncommon for interfaith families and their offspring rejected by matrilineal devotees to simultaneously suffer external discrimination on the basis of being Jews.
Researcher Sergio Della Pergola found that in English-speaking countries, "the mother is the dominant parent in transmitting a group identity to the children of [intermarriages].
"[85] Progressive writers Elana Maryles Sztokman and Jessica Fishman view matrilineality as an outdated patriarchal form of control over women's bodies.
