I started talking about the subject of conversion the other day. Many religions have some sort of an "initiation" ritual or conversion - Judaism is no different. When a couple adopts a child who is not born to Jewish birth parents, the topic of converison comes up. So why is this an issue at all? Why do people feel so strongly one way or another? And at what point does this sticky subject get, well, sticky?

It comes down to the question of "Who's a Jew?" and the fact that we Jews can't seem to get to a universal agreement that every movement is okay with. The more traditional movements - the Orthodox and the Conservative - both feel that in order for a person to be Jewish, s/he has to be born to a Jewish mother, or go through a proper conversion (including immersion in a ritual bath). The other movements - Reform, Reconstructionist, and the smaller groups - accept patrilineal descent (where only the father is Jewish, but not necessarily the mother) or the individual needs to be raised Jewish. Often conversion is involved but is not necessary.

Where does it get sticky? Well, for starters, the Orthodox will only accept their own conversions as valid. The Conservative movement will generally accept their conversions, Orthodox conversions, but generally not those of the other movements. Additionally, a person raised Jewish in the Reform movement is considered a full-fledged member of the tribe, may have gone to Hebrew School, became a Bar/ Bat Mitzvah, and when asked their religion would only reply "Jewish." But if that individual was born to a Jewish father but not a Jewish mother, or was adopted and did not receive a proper conversion, this individual may run into sticky situations later in life, in terms of who will recognize his/ her status as a Jew.