Recently, an acquaintance asked me, “Lisa Mller, are you Jewish or not?” I was born and raised Jewish and despite what anyone else ever thinks of me do not feel guilty about my heritage no matter what people might think. In fact, I’d like to encourage everyone to examine their own beliefs, ancestry and other personal commitments.
Now then, if someone asks me whether I am Jewish, the first question they would want to know is where I am when it comes to Jewish religion and if I subscribe to the Orthodox religion or the Reconstructionist movement. It seems like everyone believes that the only way to be a Jewish person and have a Jewish wedding and a Jewish child is to be strictly Jewish. And being Jewish according to the beliefs of the Jews is all about marrying someone of the same faith and height of Jewishness. This is simply not true. There is a huge difference in what the Orthodox believes and what our more modern, traditional, and liberal orthodox believe.
In order to marry a Jewish woman, you don’t necessarily have to be Jewish according to the Orthodox customs. You don’t even have to be Orthodox. Many Jews of the Reconstructionist persuasion are half Jewish, so there’s a possibility that you could marry someone with whom you don’t even share faith. Indeed, this is probably the most important question one might ask oneself when thinking about marriage and Jewishness.