Reply to PSA: Jews are a racial group

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[quote=Anonymous]The law of return was designed to, more or less, match the halachic definition of Jewishness, which  includes Jews by conversion as well as people with one Jewish mother.  And expanded a bit,  immediatley post holocaust, to include anyone the Nazis would call a Jew (thus the one grandparent clause)  At that time most "secular Jews" really WERE culturally very Jewish (typically Yiddish speakers).  Few people were rushing to claim Jewishness, and the economic situation was such few were interested in coming to Israel as Jews who weren't.  Arabs were distinct from ariving Jews in their language, customs and self identification.   At the time a secular definition of Jewishness might have worked   (based on language and national identification) but the religious parties would have rejected it.

Today Israel would have to deal with how a new definition would play out with Hebrew speaking Circassians, guest workers from Thailand, American Jews (like some in this thread) with no real cultural OR religious Jewishness,  etc. That does not mean the Law of Return should not be changed - personally I think limiting the immigration rights of "Jews" who have no knowledge of Jewish languages or culture on the one hand, and who are not actually being persecuted on the other hand, would not be a bad thing - though I am not sure it would end the complaints of those who call the Law racist.  I might also add a form of secular conversion, that would allow someone with a strong cultural identification with the Jewish people (again, including language, culture AND national identification) to become Jewish even if they don't believe in G-d - though that could also have complications.  [/quote]

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