Mordechai Miller

This chapter provides a presentation and analysis of medieval philosophic and kabbalistic attitudes toward non-Jews and toward converts and the reflection of a central Zoharic attitude in one influential contemporary Orthodox position. Our question resolves itself to how one defines a Jew in theological terms. In order to sharpen our discussion in the confines allowed for this chapter, we focus on the borderline case of conversion. We examine the views of Judah Halevi, Maimonides, Zohar and Rabbi Y. Ginsburgh (born 1944).