What is a Jew?

Whenever I am asked the question "What are you?" my first response is "I'm a mutt." Reason being, I like most Americans have mixed blood.

America the melting pot, right?

I don't know many people today who can claim being of one, and only one ethnicity. In fact I am proud of every bit of my genetic make up. It makes me unique and I like to think special.

Ok by now you may be wondering what I am.

Welsh - Irish - Scottish - Jewish

I think I have most of the "ish's" covered. Sorry bad joke, but I couldn't resist and yes for the rest of you I know there are more "ish's". Let's carry on shall we?

The last one up there.....you know which one I am talking about. Ok hence the title ...duh! I take more crap for this one than any of them.

First response usually, and my all time fav. "That's a religion, it's not ethnic." OH MY GOD!!! I'm really sick of hearing that one. First of all Judaism is the religious term. It gets more complicated after that, it leaves me even confused after researching the subject. More of that later, I'm getting ahead of myself.

First to quote my all time favorite Wikipedia:

Ethnicity - An important means through which people can identify themselves. A fundamental factor in human life.

Wow, that's pretty powerful, I kid you not.

I personally think my fascination and determination in finding out my ethnic background stems from the fact that my mother is adopted. I always kind of felt half there, ya know. No worries, my mother had wonderful adoptive parents who loved her and although they have passed on will always be my grandparents. That's another story altogether and I would love to tell you about it sometime.

My mother could never understand my need to know "Who I was" and when I found out something why I would cling on to this knowledge like a life preserver, saving me from sinking into what I would call a sea of nothingness.

As a teen she would just smile at my delight in finding new facts and pacify me with any little tidbits she found. I remember as an adult she looked at me on one occasion and said "I'm the one adopted not you. Why do you feel incomplete. You know who your mother and father are." I so politely informed her that yes she was the one adopted but she was also my mother so it effected me as well because I only knew half of who I was. She was stunned and admitted she had never thought of how her being adopted effected me. We have found out who her birth parents were and there you will find the Welsh, Irish and Scottish lines.

My Grandmother, my fathers mother, was 100% Jew. Coming from both parents who came from large Jewish families. The story gets a little blurry from here.

My Great Grandmother, and I say this proudly, was one of the first women in our area who attended a University or College. She studied Art. While my great grandfather was in med school. When they met and decided to marry his family didn't approve. Apparently my great grandmother was of a different denomination and they did not accept that denomination. When they married his family disowned him. He never saw or spoke to his family again, and had to drop out of school.

What's the problem? They were both Jews, both coming from generations upon generations of Jews. Well the problem is the fact that Jews are a very proud race, they protect their bloodlines and traditions. It's hard to understand, especially the way I was raised, to think of never speaking to my parents or even my child again just because I didn't approve of the choices they made. Seems pretty harsh.

I do believe that because of what happened to my great grandparents they chose not to raise their children under these same principles.They raised them to make their own choices and not as Jews. In fact my grandmother had no idea she was Jewish on both sides until she was well into her years.

In my ethnic background, the most prominent part is Jew. So why wouldn't I be proud and curious about it. I was never ashamed of it. I embraced it. It made me feel whole and complete. My children as well have accepted and latched on to their heritage. It is our heritage. It is the biggest part of the history of our ancestors, our family. The trials and tribulations this race had to endure, the prosecution and genocide they lived through. Why wouldn't I be proud to have their blood running through my veins.

Now the buzz kill !!

Depending on who you ask, they may or may not consider me a Jew.

Traditional belief - A person born to a Jewish mother or converts to Judaism.

The traditional belief follows the matrilineal line (mothers line) which would mean all of my grandmothers 9 children are Jews, but only her 3 daughters children are considered Jews. So part of my cousins would be Jews and the other part would not even though we have the same blood flowing through our veins. It would also mean that someone with no Jewish blood could convert to Judaism and be considered more Jew than I. Crazy huh?

Then as you research further it kind of contradicts itself by saying "People believing in the principles and practices o Judaism does not make them a Jew" and "People born Jewish do not lose their status because they cease to be observant Jews, even if they adopt another religion." Again this is traditional belief and dates back forever ago. But times they are changing. as well as some of the old beliefs.

Digging a little deeper you find other denominations that believe the patrilineal line (fathers line) is dominate. That would mean the other half of my family is now Jewish.

In America Reform Jews and Liberal Jews accept a child of one Jewish parent whether it's father or mother as long as it's raised Jewish.

Going even deeper you find Secular Jews view theirs as a Jewish identity and a matter of culture, heritage, nationality or ethnicity.

You also have the North American Reform and British Liberal movements which states children born of just one Jewish parent regardless if it's mother or father is Jewish and can claim Jewish identity.

Confused yet?

Some may consider me a half-Jew or part-Jew. These terms came to light some time ago in the U.S. because intermarriage is so common. According to wikipedia the half-Jew or part-Jew population is so large it rivals that of the Jewish population in the United States. As well it describes the half-Jew or part-Jew as ethnic Jewry.

So by this point the more I read the more confused I get, but I think I'm starting to see a little light at the end of the tunnel. So I read on.

Ethnic Jew- A term generally used to describe a person of Jewish parentage and background who does not necessarily actively practice Judaism. Also referred to as a non-religious Jew. Is that me?

If you look up the Israeli immigration laws it states they accept people for citizenship if you have proven documentation that ANY grandparent, not just maternal, was Jewish.

Why? Because he or she has an ethnically Jewish connection, and because this same degree of connection was sufficient enough to be persecuted as a Jew by the Nazis.

So if the Nazis can consider sufficient evidence of me being a Jew, why can't the Jews consider me a Jew? I don't understand.

Also for those people who still believe it's still just a religion, in 1997 and 2007 studies were done and proved that there was common genetic markers in Jewish bloodlines.

Ok all of this said and done were do I fit in? Well the way I see it is, my ancestors were Jews and their blood flows in my veins as well as my children's. So yes I consider myself a Jew.

A non-religious ethnic half jew!!! Whew say that three times fast!!!

Hope you enjoyed my little rant, and please let me know what you think !!!

* By the way my research on the subject was in Wikipedia, the Holocaust Museum and the Virtual Jewish Library.