“What are we, chopped liver?”
That was Rabbi Steve Vale’s halfway serious response when asked about his expansive — some might call it proselytizing — campaign to get non-Jews in Solano County interested in Judaism.
Vale, the spiritual leader of the 30-family Congregation HaMakom in Vacaville, is on a mission to get more congregants to join his synagogue. But he’s doing it in an unlikely fashion. He’s hoping non-Jews will find Judaism so appealing that they’ll convert.
“If you’re not a member of a church and you’re not on a fixed spiritual path we want you to be there,” says his flier, referring to an introductory class he will be teaching later this month. The opening class will feature a panel of several Jews-by-choice.
In a telephone interview, Vale stressed that he was not going door to door. And he was not standing on street corners. Yet he was having the flier translated into Spanish, to reach Latinos who are lapsed Catholics and who might be receptive to another faith, and more specifically, to Judaism.
“There are a lot of people out there who are spiritually seeking, and if we don’t offer this, they’ll go somewhere else,” he said.
Vale said there were many precedents for Jews proselytizing, including in biblical times, but they stopped for two reasons: one, Jews were killed for doing so, and two, they were often forced to convert themselves.
He further made the point that as a rabbi, he’s observed that his most dedicated congregants are often those who have chosen Judaism, not those who were born into it.
“I want to do this out of necessity and because of the moral, spiritual value, but I want to do it with people who are serious about Judaism,” he said. “And frankly, converts are often the ones who are. They come in, and they inspire other people into being more Jewish.”
Another reason, Vale said, is simply that outsiders fear what they do not know.
“If we let [people] in and see the beauty of our culture, even if they don’t convert, but if they come and learn and feel welcome and realize we’re not a closed club, this will cut down on anti-Semitic feelings.”
Vale admitted that he’s doing this for selfish reasons as well. His congregation could use more members. Vale said that he called a meeting to explain his decision to step up his outreach efforts a bit, and there were a few members who were hesitant that his methods might be too strong.
They discussed it in depth, and Vale provided some biblical sources on the topic, until everyone was satisfied that he was not in violation of Jewish law.
“There may be some who still feel uncomfortable,” he acknowledged. “Even I feel a little uncomfortable, because it’s a little bit new, but I think it’s the right thing to do. It’s not really right if we have something we believe is good, not to tell people about it.”
And his colleagues seem to be in agreement. Rabbi Daniel Pressman of Congregation Beth David has been advertising an annual Introduction to Judaism class in the San Jose Mercury News. And while it’s not as strongly worded as Vale’s ads, Pressman said the ads had brought in only good responses.
“Especially in the Bay Area, there are so many people with no religious affiliation and yet many have yearnings to have some kind of connection, to have a community,” said Pressman. “We need to let people know that this is an option.”
Rabbi Mark Bloom of Temple Beth Abraham in Oakland, said while he didn’t have quite the same level of “chutzpah” as Vale, he commended him for his approach.
“I’m not in favor of mass conversions, but I think it’s great to open it up to anyone who’s interested, and doing it in Spanish is an amazing step,” said Bloom. “I admire his courage. I think it’s terrific.”
Congregation HaMakom’s panel on “Choosing Judaism” will be at 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 16 at the Saturday Club, 125 W. Kendal, Vacaville. Information: (707) 451-9140 or email [email protected].