[Avodah] Chiyuv l'kabel gerim

[Yosef Gavriel Bechhofer]

I am not looking for sources. This is deliberate on my part. This is so 
much /seichel ha'yashar/ that I don't want to demean it by an appeal to 
sources. That being said, and in that vein:

Daniel Eidensohn wrote:
> You are making an assertion based upon your sevora. You haven't brought
> any sources that state what you seem to be such an obvious position.
>
>   
See above.
Your pshat in Rashi is strained. In now way does Rash indicate that he 
is talking about all geirim, or geirin in general.

> It is important to note that there is a conflation of two issues here. 
> Accepting the convert and the historical, sociological and psychological 
> reality that most of the time the convert  is not successful and is 
> detrimental to the Jewish people.
>
>   
To me that seems paradoxical.
> On the one hand there is clearly an advantage to increase the ranks of 
> those who truly serve G-d through Torah. However the statements I have 
> cited deal with the reality that our Sages throughout the ages have 
> experienced that  there is a significant downside to converting someone 
> who is not the ideal - and that the typical convert is far from ideal. 
> Thus we have gedolim such as the Achiezer and Rav Moshe Feinstein who 
> say they have nothing to do with converting people because of the high 
> failure rate.
>
>   
I don't say /"there is clearly an advantage to increase the ranks of 
those who truly serve G-d through Torah."/ I am not sure that is 
necessarily true. What I am saying is that as /gomlei chasadim/ we have 
an obligation to accept a person who sincerely and truly wants to be 
/davek/ in Hashem and in Torah to the ultimate extent.
> Consequently on the ideal level I would agree with you. However on the 
> day to day level of reality - most of the time the acceptance of geirim 
> is in fact detrimental to the Jewish people. That is why various 
> communities (e.g., Syrian) have banned the acceptance of geirim.
>
>   
To my opinion, the Syrian practice is vile. The only possible 
justification for it is that they say it is not their obligation,as a 
minority in a sea of Ashkenazim, to be the ones that are mekkabel the Gerim.
> There is a parallel discussion in Chazal as to whether it is better to 
> be born or not (Eiruvin 13b; Berachos 17a). For most people (and souls) 
> the answer is no.
>   
But once they are here, if /pishpush u'mishmush b'ma'aseihem/ leads them 
to the inevitable conclusion, then...
See above.

KT,
YGB
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