[Avodah] Investigating converts' sincerity

[Zev Sero]

Michael Makovi wrote:
> With mamzerut, murder, adultery, etc., we often overlook the evidence.

No, we don't.

> In Makot, Rabbi Akiva says that he'd so thoroughly cross-examine the
> witnesses that the **Biblical** death penalty is wiped off the books.

And he was justly criticised for that.


> Why not do this with giyur?
> 
> Realize that we are cutting slack for mamzers, murderers, and
> adulters, even though there is no mitzvah to love any of them. By
> contrast, we DO have a mitzvah to love gerim. So if we ignore evidence
> for murderers, why not do the same for gerim whom we are commanded to
> love?

You're begging the question.  There is no commandment whatsoever to
love those who are *not* gerim.   And shutting our eyes and pretending
someone is a ger when he is not won't turn him into one.

 
> And yes, there is a Biblical requirement to accept only kosher gerim,
> but isn't there also a Biblical requirement to execute murderers and
> adulterers?

No, there is not.  There is a requirement to execute that small subset
of murderers and adulterers who can be convicted by the uncontroverted
testimony of two kosher witnesses.  If their testimony can be rejected
then there is no mitzvah at all to execute the criminal, and indeed we
are specifically told not to: "Neither the innocent nor the acquitted
shall you kill, for I will not acquit the wicked", i.e. don't worry
about the guilty getting away with it, because the job of doing
*actual* justice belongs to Hashem.  (However, if a murderer poses a
danger to public safety, i.e. he's likely to strike again, then we do
*not* rely on a miracle, and we arrange his death extrajudicially.)



> I'm not saying we should just let anyone at all in. But why not be a
> bit lax? That is, ask them if they'll be observant, but don't go over
> them with a fine-toothed comb. And certainly, don't investigate them
> after the fact; after the giyur, if someone comes with testimony that
> the ger ate pork, just don't listen to the witness.

After the fact, even if he served AZ as Shimshon's and Shlomo's wives
did, and "their secret is revealed", they are still Jewish.  This is
not a matter of being lax, it's simple halacha.  We are not mind-
readers, and so can't actually know what was in their minds at the
time of their kabalat ol mitzvot.  What is different about some of
the current cases is that the evidence of their deceit is overwhelming,
even more than in the cases of Shimshon's and Shlomo's wives; i.e. the
evidence is that they *never* intended to accept ol mitzvot, even for
a moment.  But that is a very difficult call to make, especially since
the Rambam uses the term "nitgaleh sodan" and still considers them
Jewish anyway.

-- 
Zev Sero                      The trouble with socialism is that you
zev at sero.name                 eventually run out of other people’s money
                                                     - Margaret Thatcher