[Avodah] Vayichad Yisro - Disparaging Non-Jews

[Zev Sero via Avodah]

On 02/10/2016 02:20 PM, Micha Berger wrote:
> On Wed, Feb 10, 2016 at 01:41:24PM -0500, Zev Sero via Avodah wrote:
> : None of this is necessary, since the halacha is clear that someone
> : whose ancestors were all gerim is a ger, even if the family has been
> : Jewish for centuries.
>
> Of course knowing what chumash, Nakh, and the gemara mean is necessary.
> And they seem to imply to me that the Qeini were a tribe of geirei toshav,
> of whom Tzipporah, Rachav and Ya'el converted.

Why do you think they imply that, rather than that they were a tribe
of gerei toshav, for generations.  That Yael was a giyores doesn't
mean that she converted.

> As to whether someone whose ancestors are all geirim is a geir, that
> appears to be the SA's position WRT who may marry a mamzer. And we
> are machmir in not letting her marry a kohein (AhS 7:21) but the
> Pischei Teshuvah 4:3 says that bedi'eved, staying married is the
> better choice. Not only do we not recommend a gett, we disrecommend
> it.

Yes, because the Torah doesn't forbid a giyores, it forbids a zonah,
which we understand to include anyone not born Jewish.  A giyores who
was born Jewish isn't what the Torah meant by "zonah".

> When it comes to serarah, the NbY (qama CM 1) says that Rechav'am was
> not barred as a ben geirim.

Why should he have been?  His father was a Yisrael.


> Meanwhile, I found an answer to the question in the OP -- Rambam,
> Issurei Bi'ah 15:8 does not refer to 10 generations.

Of course not.  I don't recall anyone suggesting that it did.
I'm not aware of *any* halacha that uses a boundary of 10 generations.


-- 
Zev Sero               All around myself I will wave the green willow
zev at sero.name          The myrtle and the palm and the citron for a week
                And if anyone should ask me the reason why I'm doing that
                I'll say "It's a Jewish thing; if you have a few minutes
                I'll explain it to you".