Question: Must my fiance believe in God to convert to Judaism?
I am Jewish. My non-Jewish fiance is considering converting to Judaism. One of his reservations is that he is not certain he believes in "God." Does conversion to Judaism make sense for someone with great respect for the religion, but who is not sure he believes in a God?
Answer: Mazal tov on your engagement. You ask about the possibility of your non-Jewish fiance converting to Judaism despite the fact that "he is not certain he believes in 'God.'" I like the way you put the word "God" in quotes. Clearly, people don't all agree on what they mean when they use the word "God." We don't even all agree on what we mean when we say that a person "believes in" God.
The fact is, there is no way any thoughtful person can be certain about God, since understanding God is beyond human ability. Uncertainty, at some level, is a necessary part of the Jewish attitude about God.
Too often, I think, people who say that they do not believe in God, are talking about a God in which no thoughtful adult would believe. They mean that they do not believe in the tooth fairy God - the supernatural being who lives in the clouds and dispenses favor to his favorites. Superman with a beard.
That is not the God in which Jewish tradition believes, either. Maimonides, the great medieval philosopher known as the Rambam, taught that God was the universal "active intellect" - perfect thought thinking itself. The Rambam states that it is an error to believe that God has any corporeal aspect, or even to compare God to anything that does exist. In addition to the Rambam's writings, Jewish tradition contains many other images to make God sensible to human understanding, all varied and thoughtful and impossible to convey in just a few words.
Uncertainty about God should be no impediment for your fiance to convert to Judaism if he is actively interested in converting. I would recommend that you and he find a congregation and a rabbi with whom you are comfortable to discuss the possibilities.
Best wishes,
Rabbi Jeffrey W. Goldwasser
