Why Judaism? This week's parisher raises a question that goes to the heart of Judaism,

but which was not asked for many centuries, until raised by great Spanish scholar of the 15th century,

Rabbi Isaac Arama. Moses is almost at the end of his life. The people are about to cross

the Jordan and enter the

promised land. Moses knows he must do one thing more before he dies. He must renew the covenant

between the people and God. Their parents had entered into that commitment almost 40 years before

when they stood at Mount Sinai and said we will do and obey all that God has declared Nasevan Ishma.

But now Moses has to ensure that the next generation and all future generations will be bound by it.

He wanted nobody to be able to say God made a covenant with my ancestors, but not with me.

I didn't give my consent. I wasn't there. I'm not

bound. And that is why Moses says, it is not with you alone that I'm making this covenant,

but with whoever is standing here with us today before the Lord of God, and Etasha and Nenipo,

with whoever is not here with us today.

Whoever is not here obviously cannot mean the Israelites who were alive at the time,

who were somewhere else, because the entire nation was present.

It means generations not yet born.

And that is why the Gemara says that we are all Mushpa and Omeid Mehar Sinai foresworn from Sinai.

Hence, one of the most fundamental facts about Judaism, converts accepted, we do not choose to be Jews.

We are born as Jews.

We become legal adults subject to the commands at the age of 12 for girls, 13 for boys, but we are part of the covenant from birth. A but or bar mitzvah is not a confirmation. It involves no voluntary acceptance of Jewish identity. That choice took place more than 3,000 years ago when Moses said,

it is not with you alone that I am making this sworn commandment,

but with whoever is not here with us today, meaning all future generations.

...