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| 1887 Schechter edition of Avot deRabi Natan. |
INTRODUCTION:
It is a well-known fact that Jews do
not proselytise or actively try to convert non-Jews to Judaism. It is also
well-known how difficult the process of conversion to Judaism is. But was this always
the case?
In this article, we shall explore
historical examples of apparent active and even forceful conversions to
Judaism, and also look at the possibility of there being some textual precedent
for such a phenomenon.
PART 1.
THE JEWS OF ARABIA:
In a previous
article, we looked at the fascinating story of the Jews of
Arabia (present-day Saudi Arabia). A brief overview follows:
Jews had lived in Arabia since biblical times and this was
no small community. According to Hagai Mazuz:
