London Beth Din facts for kids
The London Beth Din (LBD) is a special Jewish court in London, England. It serves the Ashkenazi community, which is a large group of Jewish people from Eastern and Central Europe. The LBD is part of the United Synagogue, the biggest group of Ashkenazi synagogues in London.
This court is like the main religious guide for Ashkenazi Jews in many Commonwealth countries. Other Jewish courts across Europe also ask the LBD for advice on religious law. The current head of the London Beth Din is Dayan Menachem Gelley. He joined the court in 1993 and became its leader in 2014.
What the London Beth Din Does
The London Beth Din has been a central religious authority in Britain since the early 1700s. Many important Rabbis have led it over the years, including Tevele Schiff and Yehezkel Abramsky.
The LBD is in charge of KLBD, which is the largest organization in Europe that checks if food is kosher. Kosher food follows Jewish dietary laws. Rabbi Jeremy Conway leads this part of their work.
The Beth Din also helps with other important things for the Jewish community. This includes researching family histories, helping with Jewish divorces, and settling disagreements between people using Jewish law.
Becoming Jewish: Conversions
The London Beth Din helps people who want to become Jewish through a process called conversion. This program usually takes about two to three years, but sometimes it can take longer. Each year, the Beth Din helps about 35 people from all over the UK convert. Other Jewish courts, like the one in Manchester, send their converts to the LBD for final approval.
The conversion process involves private lessons with approved teachers. Candidates also need to live with an approved Jewish family for six months. They are expected to pay for this stay. It is also important for them to live close enough to an Orthodox Jewish community so they can walk to synagogue and be part of the community.
The Beth Din believes that people who want to convert must be ready to follow all the Jewish commandments. Sometimes, the conversion process might be stopped if the person is not fully committed. In London, the Orthodox Jewish community is very connected. This means that if someone does not go through the LBD for conversion, it could affect their family, like not being able to attend a Jewish school. There is another way to convert in London through the Spanish and Portuguese Jewish community, which is a different group of Jewish people.
