Question?

This is my personal opinion ONLY - but I feel that if he is part of your family, you should teach him your faith. If his Birthmother wanted him raised Jewish, she would have made placement arrangements accordingly. I hope you find an answer that works for your family! Congratulations on the finalization of your adoption!

Technically, your son is considered Jewish by the Jewish community. It doesn't matter whether he is circumcised or not. He was born to a Jewish woman, and he was never converted to another religion. However, you will find it next to impossible to raise a child as Jewish, if you do not practice Judaism in your home. Judaism is much more of a "home" religion than a "synagogue" religion. For example, it is full of ceremonies that take place at home, such as the lighting of Sabbath and holiday candles, the blessings over food, and so on. I would suggest a couple of other options. The easiest option for you is NOT to have your child baptized or christened or sent to Christian Sunday school, and NOT to give your child a brit milah (ritual circumcision), but to teach him about both Judaism and Christianity as he grows up. (You may, if you wish, give him a non-ritual circumcision, if most of the males in your family are circumcised, but that is up to you.) Then, when he reaches adulthood, you can encourage your son to choose Judaism or Christianity. If your son chooses Judaism, he will need to be circumcised ritually or, if he has had a non-ritual circumcision, to have a ceremony called hatafat dam brit. He will probably want to undertake some additional study of Judaism, so that he can practice his faith with greater understanding. But he will not need to be converted in a mikvah (ritual bath), unless you baptized him or christened him and raised him as a Christian. If he chooses to be Christian, he will need to be baptized, since he was born Jewish, and he will probably want to undertake some additional study, so he can practice his new faith with greater understanding. This option is comfortable for some parents because they don't want to force their child into a particular religion. They want to leave the decision up to the child, when he/she is at an age to make such a decision with maturity and understanding. This option has the drawback of making your child "neither fish nor fowl". While many kids do well when raised in such settings, some report feeling awkward when their friends ask them their religion, or when their friends get involved in their own religious activities. This option also is flawed because it presumes that the child will learn as much about Judaism as about Christianity, and be able to make a reasoned decision at a later date. That may occur in a home where one parent is of one religion and one parent is of another. However, since you and your husband are both Christian, it is unlikely that you will really be able to teach both religions well. The second option is for you to baptize your child and raise him in your faith, which is Methodist or "generic Protestant". This option allows your child to say, "I am Christian." It allows him/her to go to Sunday school and religious services, and get a thorough grounding in your faith. It may encourage YOU to get more involved in your religion, as you teach your child. However, a drawback of this approach is that you take a child out of the religion he was given at birth. Many parents are uncomfortable with this, since it smacks of forced conversion. On the other hand, if a child grows to adulthood, there is no reason why he cannot "re-convert" to Judaism if he wishes. In your son's case, he would need brit milah (ritual circumcision or hatafat dam brit), tavilah (immersion in a mikvah), and some Jewish education. Sharon