Yitro's Conversion: Why True Conversion Requires Commitment

Israel’s Law of Return established that a Jew is only one who converted according to halachah. Even after this was anchored in law (which, in practice, deals only with formal legal identity), the issues related to this subject did not disappear, and conversions carried out by bodies that drastically lower halachic standards continued to pose a real threat. Sadly, even today there are attempts to broaden the definition of “halachic conversion” to include conversions that were not approved by the Chief Rabbinate — many of which are, in practice, empty of true acceptance of mitzvot and offer little chance of a life of Torah observance.

What Was Yitro Afraid Of?

We wish to reflect on this issue through this week’s Torah portion and learn how seriously the act of conversion must be taken. The Torah describes Yitro’s arrival to the Israelite camp in the wilderness. According to the Sages, Yitro came in order to convert. However, Targum Yonatan ben Uziel reveals a striking detail: Yitro feared he might not be accepted into the Jewish people. Interpreting the verse, “And he said to Moshe: I, your father-in-law Yitro, am coming to you, and your wife and her two sons are with her”, Yonatan ben Uziel explains (translated): “I, your father-in-law Yitro, have come to convert. And if you do not accept me in my own merit, accept me for the sake of your wife and her two sons who are with her.”

This statement raises several piercing questions.

Why would Yitro fear that Moshe might refuse to accept him? Yitro had sought truth for many years, endured suffering and social ostracism for it, and his intentions were sincere. If there truly were grounds to reject him, how could family ties help? Was Yitro suspecting Moshe of nepotism, or was he appealing to humanitarian considerations — like “family reunification”?

Conversion Is Not Merely a Formal Process

To answer these questions, we must look deeper. Why, until this point, had Yitro not already converted?

Midrashim tell us that Yitro searched relentlessly for truth and experimented with every form of idolatry known to the world, only to reject them all. Long before Moshe arrived in Midian and rescued Yitro’’s daughters, Yitro had already abandoned his role as priest of Midian and was ostracized as a result of recognizing the emptiness of idol worship. Add to this the fact that Yitro lived for years near Moshe, the man of God, surely observing his character and likely discussing beliefs and ideas with him. Why, then, had Yitro not yet taken the final step?

Perhaps precisely because of his profound wisdom, Yitro understood that conversion is not merely a technical or legal procedure. It is not logically obvious that one can simply “join” the Jewish people, a nation defined by a unique spiritual nature and a soul bound to God. Even when conversion is performed fully according to halachah, Jewish inwardness is not complete without the appropriate inner spiritual state.

As an illustration, the Zohar teaches that the Erev Rav — those who converted and left Egypt with Israel, did not merit entering the Clouds of Glory that surrounded the Jewish people in the wilderness. To attain the full stature of Jewish spiritual identity, one must acquire a Jewish character and an inner point bound to the Creator by an unbreakable bond.

Can a Convert Attain the “Jewish Spark”?

The nature of this “Jewish spark” is not only a Chassidic idea, but it is codified in halachah. Rambam rules that the unconscious will of every Jew is to fulfill God’s will — even when he outwardly resists. That resistance is merely the product of the evil inclination, distorted beliefs, or desire. Once the obstacle is removed — even through coercion, the person reveals his true inner will (Rambam, Hilchot Gerushin, ch. 2).

This inner spark often surfaces in moments of crisis or profound emotion, such as the spontaneous cry of “Shema Yisrael”, even among Jews far removed from observance. In such moments, the external layers fall away and the soul’s essential connection to God is revealed.

Yitro doubted whether such an inner transformation could be achieved through conversion. He feared that even if conversion were halachically valid, it might remain spiritually incomplete. Yet the holy texts teach that converts who truly merit it are indeed granted a lofty soul, bound to God in an irreversible bond.

This was Yitro’s aspiration. He recognized the greatness of Israel’s soul and longed to convert in a way that would grant him that inner connection. He knew such elevation could not be achieved alone; it required spiritual guidance — specifically from Moshe. His hesitation stemmed from fear that Moshe might judge him unfit for this level of transformation.

Thus, when Yitro said, “If you do not accept me in my own merit, accept me for the sake of your wife and her sons,” he was not seeking favoritism. Rather, he was pointing to evidence of his own inner capacity: his daughter was worthy to become Moshe’s wife, and her children — Moshe’s children, came from him. This, he implied, demonstrated that he possessed the spiritual foundation necessary for a genuine inner bond with Judaism and deserved assistance in achieving it.

Halachic Conversion and Spiritual Integrity

Of course, all of this presupposes full adherence to the halachic process, as existed in the time of the Mishkan and the Temple. Yitro brought a conversion offering and accepted the yoke of Torah and mitzvot with seriousness, undergoing circumcision for the sake of conversion, as alluded to in our parashah and explained by the Midrash.

We learn from this that even after all halachic procedures are fulfilled, conversion remains a profound spiritual innovation, and not something automatic or self-evident. How much more so must we be cautious not to lower standards in examining sincerity and basic requirements. Without such care, tens of thousands of so-called “converts” may be absorbed into the nation — at best becoming an Erev Rav, which Rambam calls an asafsuf (a mixed multitude with improper motives), and at worst — when mitzvot are not accepted at all, remaining complete non-Jews who may intermarry with the holy nation and cause devastating internal destruction.

This, then, was Yitro’s fear, and his greatness.