Chava Yahudit חוה יהודית
Parashat Yitro. Exodus 18:1–27
Shabbat, February 7, 2026/20 Shevat 5786
My Torah portion, Yitro, is about Moses’ father-in-law, Yitro. Yitro was a wise Midianite priest who was a non-Jew who shaped the Jewish religion as we know it today.
After the Israelites had left Egypt, Moses found himself with long lines of people waiting to talk to him so he could settle disputes and give counsel. Yitro, as a mentor to Moses, famously guides Moses to get more support for himself so he will not wear himself out, and the people too, as Yitro says.
Immediately after Yitro guides Moses toward the system of delegation, the Israelites receive the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai. One could say Yitro’s advice was what allowed the Jewish people to get their guiding principles. Therefore, as a non-Jew, he is crucial to the Jewish story.
As I was reading about Yitro, I felt this Torah portion was relevant in my life as a kid raised by my Jewish mother and my non-Jewish dad, who was raised Catholic but does not practice that religion. I also felt that this really connected to many of the families at our temple and around the world.
As I have been preparing for my bat mitzvah, I have had to spend time thinking about how I relate to my Torah portion. As I have learned about Yitro, I have found that I took great interest in the fact that Yitro is the father-in-law of one of our biggest prophets and that he is not Jewish. It was interesting to learn about his connection to Judaism.
Although Yitro did not convert according to the Torah, he practiced Judaism and worshiped the God the Jewish community worships. In fact, Yitro’s exclamation of praise for God when he heard about the Israelites’ escape from Egypt became a model in the rabbinic mindset of how to praise God for a communal miracle. The new words of praise he used were Baruch Hashem, meaning “blessed is God,” which is a phrase that is commonly used in prayer currently.
Yitro’s importance in the Torah backs up my thinking, and others’ thinking as well, that one’s relationship to Judaism is more complex than being Jewish or not being Jewish, even if you have not converted. In one d’var Torah I read, it said, “Perhaps calling Yitro a non-Jew is insufficient, for his identity was more meaningful and consequential to us than being our opposite.” According to many, Yitro never became a Jew, but he came close.
Yitro was truly kerav Yisrael, meaning “one who drew near and close to the people of Israel.” I agree with this because it emphasizes that Yitro, who is not thought to have converted, was not seen as our opposite. On the contrary, he was considered part of the Jewish community.
To me, the words kerav Yisrael mean how a person connects to Judaism, Jewish people, and how they connect to the community. For instance, my dad celebrates all of the Jewish holidays with my family. He goes to services with me, my mom, and my brother. He also drives me to Hebrew school on Sundays, and he does many other Jewish communal things too.
I think being raised in an interfaith family can be really meaningful, and it is really important to me. I think it gives me a broader idea of what religion is and what it means to be part of a Jewish community.
To me, the broader idea of religion I am talking about is learning and community, rather than it being centered on worship or God. One example of the learning aspect of Judaism, and for me, being part of an interfaith family that is important to me, is when my dad and I talk about passages in the Torah I learned about in Hebrew school, and what he learned reading the Old Testament in Catholic school as a kid.
As I have read articles about Yitro and other interfaith relationships, I have found that many people do not accept people in interfaith relationships. An article I read talked about how Jewish people typically feel very set on their kids being raised practicing Judaism. The article said that people believed if they did not raise their children Jewish, the Jewish people would die off, and they worried that interfaith relationships would mean parents not raising their children Jewish.
As I said, I believe that being raised having conversations about more than one religion gives you a broader idea of what Judaism is. In fact, a midrash I read stated that it was because Yitro had explored all the religions out there that he was most qualified to decide whether or not the God the Jewish people praise is worthy of his or their devotion.
The midrash said that if another person had said, “Now I know the Lord is greater than all gods,” people would question it. But Yitro, who had explored all the houses of idol worship and did not find substance in them, was the one for whom it was appropriate to say, “Now I know.”
It is clear the rabbis see the enormous benefit of exploring what different faiths have to offer. They believe that without understanding and practicing all religions, it is not fair to say one religion is superior to all the others.
Overall, it personally does not make sense to me that it is thought to be controversial to marry or be in a relationship with whoever you want, no matter their religion. I have seen that some people believe being in a relationship with a person of another faith will shift their beliefs. However, I believe that if someone is grounded in their faith, it would take more than just a person with a different belief system coexisting with them to change their own beliefs.
Throughout time, people of diverse religious backgrounds have been an essential part of our community, especially Yitro. It was a non-Jew who guided and mentored Moses through the process of delegating tasks, perhaps what made it possible for the Israelites to follow the Ten Commandments and our legal system that they received immediately afterward in the Torah.
That is why it is crucial to listen and value the input and wisdom of people from other religious and ethnic backgrounds. Such an essential character in our people’s story being a non-Jew demonstrates that people from all religious backgrounds have something important we can learn from them.
Now, I would like to say thank you to many people that have helped me prepare for today. Firstly, to my parents, thank you for supporting me throughout this process, and to my brother who encouraged me and gave me advice leading up to today.
Thank you to my Torah tutor, who helped me prepare for my bat mitzvah and has been very patient with me during this process. To my Haverim class, I really appreciate you for making classes fun. Thank you to my teachers who have helped me and supported me throughout my Jewish learning and prepared me for today.
I am really grateful to Rabbi Aliza for helping me write my Torah and for having good conversations with me. Thank you to those who helped me practice my public speaking.
There are so many things that are amazing that I could say about our community, but I will just say thank you. And lastly, I would like to thank all of the people here and on Zoom for coming to support me today. Thank you.
