What Makes a Baby Jewish? Feat. Jessica Chod, Rabbi Judith Hauptman, and Rabbi Suzanne Brody

What makes someone Jewish? From its painful historic connotations to its open invitation for exclusion, this is a loaded question. Yet, there is a deceptively simple answer: one is “technically” Jewish if their mother is Jewish. Of course, different sects of Judaism have different opinions on this answer. The complexity behind “What makes someone Jewish?” has only increased as artificial reproductive technology–or ART–has proliferated. Today, we have the opportunity to speak with three incredible people who have helped make the answer to this question more inclusive to those born through ART. Attorney Jessica Chod fought to include children born to Jewish mothers by non-Jewish Gestational Carriers in the Conservative movement’s definition of “Jewish.” With the help of Rabbi Judith Hauptman and Rabbi Suzanne Brody, Jessica got the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards to change their halakhic position on non-Jewish surrogates! Take a listen to this fascinating episode to learn all about the driving force behind this journey and ultimately, the decision.