Chazal teach us that the process necessary for a person to convert to become Jewish is derived from the events that preceded the הר סיני experience. Just as our ancestors became endowed with קדושת ישראל at the time of קבלת התורה, so too in subsequent generations one enters a life of תורה and מצוה by undergoing a similar process. There are three components of the גרות process for a man and two for a woman. A man receives a ברית מילה, or if previously circumcised undergoes the halachic procedure of הטפת דם ברית – a small drawing of blood as a substitute for an actual ברית. In addition, both a man and a woman immerse in the מקוה and bring a קרבן in the days of the בית המקדש.
הלכות גרות replicates the ״גרות״ of בני ישראל prior to קבלת התורה. The men performed ברית מילה immediately before leaving מצרים, as the תורה relates in פרשת בא, since otherwise they would not have been permitted to participate in קרבן פסח. As a preparation for קבלת התורה everyone immersed in the מקוה. One opinion in Chazal derives this from the פסוק in פרשת יתרו that discusses immersing their clothing and certainly themselves. Others suggest it is learned from פסוקים in פרשת משפטים that relate the blood of קרבנות being sprinkled on the people which always is accompanied by immersion in a מקוה. The obligation to offer a קרבן during the time of the בית המקדש is patterned after the special קרבנות that were offered accompanying מעמד הר סיני, as they appear in פרשת משפטים. Why are these three procedures ones that encapsulate the גרות process?
The רמב״ן in פרשת יתרו elaborates on the two distinct terms that are used to describe the observance of שבת, ״זכור״ and ״שמור״. זכור refers specifically to קידוש and also encompasses all the positive actions performed to designate שבת as a holy day. שמור, which refers to refraining from מלאכה, speaks to the prohibitions that apply on שבת. These two dimensions of שבת emanate from the two dimensions of our relationship with ה׳. We are commanded to simultaneously love and be in awe of ה׳. Love expresses itself by actions, the positive מצות that bring us closer to ה׳. Awe requires us to step back and refrain from what ה׳ commands us to refrain from. זכור ושמור not only define שבת but describe our entire עבודת ה׳ which is comprised of מצות עשה and מצות לא תעשה. When we entered a covenant with ה׳ at הר סיני, and when a prospective convert is about to join that covenant, it is a dual commitment to the ideals of acting and refraining, אהבה and יראה, that make up the essence of our relationship with ה׳.
Most מצות are either an expression of either אהבה or יראה, but מילה, טבילה, and קרבן are a fusion of both. In many areas, הלכה equates an ערל – one who does not have a ברית – to one who is טמא. The states of ערל and טמא are negative spiritual ones that must be overcome before one can join the עם ה׳. יראת ה׳ necessitates distancing oneself and refraining from the aspects of טומאה that are antithetical to the קדושת ישראל. מילה and טבילה are not only responses to negativity but also lead us on a path of positive spiritual growth through קדושה and טהרה. We recite a ברכה following a ברית highlighting that we are performing an ״אות ברית קודש״ – a sign of a holy covenant. ברית מילה symbolizes a distancing from the influences of spiritual negativity and simultaneously a commitment to spiritual positivity. Similarly, a מקוה removes impurity and endows with holiness. It is the vehicle of the מקוה that enables the כהן גדול on יום הכפורים to attain the degree of sanctity necessary to enter the קדש הקדשים. So too, the prospective גר and גיורת purify themselves from the impurities that surround them and sanctify themselves in the water of the מקוה. Both מילה and טבילה are vehicles for attaining יראת ה׳ and אהבת ה׳ and are the perfect way to transition into a life of both aspects of עבודת ה׳.
The world of קרבנות is also merging of אהבה and יראה. The בית המקדש is simultaneously a place of יראה, as the מצוה of מורא המקדש requires, and a place to express our great love for ה׳ as we become closer to Him by offering a gift of love. The רמב״ם describes how one aspect of קרבנות is that it is a way to draw us away from idolatry. Yet the רמב״ם emphasizes that קרבנות will play a major role in ימות המשיח long after עבודה זרה is eradicated from the world. קרבנות are positive מצות of קדושה that connect us to ה׳. As the prospective גר offers his קרבן, he is following in the footsteps of those who stood at הר סיני. He is joining the very people who offered קרבנות thereby distancing themselves from the idolatrous world that surrounded them. The גר is also connecting to ה׳ as he brings his first gift of love thereby embarking on a lifetime of אהבה and יראה. For both the born Jew and the גר, the dual goals of אהבה and יראה are the same. The entire Jewish people continue its journey to reach the heights of אהבת ה׳ and יראת ה׳.
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