Ruth, the Perfect Convert

By Larry Fine

The story of Ruth has been canonized in the Books of the Bible, the Tanach, for a very special and positive reason. Ruth was a Moabite; a member of a gentile nation; yet her personality was so overwhelmingly filled with positive character traits that she has become the prototype of what a Jewish woman should strive for.

Ruth left her noble family, for she was descendant from royalty, she left her family's heritage to endure the hardships of a convert to the young Jewish nation. She endured difficulties and poverty while rejecting an easy life of luxury that included idolatry. She made the decision to follow the laws of Moses in spite of the many difficulties and hardships that it entailed; a life perhaps with no future promise other than that of following the true path, a life with no guarantee of marriage and children, a life wrought with the inconveniences of observance of the divine commandments. And because of her selfless giving and her determination to change to be a Jew, she was indeed rewarded that she should have as her grandson none other than David, the king of Israel.

From the story of this righteous convert, the rabbis of the Talmud and Mishna learn many lessons, especially those in regard to conversion.

Naomi, Ruth's future mother-in-law, together with her wealthy husband Elimelech, left the land of Israel during a period of famine. They took their two sons Machlon and Kilyon to the neighboring land of Moab and there they dwelt for several years. While there, the two sons, Machlon and Kilyon, took for wives two Moabite women, Ruth and Orpah. But G-d saw this leaving the Land of Israel during a time that the people needed Elimelech's support as a grave sin and all three perished, Elimelech and his two sons Machlon and Kilyon in the land of Moab, leaving Naomi with her two daughter-in-laws.

Eventually the famine in the land of Israel subsided and Naomi, now destitute and impoverished, lacking any family in Moab, decided to return to her home lands and her people. She informed her two daughters-in-law that she would be leaving and she advised them to return to their own people, to their own homes to their mothers' families. She could offer them nothing in Israel, she would be returning destitute, and once there, the two girls would have no chance of finding a suitable mate. Orphan tearfully kissed her mother-in-law good-bye and left, but Ruth told Naomi (Ruth1:16)

"Do not force me to leave you, for where you shall go, so shall I go. Where you shall dwell, so shall I dwell. Your people are my people and your G-d is my G-d. Where you die, I will die and there I will be buried. Thus G-d shall do to me, and more, only death shall separate you form me."
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