Living Right

With regard to Joy Shillman’s letter to the editor titled “Religion or Race?” (April 22, 2011), 14 years ago scientists discovered the existence of Jewish DNA that was traceable to the Hebrews living at the time of Abraham, some 3,000 years ago. These results point to a paternal gene pool of Jewish ancestry that has been carried throughout the Diaspora, particularly those of the ancient Kohanim (High Priests) first and foremost Aharon, brother of Moses

In this study, directed in part by Dr. Karl Skorecki of the Technion Department of Nephrology and Molecular Medicine, the Y chromosome in Jewish males of Kohain ancestry was found to have common markers unlike those of other non-Kohanim Jews tested.

Question: Does the fact that Jews can trace their DNA roots back to Aharon mean we are a race rather than a religion? I think not.

I do not believe that common DNA makes for a race or a religion. It is a biological identification no different than that common of chimpanzees, giraffes or kangaroos. Yes, it means we Jews are related to one another, and yes, the Jewish contribution may be the result of that pedi- greed affiliation, but true Jewishness, like motherhood, is only worthy of one who acts in the spirit of that term.

Those born of Jewish mothers may have the markers of Jews that lived in the time of Abraham, but their birthright is meaningless unless they live and act according to the ethics of our fathers.

Peter G. Engelman
Baltimore