Adoption

Tell how Abraham raised his nephew Lot; discuss family as more than biology.

Children wonder and discover; you facilitate more than you lecture.

• What is the Jewish history and tradition of adoption?
• How might tradition differ for a baby versus an older child?
• How do you feel about creating new ceremonies for lifecycle events?

Judaism deeply honors adoption — raising a child is a profound mitzvah. Where tradition lacks a set ritual, families create meaningful new ones.

• Imutz — adoption
• Mishpacha — family

“Is an adopted child fully Jewish and fully part of the family?”

Completely — fully family, fully Jewish, fully beloved.

• Children study the story of Lot and connect adoption to Jewish values.
• Children understand we can create meaningful rituals even without fixed rules.

A mirror for adoptive families; affirm every path to family as equally real and holy. Coordinate quietly with adoptive families beforehand.

Folktale. Pharaoh’s Daughter and Baby Moses (Tanakh) — a child raised with love by someone who did not give birth to him.

Changemaker. Rabbi Angela Buchdahl — a celebrated Korean-American rabbi who shows Jewish families take every form.

What makes someone family? (Judaism has more than one answer.)

“We explored how Judaism honors adoption and chosen family. Try at home: talk about all the ways families are formed.”