Jewish Social Life and Customs

A Jew is any person whose mother was a Jew or
any person who has gone through the formal
process of conversion to Judaism. Being a Jew is
not a matter of belief. According to Jewish law,
even if a person believes everything that Orthodox
Jews believe and observes every law and custom
of Judaism, he or she is not considered a Jew
unless he or she meets the requirement of a Jewish
mother or formal conversion. A person born to a
Jewish mother who is atheist and does not
practice the Jewish religion is still a Jew. In this
sense, being Jewish is more like a nationality than
a religion.