6. IMMERSION

Orthodox and Conservative rabbis require both male and female conversion candidates to immerse
themselves in a ritual bath called a mikveh. This ceremony is called tevillah. Reform and
Reconstructionist rabbis do not require the use of a mikveh, but some highly recommend it. The mikveh
can be any body of natural water, though the term usually refers to a specific pool that is built for the
purposes of ritual purification. The equipment used varies according to the mikveh. The immersion
ceremony usually starts with cleaning the body as by a shower. The person is covered and the covering
removed as the person enters the warm mikveh waters, which are usually about four feet deep. (When
the ceremony is done in a public place such as a lake the candidate wears a loose-fitting garment).
Blessings are recited and the person goes bends into the water. According to traditional Jewish law,
three male witnesses must be present, although this rule has been reinterpreted so that, in some
movements, Jewish females can be witnesses. When there are male witnesses and the candidate is
female, the witnesses wait outside the mikveh room and are told by a female attendant that the
immersion has been completed and the blessings recited.