This week we present a ballad type that is not to be found internationally, certainly not in the Anglo-British-American tradition – a ballad that describes the conversion of a child to the Christian faith; a shmad-ballad.
This is correct in detail but not entirely true in broader context. There are Child ballads of religious conversions -- "Young Beichan/Lord Bateman" being the most obvious. (Though there is an interesting footnote to that one in that the woman in that song is often named Sophia -- Σοφια, the Greek word for wisdom; an entirely Christian name; I wonder if the girl didn't have a Christian mother.) And there are non-Child ballads of conversion to Christianity, though too often in the face of force (e.g. Silver Jack [Laws C24]). There are also songs of refusing to convert (e.g. The Romish Lady [Laws Q32]). So the concept is common; the problem is that Jewish folk songs are a bit thin on the ground. It's a little depressing to realize that Ruth Rubin's books don't seem to have anything on the topic.