Orthodox Rabbinical Council Appoints New Conversion Director
Abby Lerner Image by Rabbinical Council of America
The Orthodox Union’s rabbinic arm has created a new position to help smooth the conversion process. The Rabbinical Council of America announced Monday that Abby Lerner will be the first National Director of Conversion Services.
Lerner will “assume responsibility for the support of candidates in their conversion process,” according to an RCA statement. She will also create a grievance process for conversion candidates as well as regular reviews of conversion courts to ensure they adhere to the conversion principles issued by the RCA and Beth Din of America in 2007. The goal is “to improve the experiences of candidates as they prepare for conversion.”
Conversion to Judaism has emerged as a thorny issue between Jews abroad and Israel. Most famously, Israeli rabbis rejected a conversion overseen by the rabbi who converted Ivanka Trump to Judaism. After the U.S. election, Israeli rabbis announced they were looking into changing the guidelines for recognizing conversions, and that Ivanka Trump’s conversion would be approved under the new rules.
Correction, March 24 at 2:00 p.m.: A previous version of this story noted that Israeli rabbis rejected the conversion of Ivanka Trump. In fact, Israeli rabbis rejected a different conversion conducted by the rabbi who oversaw Ivanka Trump’s conversion. The previous version of this story also noted that Israeli authorities changed the rules of conversion; in fact, they announced they would explore changing the rules of conversion. The Forward regrets the errors.
Contact Shira Hanau at [email protected]
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we need 500 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Our Goal: 500 gifts during our Passover Pledge Drive!
