Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of conversion, the process by which those of other faiths adopt Judaism. Most streams of Judaism, unlike many other religions, do not evangelize.
Conversion
The Latest
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Life Israel’s Voiding of Conversions Should Worry Us All
For at least the past seven years or so, the State of Israel has been subjecting converts to intense examinations and inquiries regarding the level of their religious observance. When a convert requests that a rabbinic court administer a get in the context of an amicable divorce, rabbinic judges will surreptitiously cross-examine the convert: Did…
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The Schmooze Zooey Deschanel Is Judaism’s ‘New Girl’ After Conversion
Actress Zooey Deschanel has converted to Judaism. Deschanel, the daughter of a Quaker and Roman Catholic, converted shortly before marrying producer Jacob Pechenik, Us Weekly reported Monday. The article did not say what denomination of rabbi supervised her conversion. The two married in June, a month before the birth of their daughter, Elsie. “Zooey converted…
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Forward 50 2015 Bethany Mandel
What do you do when you discover that your rabbi filmed you naked in the mikveh as you were converting to Judaism? You pull out your cell phone at 2 a.m., type up “a bill of rights for Jewish converts” and watch as your blog post goes viral by morning. At least, that’s how you…
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Breaking News Michele Bachmann Calls for Stepped-Up Push To Convert Jews
Former presidential candidate Michele Bachmann called for an intensified effort to convert Jews to Christianity. Bachmann, a former congresswoman from Minnesota who ran for the Republican presidential nod in 2012, was in Israel last week on a tour organized by the Family Research Council, a conservative Christian group. Toward the end of the week, she…
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Israel News Orthodox Conversion Rebels Challenge Rabbinate on Marriage
In the latest challenge to Israel’s supreme religious authority, several Orthodox rabbis have begun to perform weddings for converts who are not recognized by the Chief Rabbinate. In recent months, Haaretz has learned, these rabbis officiated at three such weddings involving Israelis converted by a new alternative rabbinical court. Their names cannot be published, however,…
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Breaking News Chief Rabbi Declares War on Orthodox Conversion Rebels
Israel’s chief Ashkenazi rabbi accused the founders of a private conversion court of “fighting against the Torah.” David Lau made the allegation Thursday night at the inaugural event of B’Noam, a lobby group devoted to defending the policies of Israel’s chief rabbinate and its religious establishment, in reference to the announcement last week of several…
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Breaking News Will Rebel Rabbis’ Conversion Court Spark Orthodox Civil War?
Six young people were converted to Judaism by a rebel religious court on Monday. The small group of Orthodox rabbis who sat on the beit din and supported the act, led by rabbis David Stav and Nahum Rabinowitz, are all veteran pulpit rabbis and the heads of respected yeshivas. Their defiance of Israel’s Chief Rabbinate…
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Breaking News Jewish Agency Will Aid Conservative and Reform Conversions
As part of a major new initiative it is launching, the Jewish Agency plans to provide conversion services abroad not only to Orthodox communities – but also to Conservative and Reform communities. Speaking with Haaretz, Jewish Agency Chairman Natan Sharansky said: “We have no intention of discriminating between one stream of Judaism and another.” Last…
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