This is 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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Opinion The Conversion Debate Gets Fiery in Jerusalem
The Israeli Presidential Conference, Shimon Peres’s vanity international blabfest, continues today with a series of panel discussions on the woes of the global economy and the future of the Jewish people. I don’t think we’ve solved the world’s economic problems, but there have been a few bombshells dropped into the field of Jewish identity. The…
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Books Evangelical Group’s Attempt To Convert Dominique Strauss-Kahn Misfires
If he’s getting bored under house arrest, accused sex offender Dominique Strauss-Kahn can at least look forward to receiving some Hebrew-language reading material. The former head of the International Monetary Fund, who pleaded not guilty yesterday to sexually assaulting a maid in a New York City hotel, was the intended recipient of a package of…
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Opinion Conversion Showdown: Rav Ovadia vs. the Ashkenazim
A nasty fight is heating up between Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, the mentor of Shas, and the rabbinic leadership of the Ashkenazi Haredi world. The Ashkenazi rabbis have called for a mass demonstration against Ovadia this coming Wednesday, and tens of thousands are expected to attend. In retaliation, a kashrut crackdown has been ordered by Sephardi…
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Life Christmas as a Jew-to-Be
Today is Christmas. As someone who is in the process of converting to Judaism, — and blogging about it here — this is the first Christmas that I won’t be celebrating. Since just after Halloween — when the Christmas decorations started appearing all over stores, and when the Christmas music began playing everywhere from Duane…
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Life Does Tony Blair Sister-in-Law’s Conversion to Islam Highlight a Trend?
It didn’t come as a utter surprise to the British public when Lauren Booth, the sister-in-law of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, decided to convert to Islam. The journalist, activist and all-around political gadfly demonstrated against the war in Iraq, and in 2008, she was on one of the first boats headed to Gaza…
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Life The Conversion Bill, the Kotel, and Women as Coalmine Canaries
Forward alumna and current Tablet editor in chief Alana Newhouse has an incisive op-ed in today’s New York Times today, warning that Israel’s Rotem Bill, which would enshrine official approval of conversion to Judaism in the hands of ultra-Orthodox rabbis, will lead to a split between Israel and the Diaspora. She’s right, of course, though…
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Life For Chelsea Clinton, a Jewish Fiancé
Today we learned that Chelsea Clinton, seen at right, will be the latest celebrity to walk down the aisle with a Jewish partner — her longtime boyfriend Marc Mezvinsky. And thus, the most powerful liberal political dynasty in the country has firmly allied itself with the Chosen People. It’s unclear whether, like Ivanka Trump did…
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Opinion Knesset Moves To Ease (or Is it Tighten?) Conversion Rules
While the attention of world Jewry was riveted on the United Nations, Israel’s Knesset quietly gave initial approval on September 22 to legislation that’s intended to ease the process of conversion to Judaism in Israel. The bill authorizes local rabbis to perform conversions at the request of would-be converts, permitting converts to seek out friendly…
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