What are the main points of contention and controversy with respect to conversion?   What does the existing situation look like, and what are its practical implications? All these issues were discussed at JPPI's 2010 Conference on the Future of the Jewish People, held October 20-22 in Jerusalem.  This paper summarizes the main ideas raised in discussions and offers some policy…

To some American Jewish religious denominational structure seems obsolete and a handicap, while to others it's still vital and necessary. Both views may be right. To read more click here.

Let's not fool ourselves. The Turkish firefighting planes did not douse the flames that continue to scorch Turkish-Israeli relations. Even if a formula is found that would satisfy Turkey's demand for both an apology from Israel and compensation for casualties of the Gaza flotilla incident, we will still be facing Turkish policy that is fundamentally problematic.

In the practical world it is clear that tinkering with the entrance conditions results in an inverse proportion between the quantity and quality of converted Jews. This does not need to be resolved unequivocally in favor of "as many as possible" or " as few as possible," but it needs to be addressed with it as it a"ects every individual…

This paper is seeks to trace basic avenues of thought and suggest policy-relevant directions that will reframe the issue, as demanded by the imperative of our times. Click here to read the full paper.

There are issues in the life of a nation and a country that must not be turned into pawns in an internal political game and must not be cashed into tactical coins. One of them, if not the foremost among them, is the foundational idea of the State of Israel, the unique nation-state of the Jewish people, which practices the…

The Jewish people and the State of Israel are, on one level, in the strongest, most secure position in Jewish history, a genuine golden age. It is in this position of seeming strength that world Jewry and Israel confront these Mega-Trends. The external challenges they present are all daunting--the rise of radical Islamic non-state actors, several poised on Israel’s northern…

This discussion paper is structured in the form of 15 theses dealing with the subject of the working group on "A Permanent Agreement: the Jewish Dimension." They express the personal opinion of the author.  Their formulation is sharp and the explanations concise, to stimulate debate. Full elaboration is provided in two books. theses are selected from a larger set so…

What does "loyalty" mean? Loyalty to whom? The way in which these bills use this term implies that loyalty requires, as a necessary condition, the rejection of a concrete, identifiable alternative. Thus, for example, loyalty between two marriage partners requires the rejection of loyalty to other partners. In the realm of religion, loyalty to God is not compatible with loyalty…