from which my family and people were ethnicly cleansed !!! To be able to return i will even change my name to Ariel or Yisreal or what ever ! Just let me convert, let me become a Jew so i will have at last the right to return !

Conversion to what? To atheism? The stupidity knows no boundaries these political correct days.

You want to make a religion secular? Just make something new - without religion at all. Call it Israelianism. That way you can marginalize those who keep the Jewish traditions, and push those who keep the Israeli tradtions instead. By the way, aside from eating felafel and dumping garbage in narional parks and nature reserves on Yom ha'Atzmaut, what Israeli traditions are there?

How can one be a Jew when one is Christian, How can one be one thing and be that things polar opposite, how can one love being Jewish when one is also its enemy. You are a traitor to the Jewish people, and desecrate the memory of every Jew who has died as a Jews this past century, six million accuse you to hell, as well as the twenty thousand Jewish Israelis to have a Jewish State,

What is the meaning the secular conversion????? It is something totally absurd. I want a paper that says that I feel a jew, although I do no practise and do not believe? For what reason would I need such a paper? To confirm my feeling of belonging? Like I feel swedish, and i want a paper to confirm my swedishness feeling Reform conversion, Conservative conversion, civil marriage, yes Easier orthodox conversion, yes changing the law of return or aboloshing it. But secular conversion

Someone should write an article from the perspective of a real person "currently" caught up in the conversion process, and expose the damage, both financial and emotional that is being done on behalf of the state. But I have news for you--it isn't the Rabbis doing this! It is the secular committee of the interior ministry. My story is too long to go into, however, after 4-1/2 years I am still in limbo--a non-person with no end in site. The biggest frustration is that the rules change daily, and nobody can even tell you what the rules are. Cruel and unusual punishment would be the label if I were in prison--but wait--my crime is that I want to be a Jew in Israel, working, paying taxes, being a part of a community. Just shoot me--it would be much kinder

Secular conversion is an oxymoron. Whoever wrote this article have no real plan to make sure the people who'll "convert" will really be a benefit for Israel. This is a perfect opportunity for immigrants from poor countries and arabs to infiltrate.

Mohamed (#1) won't likely find a rabbi to perform his mock "conversion" since there are almost no Jews left - just like there are few throughout the Arab lands since they were driven out - "ethnically cleansed", to use his words. And of course he'll need to watch his back, for if his brothers learn of his so-called "conversion" he's liable to be killed for apostasy long before he returns to his putative "homeland". But since his ancestors likely came from Greater Syria anyway, he's already home. As to the author's call for "secular conversion"? One word: shtuyot (utter nonsense).

In an Israeli context, how would a "secular conversion" be any different than naturalization, which is the process by which someone not covered by the "Law of Return" is converted into an Israeli citizen.

is a good as a mechanic engineer working as a medical doctor just because he "aquired his certificate" - would you trust him to medicate you? I myself know of more than one "convert" with his/her convertion revoked. And that is exactly what needed to be done. Trust me, they hated Halacha even b4 " converting". They make a bad name to the trully rightous converts

Remember the soapless soap ? meatless (parve) meat hamburgers ? milkless (lactose free) milk ? leadless pencil leads? Now some need a Jewless "Jew"

jewish? ....Are we so weak that thousands of years of the chain can just be cut off in one generation ? surely not. Let's stop this nonesense . With DNA technology we can now see who is a member of the tribe .Judaism is an open minded religion . We can't throw the baby with the bath water . The population is so small , we need to increase the numbers .......

That is why Jordan Palestine is 100% Arab and 0% Jewish and Israel is 20% Arab and 80% Jewish or other. You are welcome to move back to Arabia or Jordan Palestine. Please remove the racist laws there when you do.

You can't become a Jew by conversion , only a follower of the Jewish faith . The grand grand children of a convert can maybe have this Jewish background a newly convert has'nt . Being a secular myself , with both my parents ZL Jewish , i can't understand how you can become a secular "convert" . Being Jewish is belonging to the Jewish people , and you can't convert into this , not even by the Orthodox way . cheers to O and Yo

Yair promotes a modern form of Judaism , not Orthodox of course . I think that even you don't like it , if this will return "lost" Jews to a certain Judaism , it's beneficiary to the Jewish people .

It used to be that the prize in cracker jacks was the 'extra' and the carmel coated popcorn and peanuts were the main reason for buying it. So if they are starting to pass out conversions less serious than the paper used to wrap them they should at least give something real with it.

which is a religion, the opposite of secularism.

I have read ounce of a "liberal rabbi" , abroad , who said that he prefers people coming by car on Shabbat over people not coming at all . You , as an Orthodox Jewess will oppose this . I , as a seculasr Jew , can only agree . By doing so , those people are not complerely "lost " , maintain some connections with their people , and maybe will NOT outmarry .

Can you live up to the mark, even we jews cant live up to the demands.I have seen many converts going into bipolar disorder their head / mind cant take our books /demands. No ! the jewish prayers and the bundle of documents are too much for the gentile. They crack up . This is true, i have seen this happening.Their mind cant take it , neverthe less very few fit in well ,no doubt about it but many will not , you gentiles got to be realistic . Are you sure ? :-)~ Even if you convert, you are still your original self. It dosent make you AJews, very sorry you guyS dont even look like us .Most jews are very ugly except me. wE JEWS ARE HATED SO WHY YOU GENTILES WANT TO FOLLOW US ? WHY ? : -) ~ Just practise Judaism as gentiles.Dont try to be like us, we have the burden on our shoulders, Please help us to teach the torah, thats all dont make it dufficult for us Jews ! I tell you 90 % of the converts will return back to their original religion, only 10 % will sit by us. even the 10 % feel inferior by many reason they imagine.= in thier head and end up cursing the very jew who helped them in their conversion process. Come if you are realy serious or stay a gentile, you still have a part in the next world , This I PROMISE ! :-) You wear the cloak you open yourself to a higher degree of judgement. Stay where you are as a gentile.

Secular militants are part of a rapidly shrinking minority that is about to become extinct. No children, no education no values no ideology even the writer is a mere way-station on secular Israelis' search for more Judaism that usually ends up in their finding it amongst the haredim

Jewish identity has had its own selfdefinition for 3500 years. If you throw out the rules then the identity vanishes faster than you think. Six million vanishing Jews in North America prove this

You teach a fraud. you wish to befraud even more victims. Thanks to Druckman's attempt to defend himself by attacking all those who condemned his fakes as fakes, everyone knows that your fakes are fraud. So Druckman did us all a favour after all

bar,yitzak, a convert is as jewish as every jew once circumcised , once circumcised it cannot be undone, they are in the covenant as every jew is. whether they become christian, moslim or buddhist once jewish always jewish. only orthodox is acceptable, secular conversion is nonsense. Just like circumcision took place at hasinai, so circumcision is required to bring more jews into our people. we are not a race, we are a nation. the jewish people is one body.

levels of intellectuality . Would you say Einstein was not Jewish because he was secular ?Narrow minded people cut off so many who want to belong to the tribe , Judaism is not close minded . One could say that ashkenazy Jews are not the real Jews . I certainly would not accept the Neturei Karta as real Jews....

I'm a convert and never knew anything about these conflicts about converts until after 4.5 years. I'm orthodox in practice and dress casual, dati lumi. I agree with what you said about 90% of the converts and only 10% will sit by us. However, where did you get these stats? I'm not saying you're wrong, you could be accurate; but just make sure before you post something public. It could be off by a few digits here and there and I wouldn't want to be embarrassed by a born jew making simple calculating or guessing mistakes, inaccuracies. Second, I did it because I only knew about G-d and felt a sensation to draw closer to him. I had no clue about what Jews even feel or look or whatever. It just fell on my lap, you could say. Third, as I have made a covenant with Hashem to have alliance with the Him and the nation of Israel, you can count me as one of the TOP 1% to be beside any jew in time of war - whether you're non observant or not. I love all jew. You want proof? I spent 2 nights in a room or cell, put in by my fellow Israelis into a room full or muslims. Whether they were arabs or not, doesn't matter now. But just to give you a glimpse, he pulled me out of my private quarters after knowing I was praying shacharit with talit gadol and sidur. Deliberately. But I stood my ground and said, if i'm going down because i'm a jew then so be it. I continued praying in front of their faces, washing hands, bracha after bracha during meals etc. mincha, arvit...etc. They respected me more and feared me because I was real and not a sissy for being a jew in the hands of arab muslims. I just focused and meditated on what King David did and his commitment to Hashem, whatever the cost. -- Ori

At the secular conversion we need to come up with a new line instead of "Welcome to those that have come to reside under the wings ot he Schina." How bout: "Abra Cadabra : You are a Jew." or "Bipity Bobity Boo - You're a Jew." (Come on everybody join in - let's hear some more suggestions.)