Leaders of the Eternal Jewish Family and the Council of European Rabbis met recently in London to discuss plans for a joint effort to promote universally accepted geyrus standards in intermarriage in Europe. Amongst the issues discussed was the establishment of botei din in several cities in Europe as well as a kolel that would focus on the halachos of geyrus.
The participants at the meeting were from three continents: Dayan Chanoch Ehrentreu, who heads the Council of European Rabbis, Dayan Menachem Gelley, Rabbi Aba Dunner from the UK and Rabbi Moshe Lebel (Rosh Yeshiva, Moscow) who represented the CER; Rabbi Leib Tropper and Menachem Lubinsky (USA); Rabbi Yom Tov Stern, and Yisrael Friedman (Israel), who represented the Eternal Jewish Family International.
“The meeting took place at an important juncture in Jewish history, “ said Rabbi Tropper, Rosh Yeshiva of Kol Yaakov/Horizons, who heads the international rabbinic committee of EJF. “Thanks to the efforts of the EJF, a serious effort is being made to stem the tide of problematic conversions that brought tragedy to countless families in many communities throughout the world. Europe’s changing Jewish landscape is the ideal backdrop for an historic partnership between EJF and CER.”
The Eternal Jewish Family enjoys the overwhelming support of Gedolei Yisroel throughout the world. EJF is responsible for espousing the halachic standards defined by leading Torah scholars of past generations and by such luminaries as the late Harav Moshe Feinstein zt”l and by the posek hador Harav Yosef Sholom Elyashiv shlit’a. Harav Reuven Feinstein, Rosh Yeshiva of the Mesivta of Staten Island serves as the Chairman of the EJF Halachic Committee.
The Eternal Jewish Family is a project of Horizons, an internationally recognized institute of Jewish education and outreach based in Monsey, New York. Its mission is to assist those who choose to live their lives as part of a Jewish family in accordance with authentic Jewish values, including intermarried couples.
EJF, thanks to the support of the Lillian Jean Kaplan Foundation, sponsors a broad array of activities for rabbis who work with intermarried couples seeking a universally accepted conversion for the non-Jewish spouses and for communities absorbing newly converted families. EJF’s programs have made an enormous differences in bringing together the foremost Torah scholars for the purpose of establishing standards in universally accepted conversions in intermarriage. EJF is also involved in numerous educational and outreach programs to head off intermarriage.
(YWN Desk – NYC)
Join the official YWN WhatsApp status
9 Responses
Kol Ha’Kovod! Chazak Va’Amatz!
Which PR company published this release?
Feh.
Refuah Shelamo.
Can’t you all see that this is a Menachem Lubinsky piece- he is mentioned in the article as participating in the ” conference”- he is as expert in Geirus as he is in Shechitah!
This is a dream and will never work, an offical agreement on geirus according to WHO!!
rabbi, We are coming from different sides of the issue. EJF has had issues with “recruiting” new Geirim that the Eidah has taken issue with since we shouldn’t be recruiting.
This is more of a “caucus” of one side. THe dispute doesn’t involve the participants, but involves the participants (representing the Hareidi side) with the “Modern Orthodox” side. As such it isn’t all the interesting a development,since those involved didn’t radically disagree to being with.
The danger in EJF’s efforts to convert intermarried spouses is that ultimately this encourages intermarriage itself.when it was understood that to marry a gentile is to be totally excluded from Klal yisroel this served as a strong incentive not to intermarry, now that EJF are making efforts to convert such couples no longer is intermarriage a road of no return. This can only encourage more intermarriage. How can such chashuva Rabonim put their name to such a organization? The only possible answer is that they’re not aware of the true mission of EJF.But the financial backer Kaplan,an intermarried Jew who converted his wife,is clearly interested in this goal of converting intermarried couples.Everything else is deception.