The great immigration wave from the former Soviet Union in the 1990s brought approximately 1 million Russian speakers to Israel. Some were born to non-Jewish mothers, and thus are not viewed as Jews according to Jewish halacha (religious law) in which religion is determined by the mother. It is estimated that there are around 100,000 children and teenagers under age 18 from the former Soviet bloc who live in Israel and are categorized as having “no religion.” They are growing up in Israeli society with distinctly Jewish identities, yet lack one key component: a clear religious identity.

Beyond the identity issue, members of this group are likely to encounter difficult hurdles in the future, mainly with regard to marriage, family status and burial. That is because in Israel, the various religious establishments (Jewish, Christian, Muslim and Druze) are in charge of these three domains, as there are no civil marriages in Israel.

A new initiative called “conversion according to Jewish law,” under Rabbis David Stav and Nahum Rabinowitz — of the Tzohar rabbinical organization, which champions inclusive Judaism while keeping the strict rules of halacha — and other national-religious rabbis, seeks to defuse this ticking time bomb and convert those who are stranded in the “no religion” zone. The rabbis have a two-pronged objective: to ensure the socialization of the youths in Israeli society on one hand, and to avoid a future halachik imbroglio on the other. The future problem is: If and when they marry Jewish Israelis, this could constitute intermarriage and cause assimilation — the situation of Jews marrying non-Jewish partners.

Only recently, on July 5, following demands by the ultra-Orthodox who now are part of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition, the government canceled the conversion law — which was approved just eight months ago by the former Knesset. Now the aforementioned rabbis hope that the Chief Rabbinate will not be able to withstand public pressure and will ultimately be forced to accept the alternative conversion court. For adults, the conversion process includes a long studying period. The conversion candidates are questioned by a rabbinical court about Jewish principles and practices. But the conversion of minors is a much easier process than the conversion of adults and does not entail any period of study or preparation. This is because minors are not obligated to observe the commandments (among other reasons).