Editing Reform Judaism (section)

===Jewish identity===
While opposed to [[Interfaith marriage in Judaism|interfaith marriage]] in principle, officials of the major Reform rabbinical organisation, the [[Central Conference of American Rabbis]] (CCAR), estimated in 2012 that about half of their rabbis partake in such ceremonies. The need to cope with this phenomenon – 80% of all Reform-raised Jews in the United States wed between 2000 and 2013 were [[Intermarried Jews in the Holocaust|intermarried]]<ref name="Cohen"/> – led to the recognition of [[Matrilineality in Judaism|patrilineal descent]]: all children born to a couple in which a single member was Jewish, whether mother or father, was accepted as a Jew on condition that they received corresponding education and committed themselves as such. Conversely, offspring of a Jewish mother only are not accepted if they do not demonstrate affinity to the faith. A Jewish status is conferred unconditionally only on the children of two Jewish parents.

This decision was taken by the British Liberal Judaism in the 1950s. The North American [[Union for Reform Judaism]] (URJ) accepted it in 1983, and the British [[Movement for Reform Judaism]] affirmed it in 2015. The various strands also adopted a policy of embracing the intermarried and their spouses. British Liberals offer "blessing ceremonies" if the child is to be raised Jewish, and the MRJ allows its clergy to participate in celebration of civil marriage, though none allow a full Jewish ceremony with ''[[chupah]]'' and the like. In American Reform, 17% of synagogue-member households have a converted spouse, and 26% an unconverted one.<ref name="Co2"/> Its policy on conversion and Jewish status led the WUPJ into conflict with more traditional circles, and a growing number of its adherents are not accepted as Jewish by either the [[Conservative Judaism|Conservative]] or the [[Orthodox Judaism|Orthodox]]. Outside North America and Britain, patrilineal descent was not accepted by most. As in other fields, small WUPJ affiliates are less independent and often have to deal with more conservative Jewish denominations in their countries, such as vis-à-vis the Orthodox rabbinate in Israel or continental Europe.