It’s a question that has been asked over and over again for as long as Judaism has been a religion – who is a Jew? The answer is elusive, nearly impossible to pin down as Jews have settled in every corner of the globe and put down roots among various cultures and communities. As our diversity has grown over the millennia to include Jews and Jewish families of all types of backgrounds, our Big Tent has ably expanded to include nearly all those in our midst. But too many are still left on the periphery, so the guidelines that traditionally define who is a Jew, writes JOI associate executive director Paul Golin in the Huffington Post, “must be expanded if the Jewish community — particularly the American Jewish community — is to remain relevant well into the 21st century.”

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