Email from a Member of the Allgemeine Rabbinerkonferenz (ARK) on the New German "Zentrales Beit Din" (16 July 2026) (Version 1.0 Redacted)

A redacted copy of an email dated Thursday, 16 July 2026, subject line "The new German Beit Din," sent by a rabbi and member of the Allgemeine Rabbinerkonferenz (ARK), and published here with the explicit permission of the rabbi. The writer articulates views about the recent establishment of a new "Zentrales Beit Din," which he characterizes as delegitimizing the entire Allgemeine Rabbinerkonferenz and its Allgemeine Beit Din "in one fell swoop." According to the email, the new rabbinic court is chaired by two rabbis (names redacted) and is backed by the Jewish Community of Berlin; the author states his understanding that Rabbi Sergio Bergmann (head of WUPJ) accepted the recommendations of Rabbi Lea Mühlstein (head of the EUPJ), who in turn accepted those of Mrs. Irith Michelsohn (head of UpJD). While raising no objection in principle to a parallel Beth Din as an expression of pluralism, the author objects to the new body's asserted total monopoly over all non-Orthodox giyur (conversion) in Germany, its claim that the ARK's Beit Din is no longer valid, and its claim that only its own conversion certificates permit candidates to make Aliyah. The names of the sender and recipient(s), contact details, and large portions of the text body have been redacted. The document is provided as primary-source material for scholarship on the governance and rabbinic authority of non-Orthodox Judaism in Germany; the characterizations it contains are the author's own and are not adjudicated here.