Speaker: Mercédesz Czimbalmos, Doctoral candidate in Comparative Religion, Åbo Akademi University (Åbo, Finland)
Chair: Lena Roos, Professor of History of Religion, School of Historical and Contemporary Studies
Discussant: Lukasz Gorniok, PhD in Jewish Studies, European Institute for Jewish Studies in Sweden "PAIDEIA"

Abstract:

International research has recently highlighted intermarriage as key issue for Jewish communities globally. By locating this topic in the wider context of intra-community relations and relating it to the issue of conversion, it sheds light on significant changes in religious practices and challenge taken-for-granted assumptions of boundaries in interreligious and intercultural relationships. The case study presented focuses on discourses around intermarriage and conversion among Finnish Jewry.

Bio:

Mercédesz Czimbalmos is a doctoral student in Comparative Religion at Åbo Akademi University (Åbo, Finland). Her background is in Jewish Studies, Comparative Religion, Cultural Studies and Japanese Studies. Currently, she is working on her doctoral dissertation within the project entitled Boundaries of Jewish Identities in Contemporary Finland (Pl docent Ruth Illman). Her focus is on intermarriages and conversions in Finnish Jewish communities. Between January 2020 and June 2020, she is a visiting doctoral student in Södertörn University.