[8] Some small and formerly isolated ethnic groups of Jews, such as the Kaifengs and Beta Israel, have traditionally practiced a patrilineal form of Judaism.
While broadly referring to anyone with such lineage, it specifically pertains to the Sephardic Bnei Anusim, and has developed conceptually alongside a movement for the descendants of conversos and Crypto-Jews to reconnect with their Jewish ancestry.
[12] Chassidic Rabbi Zadok HaKohen wrote in his work Resisei Layla that "the root of the soul of the seed of Israel can never be upended".
[17][2][16] Because of the unique status of Zera Yisrael in Jewish theology, as well as their growing prominence in Israel, some rabbis (such as Isser Yehuda Unterman, Chaim Ozer Grodzinski, David Tzvi Hoffman, Benzion Uziel, and Haim Amsalem) have suggested adopting more lenient policies that allow people descended from Jews to convert with only a basic understanding and acceptance of Jewish law.
Despite criticism from opponents,[13] there have been cases of pro forma conversions for Zera Yisrael, as well as rabbinical authorities declaring groups of them halakhically Jewish.