Israel's government has enacted one of the most important conversion reforms in the history of the state, potentially making it far easier for citizens to become Jewish.

The law could have a direct bearing on around 330,000 "olim", mostly from the Former Soviet Union, who are not Jewish but entered Israel under the Law of Return, which grants citizenship to people who have Jewish ancestry but who are not necessarily Jewish.

Two decades ago, the state took steps to make it easy for those who want to convert, but the Conversion Authority has been a major disappointment, dogged by bureaucracy and controversy. This week's legislation seeks to rectify this.

The reform, which takes effect in 30 days without need for a Knesset-wide vote, will allow the establishment of some 30 conversion courts, staffed by local state-salaried rabbis, located around the country. If all goes according to plan, they will get conversion running quickly and smoothly.

The law threatened to break apart the government coalition, with its centre-right and left-wing members joining up to force the law through in the face of attempts by the Prime Minister - acting on behalf of potential Charedi political allies - to block it.

Notably quiet in all of this have been would-be converts themselves. There are few angry non-Jewish "olim" who campaigned for the legislation. So why has conversion become such a political hot potato?

It is because the issue cuts to the heart of division over what kind of Judaism should be dominant in Israel's state institutions.

The Charedi community thinks that people wanting to sign up for conversion should be deeply committed to the faith and prepared for a complete lifestyle change. They argue that the reform will mean that 'uncommitted' Jews will be passed by the new system. It feels this so strongly that Sephardi Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef said on Sunday that the rabbinate would not recognise the Jewish status of people converted as a result of the reform.

The religious-Zionist community tends to see conversion not only as a sacred institution, but also as a way of regularising the status of immigrants who arrived under the Law of Return but who do not fully fit in to Jewish society.

Secular liberals, meanwhile, claim that conversion is only a political issue because Israel lacks civil marriage and becoming Jewish is often the way to secure rights to marry in Israel.

This is why Haaretz claimed in its editorial that the reform will "only lower Israel further into the abyss of theocracy".