The Bar Ilan Forum for the Study of Religion (BIFSR) represents a groundbreaking initiative in religious scholarship, transcending traditional academic boundaries. Founded at the prestigious Bar Ilan University, home to the world's biggest faculty of Jewish studies, BIFSR fosters a truly interdisciplinary and comparative approach to studying the world's major faiths through innovative research methods. The Forum is a continuation of a research group that has operated in recent years under the auspices of the Rector and the World Union of Jewish Studies.

By embracing diverse perspectives from the humanities, social sciences, sustainability studies and cultural studies, BIFSR enables comprehensive exploration of religious phenomena and theology. The forum's comparative orientation allows uncovering general insights that illuminate connections binding religions, without limiting its scope to Abrahamic faiths alone.

A key focus is examining Judaism's principles and practices through a comparative lens with other world religions. This unique approach promises profound insights into the rich diversity and shared spiritual resonances across religious traditions.

Crucially, BIFSR aims to cultivate international research collaboration by establishing dedicated cross-disciplinary groups. Bringing together scholars globally, the forum nurtures an environment of open discourse to advance inter-religious dialogue, cultural exchange, and religious tolerance.

Through its commitment to academic excellence and visionary comparative study of religions, BIFSR stands poised to redefine the boundaries of knowledge in this field.

The Forum was established through the joint academic leadership of Prof. Hanoch Ben-Pazi from the Department of Jewish Philosophy, who also serves as the President of the Israeli Association for the Study of Religions, and Prof. Shlomy Mualem from the Department of Comparative Literature. The Academic Director of the Forum is Dr. Yishai Spivak.