When Jewish families shift from excluding interfaith marriages to embracing them, they often create an unexpected paradox - denying Gentile partners the very autonomy needed for authentic religious commitment. Through qualitative analysis of interfaith couple interactions with rabbinical authorities, Wasserman reveals a fundamental contradiction in how Jewish communities attempt to maintain cultural and religious continuity. This dynamic places rabbis in an impossible position, forced to simultaneously validate intermarriage while preserving core religious principles. By examining couple dynamics, family pressures, and rabbinical responses, the research identifies deep conflicts between partners' incompatible expectations of religious validation. Interfaith couples frequently use rabbis as proxies for unresolved relationship tensions, with Jewish partners seeking to minimize religious differences while Gentile partners seek acknowledgment of their distinct identity. The findings suggest that rabbinical disengagement from this intermediary role may reduce institutional stress and create space for more authentic Jewish commitment by fostering individual autonomy and genuine choice in religious identification.