On a post on his official Facebook page, Sir Fresh3001 announced his conversion to the Jewish faith, and his reasons for doing so.

“Recently my good friend /u/FinePorpoise announced that he was an adherent of the faith of Islam, having converted some time after he moved to Christchurch. He informed me of his spiritual development shortly afterward, and the subsequent declaration of his faith has encouraged me to do the same. During my first term as Prime Minister I started to reconnect with the faith I once was exposed to, having previously identified as an atheist from an early age. On the 20th of June 2018 I joined the Wellington Progressive Jewish Congregation and began to explore a liberal interpretation of my religion.

“As has occasionally been reported on, my mother is also Jewish - our ancestors were Sephardi Jews who immigrated from Greece shortly after the Balkan Wars and arrived in New Zealand after brief periods living in the United States and Australia. My upbringing was largely irreligious, but I was exposed to Jewish culture through my mother’s side of the family. I do not believe that I have often talked about faith during my time in the public eye, but I regret that at times I held views overly critical of religion, especially the organised kind.

“Progressive (or Reform) Judaism has granted me the opportunity to have a personal relationship with God without the baggage of certain beliefs or practices that I disagree with, found in other denominations of Judaism. Progressive Judaism’s roots in rationalism and the enlightenment are ones which attracted me to the faith, in addition to its tenet of continuous revelation, the emphasis on ethical facets of Judaism, and the ability to formulate my own understanding and expression of my faith. I am especially proud of Progressive Judaism’s historic acceptance and support of gentiles, women, inter-faith marriage and perhaps most significantly, the LGBTQ community.

“My faith does not have an impact on my politics besides its promotion of important values such as justice, truth, loving-kindness, compassion, charity, and self respect. I remain a firm supporter of secular government, as I have all my life. I do look forward to learning more about my faith, in addition to reconnecting with the Jewish identity that I once neglected. My family has been incredibly supportive of this change, especially my wonderful wife Bronagh, and I want to thank them for that. To conclude, while I believe that religion is a personal matter between oneself and God, I also believe that it is important for a representative of the people to be honest about who they are, and that is my main motivation in writing this.”