Madonna Toasts New Year With Israeli Prez

Singer flip-flops between Christianity, Kabbalah, Hinduism...

(NEWSER) - Britney Spears was raised a Baptist, but her latest accessory—a Star of David necklace—led the New York Daily News to take a look back at the religions she’s tried out:

• In 2003, it looked as though she would be one of Madonna’s Kabbalah converts, and she started sporting a red string bracelet believed to ward off the “evil eye.”

And it thinks it has found evidence that it's on the right track

(NEWSER) - All it took was a prophecy. That was enough to launch Shefa Yamim, an Israeli mining firm that has spent more than a decade combing the hills and valleys around Haifa for diamonds, something no one ever expected to find in Israel. "It's a mission," CEO Avi Taub tells Reuters . "We're talking about divine providence." Taub, an Orthodox Jew, founded the company based on a remark that renowned Brooklyn rabbi Menachem Schneerson made back in 1988. More»

Facebook page asks government to hold off until after concert

(NEWSER) - Madonna is coming to Israel, and her hardcore fans there are begging the government to please hold off on a potential war with Iran, just at least until after Madonna's concert. The Israeli Madonna nuts are spreading the word through a Facebook group called "Bibi don't star a war with Iran until after Madonna's show on May 29," reports the New York Daily News . (Bibi, of course, is Benjamin Netanyahu's nickname.) If President Obama's recent comments are a guide, the show should be safe. More»

Drew Barrymore, converting to Judaism, is the latest

(NEWSER) - Drew Barrymore is getting married , but first she's—reportedly—converting to Judaism, the religion fiance Will Kopelman practices. She follows the tradition of these seven other celebrity spouses (or not-quite-spouses) who did the same thing, notes The Frisky :

• Isla Fisher: Converted to Judaism for Sacha Baron Cohen.
• Jesus Luz: Started following Kabbalah for Madonna.

Ex-CFO aims to 'bring down' operation

(NEWSER) - The Kabbalah Centre in Los Angeles is taking center stage as details emerge on a federal probe involving two of Madonna’s charities . The IRS is investigating whether the family in charge of the organization used its nonprofit dollars for personal gain, sources tell the Los Angeles Times . The Berg family, the Centre, and the singer’s Raising Malawi charity all face a grand jury probe. More»