For many Israelis, marriage is straightforward and does not take long - but for Lala Mursalov, whose family immigrated to Israel from Azerbaijan, the upcoming wedding, according to herself, became something of a nightmare.

Anyone who wants to get married religiously in Israel must prove that they have a Jewish background to the rabbinate - the religious court in Israel, which also gives marriage permits.

- I went to the rabbinate and presented all my documents, says Lala.

- Documents about my mother, my grandmother and my grandmother who are buried in a Jewish cemetery. Then the investigation into my origin began.

DNA testing is considered proof

But after three months, the rabbinate ruled that Lala's actions were insufficient and she was denied her application for marriage permit.

That's when she heard about a new and unconventional method - with DNA testing that was beginning to be used to investigate Jewish roots and which seemed to be accepted by the rabbis.

She turned to a newly started company that offers just DNA tests to investigate provenance.

Specific gene changes

The test that Lala did examines the mitochondrial DNA. It is a special part of the genes that are only inherited through the mother.

This DNA test then examines genetic relationships with people from areas that have long been dominated by the Jewish population. One looks at a dozen specific gene changes that are common in these particular Jewish groups and compares them to the masses in large databases where DNA from all over the world was collected.

If you get a hit on these gene changes in your DNA test, it can be used as evidence of Judaism, according to the rabbinate.

Contested method

But the method of DNA testing to prove Judaism is very controversial in Israel. Among other things, Israel's former Minister of Defense and Foreign Affairs, Avigdor Lieberman, has gone to Israel's highest court to ban the method which he thinks is racist and unscientific.

But recently, the decision came that the disputed DNA method is now approved in the country's highest court.

How was Lala doing then? She was lucky - her test showed that she seems to be descended from a Jewish group that has long been living in Eastern Europe. So in the end she got her marriage permit and recently she finally married Chen.

More about the increasingly used DNA tests in the world of science: The DNA revolution in SVT2 17/2 at 20:00 and in SVT Play from 16/2. It describes how DNA testing is used both to test health, to get the right to marry and to solve criminal cases.