Converting to Judaism
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Anonymous
Why do you think the Amish don’t convert people? Same reason, religion is only one aspect of the community. And I am not Jewish. |
Anonymous
Amish do accept converts. It’s rare but can happen. |
Anonymous
The Reform movement is very welcoming to interfaith marriages, Jews by choice and non-Jewish spouses. Your daughter and their children will be accepted. My brother is married to someone who is not Jewish and decided not to convert and they are raising their children Jewish. I consider my niece and nephew just as Jewish as my kids (my husband and I are both Jewish). They also celebrate Christmas and Easter with their maternal grandparents bc they are joining in a family celebration. And those grandparents sometimes join them for Passover Seder. Your daughter’s in-laws attitudes may just be part of their personalities and may have nothing to do with religion. |
Anonymous
Hi and welcome! I'm a convert to Judaism (my 12-year conversion anniversary is coming up next month!) and am happy to recommend some books to get you started on your search. I started with: Choosing a Jewish Life by Anita Diamant The Everything Judaism Book by Richard Bank (any Judaism 101 book will do, but this was the one I happened to find) To Life! by Harold Kushner From Darwin to Hitler by Richard Weikart (I actually read this in a college seminar on antisemitism at the same time that I was starting my Jewish journey, but would recommend it or another book on the history of antisemitism to all potential converts; the question of your readiness to face antisemitism will come up at some point in your conversion conversations with your rabbi and/or at your beit din (conversion court), so it's important to try to grasp what you're getting into) The Sabbath by Abraham Joshua Heschel (this is a somewhat dense, but short theology of the Jewish Sabbath and Heschel is one of the most respected modern rabbinic voices) The Tapestry of Jewish Time: A Spiritual Guide to Holidays and Life-Cycle Events by Nina Beth Cardin As a Driven Leaf by Milton Steinberg (this is historical fiction that looks at the early Christian period and one rabbis struggle with faith and logic) As some others have already suggested, when you're ready to take the next step, you should reach out to a rabbi. I would recommend trying different synagogues and different denominations to see what you like and what feels comfortable. You'll find, unfortunately, a lot of misconceptions about conversion to Judaism among both Jews and non-Jews, as you've already seen from some of the responses here. There is a historical precedent that Jews don't proselytize. This is in part because for a long time throughout history in the places Jews lived, it was literally illegal for us to convert people. Also, because Judaism doesn't require anyone to be Jewish to be "saved" or to be a good person, so converting people is just not at the top of the Jewish priority list. That said, converts are definitely welcome in Judaism! It's not necessarily easy to convert. There is a tradition of at least a year of study, in part so that you can experience the full Jewish calendar of holidays before committing to the religion. There are different requirements in the different movements of Judaism, but most will require: 1. a period of study (again, usually a year, but sometimes less or sometimes more) 2. appearance before a beit din (this is a conversion court consisting of three Jewish authorities, usually the rabbi you've been working with and a couple other rabbis or Jewish leaders) 3. for men, circumcision or hatafat dam brit 4. immersion in the mikvah (a ritual bath) My rabbi also required me to volunteer in some aspect of the synagogue (I taught in the Sunday School), attend a monthly Intro to Judaism class, regularly attend Shabbat services, and keep a personal journal about my conversion for my own reflection. Good luck on your journey, wherever it takes you! |
Anonymous
"Conservative" Judaism is a denomination of Judaism, like Reform, Reconstructionist, Orthodox, etc. It refers to the "conserving" of tradition in a modern world, not a political leaning. In much of the rest of the world, the movement goes by "Masorti Judaism" instead. |
Anonymous
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Tell us, do you feel that have you been accepted?
I would love to know if your conversion was related to marriage? Or if you divorced and carried on with the religion, was that awkward? Anyone ever convert and not marry? |
Anonymous
re " immersion in the mikvah (a ritual bath)". I thought that was only for converts to Orthodox Judaism and applied also to Jews who were not originally Orthodox. |
Anonymous
No, it's generally requires across all movements. I converted in the Reform movement and went to the mikvah. I'm now in the Conservative movement and they also require it (because my Reform conversion included a beit din and mikvah, I didn't need to reconvert). If I wanted to become Orthodox, I would need to convert again, including study, beit din, and mikvah. |
Anonymous
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Jewish people have a ritual bath ceremony?
Is it anything like ritual of baptism and how some Christian denominations immerse themselves in water? |
Anonymous
No. |
Anonymous
| It is the Jewish obligation to accept converts once converted , the issue about conversion is how and by whom it was conducted. It is a complex issue and the only place it should be discussed is between the person wanting to convert and his/her rabbi of choice. |
Anonymous
| It is the Jewish obligation to accept converts once converted , the issue about conversion is how and by whom it was conducted. It is a complex issue and the only place it should be discussed is between the person wanting to convert and his/her rabbi of choice. |
Anonymous
Yes, I feel like I've been accepted. Partially, that takes time. I felt self-conscious for the first few years. There is a prohibition in Judaism against oppressing or mistreating the convert, which includes reminding them they converted. I'd love to say all Jews follow it, but they don't. I've found that born-Jews find the idea of conversion a little mystifying. Many born -Jews have said they would never CHOOSE Judaism, because it's too hard, even though they are happy to BE Jewish. So there can be a lot of uncomfortable interest in your conversion that can feel unaccepting. That said, there is the occasional person who is just skeptical of converts and feels it's their duty to gatekeep. It's best to learn how to ignore those people. It also helps that I can "pass" as born Jewish. Converts of color may have a different experience. Even Jews of Color who were born Jewish struggle with people assuming they are converts. It's a problem. I am married to a Jew and we were dating when I started my conversion process. I didn't convert FOR him and would remain Jewish if anything happened to us. This is my family and my community, independent from him. That said, it's certainly easier to be Jewish when you have a supportive Jewish home life, someone to light Shabbat candles with and sing songs, family to spend holidays with, etc. It's doable on your own, but harder. I know people who have converted without a Jewish connection, and they often find it lonely until they are able to integrate more fully into a community. |
Anonymous
No, it's not really like a baptism. In fact, Orthodox Jews use the mikvah year-round for all sorts of ritual cleansing. Women go once a month following their period to be ritually cleansed. And following childbirth as well. Men and women go before their wedding. There are a lot of uses for the mikvah in addition to conversion. A closer comparison to baptism (sort of) within a Jewish context would be brit milah (circumcision) for boys or a simchat bat (celebration of a daughter/girl's naming ceremony) for girls. Both of these rituals bring the baby into the Jewish peoplehood and the covenant with God. |
Anonymous
I'm not sure you realize what you're getting into. Being drawn to the religion is not seen as a credible reason to convert to Judaism. |