Converting to Judaism

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:NP here. Can non-Jewish people attend services?

Yes, although keep in mind that for certain services (primarily the high holidays -- Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur) you need tickets, and they are very expensive for non-members. Also keep in mind that, particularly outside of reform congregations, much of the service will be incomprehensible to someone who doesn't know Hebrew. Conservative congregations tend to have 95-100% of the services in Hebrew. Reform congregations will have more English, but the core part of the service--the reading of the Torah portion for the week and the accompanying prayers--will be in Hebrew.

Regarding the conversion point: you can convert, and a reform and likely conservative congregation should facilitate that. It's a long process, though, like many have said. Also keep in mind that some (if not actually many) Jews will not consider you fully Jewish just because you converted. There's an ethnic component to Judaism and obviously you can't acquire that. So before converting, I'd be sure to find a congregation that would be welcoming of converts without any Jewish ancestry. Like others have said, you're very likely to get nowhere--and may encounter hostility--if you approach an Orthodox congregation.

My experience with the bolded is...yes and no. I’ve attended high Holy Days services at several synagogues, and while some of them do charge for tickets, some welcome nonmember for free with open arms. My current synagogue doesn’t check tickets at all.

While the Torah portion is read in Hebrew, most Reform & Conservative synagogues have Tanach books you can take to your seat, where you can read the passage in English. The portion is almost always read in English after the Hebrew in Reform synagogues, and there’s always an explanation of the portion. So no one need be in the dark.

-PP with a non-Jewish DH