Nearly everyone who has read the Bible has heard of the story of Ruth. It’s a lovely story, and has a good narrative. Ruth’s story is both a romance and the epitome of the convert’s story. The story goes like this: Naomi has a husband and two sons. They move out of Israel for better economic conditions. Her sons marry non-Jewish women. Her sons and her husband all pass away. The sons and their new wives don’t yet have children.... Read more
So, I have discovered that when you formally make an announcement that you’re converting to Judaism, it angers your friends who are fundamentalist/evangelical/not-practicing-but-still Christian. It is apparently more stressful for them to hear that you’re rejecting Jesus-as-Messiah than to have you not believe in anything at all. But I’ll save that for another post, eh? Right now, I want to talk about leaving Christianity. I was approached by a friend who says I’ll soon be a part of someone’s research about... Read more
I posted before about wanting to do Shabbat more often and have been more-or-less successful at doing that, especially for the past few weeks. My older children seem to enjoy it, despite it being foreign to them. I’m suprised at how easily they have embraced Shabbat traditions. It’s been harder for me to get in the routine than for them, really. But they love it – special plates and a special dinner, lots of bread, usually some desserts, lighting the candles... Read more
I really enjoyed this youtube video. The speaker accurately describes the slow process from one point to another that conversion involves. It’s a process that changes the mind, heart, and soul. What happens is that small truths are unveiled, one by one, until the old faith is no longer home. For me, is started with questioning when I was young. Logically, some things didn’t add up. And in practice, things didn’t add up. My heart was also elsewhere. It has... Read more
Image source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:RoyLindmanDavidsStarAriAshkenaziSynagogue.jpg One question I get asked frequently is, “How long does it take to convert to Judaism?” Lately, the conversation has gone something like this: Them: You converted to Judaism, right? Me: Actually, I’m still in the process. Them: Really? How long does that take? Me: As long as it takes. Them: *blink* Me: Um…somewhere around a year or two. Or until I’m ready…. That usually ends the conversation. There really is no set time for converting to... Read more
Image sourced from thisreidwrites 2013 is a pretty special year when it comes to kicking off the winter sprint of American holidays, because this year Thanksgiving and the start of Hanukkah occur on the same day. It’s being dubbed everything from “Thanksgivingukkah” to “Thanksgivukkah”. I prefer the latter, but I’ve seen it all. Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is annually celebrated by Americans on the fourth Thursday of November. Its status as a national holiday did not occur until former President Abraham... Read more
One of my absolute favorite Jewish bloggers in the entirety of the internet is Rabbi Ruth Adar of The Coffee Shop Rabbi. Her entire blog is geared toward those interested in learning more about living Judaism, either because they weren’t raised religious or because they, like me, are converting. She has posts on everything from being “Jewish enough” to welcoming others to Shabbat meals. It’s a great blog that I recommend subscribing to. So, I swear that Rabbi Adar... Read more
Once upon a time when it was way too late for 18 month-olds to be awake, my son sang gleefully from beneath the covers. “Elmo’s world!” he said as he tapped my phone with fingernail. His feet kicked happily. You see, he’s become quite attached to the show since he discovered it on Netflix. Since then, it’s been the go-to show alongside a few other PBS favorites (Dinosaur Train, better known as “Grr! Roar!” to my toddler, is one such show) when we need a... Read more
Spiritual baggage. We all have it, whether we’ve stayed in our birth religion or if we’ve left it like a bad ex. Like relationship baggage, it tints all new spiritual experiences. We can’t help but compare new experiences, rituals, and beliefs to old ones. It’s a part of how we think, really. We relate one idea to another, and then form new ideas. Christianity, especially the more fundamental or conservative branches, seems to cause some hefty spiritual baggage for individuals,... Read more
Following Ruth
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