<![CDATA[JEWISH CONVERSION CHICAGO BLOG]]> http://www.jewishconversionchicago.com/blog.html en-us Fri, 23 Nov 2007 13:06:42 GMT <![CDATA[Watch for conversion posts at www.rabbireflects.blogspot.com from now on.]]> http://www.jewishconversionchicago.com/blog.html?p=57

Watch for conversion posts at www.rabbireflects.blogspot.com from now on.




I'm posting all my conversion related posts now only on www.rabbireflects.blogspot.com

From now on, those interested in conversion related posts should go to www.rabbireflects.blogspot.com, my general blog.  It just became overwhelming trying to keep up posts on all my blogs pus videos plus my Rabbi position. I'll label all posts about conversion as conversion in the heading there so you'll know.

Thanks for viewing and God you.


]]> Fri, 23 Nov 2007 13:06:42 GMT <![CDATA[Changes from the course]]> http://www.jewishconversionchicago.com/blog.html?p=56 Rabbi,



We both thought we should give you an update on how we're doing with the course. First of all, we want to start out again with the fact that we love the way that you've organized this, and that

we're so happy to have this opportunity. Here is an update from each of us:



The past few weeks have been truly amazing for me. We do a lot of studying as full-time students but it is such a nice contrast to study Judaism and stimulate the spiritual part of my existence.     Shabbat has become such an important element in our lives. We weren't as traditional in our observance of Shabbat until this year. However, when we realized how important keeping this commandment is we have been strictly observant, and it has really benefitted us and made us stronger as a family. Shabbat is especially important to us because we are always so busy, and it is amazing how much more slowly time goes by when Friday night rolls around! It is a good time to reflect on life and spend some quality time together as a family. 

Another change I have noticed is that I am becoming more and more comfortable with my identity around my family. My mom, a Catholic, is very accepting of the fact that I'm converting. She has told me that she's happy that I've found something meaningful to follow, and that I have her full support in becoming a Jew. My father, unfortunately, is not so open-minded and is really struggling with accepting it. However, I have learned that the more prepared I am for questions, the better the outcome of our conversations are. So thank you for all your YouTube videos on the subject, they have helped me tremendously! So far I have been successful at finding common ground with my father and stressing that I have nothing against his religion, it's just not for me and not what I believe. I'm sure you know that the holidays are one of the biggest sources of tension for families, but we have all compromised and decided to say "Holidays" instead of "Christmas" or "Hanukkah".



I feel like I've grown so much as a Jew; it's hard to say exactly what I mean by this, but I have so much more spiritual confidence in who I am and what I believe than I ever have before, and that's a great feeling. Also, over the past month I've made some changes that came as a surprise to myself. For example, I've begun to add elements of kashrut that I didn't observe before. I didn't really eat pork anyhow, but I would occasionally have something with pork in it. Now, I've stopped. The moment came at a dinner party recently where scallops were served. While Yvette already didn't eat pork or shellfish, I've always liked scallops, and they looked pretty appetizing, but at the same time they unexpectededly turned me off, and I knew I shouldn't eat them. I passed them up, and afterward felt great that I had. So I'm off of the treyf food, and it just feels like the right thing to do. It's a really good example of how the mitzvot are commandments, not simply "good deeds" that we should follow as the mood strikes us, and that we should try to follow them first without necessarily understanding quite why until later, or at all. (although I did want to ask you about meat/milk...what about chicken? From what I've read, the prohibition was put in place in the Talmud so that a kid or calf might never accidently be served in its mother's milk, but with poultry, since they don't produce milk, couldn't an arguement be made that that's okay?) I don't know, it's something I was curious about that I haven't been able to find a good answer to yet...

In general, one of the most major changes (to summarize the above) is that we have become more traditional in our approach to Judaism after starting your course. Before that, we thought we most identified with Reform. We didn't think the rituals were as important, or that we could get as much out of observing them; we really only focused on the essential beliefs and ethics. But once we actually started being more observant, the rituals became really meaningful to us, and we both realized how completely wrong we had been before. Not that there's anything wrong with Reform, but for us, after studying and learning and practicing more as we have been, Conservative Judaism is the perfect fit for us, and that's entirely thanks to your expertise as a teacher and guide for showing us the way. Thank you for letting us discover something so valuable.



Shalom,





]]> Fri, 23 Nov 2007 11:20:37 GMT <![CDATA[Worthy to convert?]]> http://www.jewishconversionchicago.com/blog.html?p=55  just wanted to tell you that I've been loving your videos. I see that you've been doing this for a very long time. Your congregation must love you!



I'm not (yet) a Jew, but since my earliest memory, I've been drawn to Jewish people, Jewish music, and to better understanding of Judaism. It's really the only faith centered around one G-d, that in my humble estimation makes any sense. I say that I'm not yet a Jew in that I don't know if I am ready or even equal to the task of making the kinds of commitments expected to converting and living Jewishly.



I was raised as a Mormon, which has many ideas about Jews and Judaism, many of which are uninformed or erroneous. But, I suppose the same could be said for a lot of other traditions.



Anyway, I appreciate the loving clarity you put into your videos. They are helpful in answering many of my questions.



Warmest regards,


 


 


Rabbi Jonathan Ginsburg

]]> Sun, 18 Nov 2007 20:28:12 GMT <![CDATA[Conservative Conversion standards]]> http://www.jewishconversionchicago.com/blog.html?p=54  Rabbi Jonathan Ginsburg, a graduate of the Jewish Theological Seminary (Conservative Judaism), a member of the Rabbinical Assembly of America (Conservative Judaism) and an associate member of the Reconstructionist Rabbbinic Association, directs the actual conversion requirements.

]]> Fri, 16 Nov 2007 03:08:11 GMT <![CDATA[Progress report]]> http://www.jewishconversionchicago.com/blog.html?p=53
Shalom Rabbi Ginsberg,



I writing to introduce myself.  You have







been emailing my husband about our conversion to







Judaism. I am happy to say that we have still be







studying and are trying really hard to learn and write







in Hebrew. I have been listening to the memorization







CD and have really picked up a lot of things from it.







I used to have to look at the words when saying the







Candle Blessing but now I can say it without having to







look. I can say other prayers as well. I am trying







really hard to make sure that I keep on track with the







Kosher eating. Where I work we have food almost every







day and sometimes it's so hard not to just get







everything on the table. You know in the South we like







our Bacon. We are also still teaching our son how to







say things in Hebrew. He does say Shalom every time we







see someone.















On a different note. I have told my aunt a lady that







raised me since I was 8 that I am converting to







Judaism and she got really upset and started telling







me that I need to remain Christian because if I didn't







believe in Jesus then I would not get in Heaven. She







also told me that I needed to live my life according







to the new testament. I tried to explain to her that I







am doing this for me. I was raised as Baptist since I







lived with her, however I have been to many different







denominations and never found the right place. I can







tell that when I went to church on Sunday mornings the







youth group would sit in the back pew of the church







and take bets on what time we would get out and







whoever lost had to buy lunch. I finally realized that







we it came down to it I was just going through the







motions and emotions that came along. It never really







meant anything. I don't won;t to bore you but there







are certain feelings that one gets when singing or







even hearing a song and that is what happened the







night I got baptized. They played a song and I got







this weird feeling like I was supposed to but when the







song quit I didn't have that feeling any longer.















I guess you could say that when my husband I started







watching your videos, I knew then that I had Jewish







roots. I can say that I have learned more from your







videos than the whole time I was in church.







Unfortunately we don't have a synagogue here in our







town, so we can't wait to come visit with you and your







wife and the congregation. You all have helped so much







with our conversion into Judaism so much and I would







like to say THANK YOU. I learning how to cook kosher







also. I want to also say that with us observing







Shabbat we have become closer as a family and have







become closer to our friend who is converting also. I







like the TRADITIONS. If there is any advice that you







could provide us what would it be?















Thank you for taking the time to read this and I am







sorry for the life story. I just thought since you







have heard from my husband and our friend you should







also here from me as well. Looking forward to finally







meeting you.















Best Regards











































Shalom Rabbi Ginsberg,















So nice to hear from you. So glad you are making good progress. Keep it up. Thanks for the background. I'm sorry your aunt feels that way. You will encounter many, especially in the evangelical world, who feel that way. Just be confident in yiour path and make sure she knows you lobve her anyway and she is not losing you as a neice, you've just found a different spiritual path to God that is better for you. You can watch my Jesus and jews and Jews not for Jesus series whenever you feel the need for balance there.




Are there any other Jews in your town or area?



































]]> Thu, 15 Nov 2007 18:54:34 GMT <![CDATA[Our conversion institute]]> http://www.jewishconversionchicago.com/blog.html?p=52 Study with us in our conversion institute. This Chicago based institute for Jewish conversion has continuous classes which are completed in a five month cycle approximately of 16 weeks of classes.  This Chicago Jewish conversion program is the largets in the Metro area.






see our website www.jewishconversionchicago.com






]]> Thu, 15 Nov 2007 18:45:10 GMT <![CDATA[unchurched Chrisitian studying Judaism]]> http://www.jewishconversionchicago.com/blog.html?p=50 Shalom Rabbi,



I have just discovered this website and your teachings on Jewtube.   

Thank you for providing these teachings.  They are helpful for me.  I 

am a gentile who has left the church and have been unlearning what I 

have learned for the last several years.  Believe it or not, it was 

the teachings of Jesus that has brought me to this point.  That may 

sound weird, but I believe that Jesus was a righteous Jew (not 

messiah and not G-d) and a good teacher.  Maybe a little crazy, but 

still it was what he said that has brought me here.  He said that we 

are to follow the teachings of those who are at the seat of Moses.  

That would mean that the Jewish laws that apply to me as a gentile 

are what I should follow.  It would also meant that those who made 

the judgement that Jesus is not Messiah would also apply to me..... 

thus..... Jesus cannot be Messiah(there are other reasons as well, 

but I don't want to beat a dead horse here).  And I'm ok with that.  

I am to trust in Adonai anyway... he is my salvation.



My wife on the other hand was raised in a Christian home and her 

father is a pastor of a church.  Although she has given up all pagan 

celebrations with me (christmas and easter) she is still thinking 

Jesus is Messiah.  But, she is open for discussion on the subject and 

does not reject what I believe and what I teach our children.  She is 

a good woman and I'm glad to be married to her.



Anyway...... I was just writing this note to tell you I'm glad you 

are here.  I plan on watching your videos and visiting your website 

and blogsite.  I don't have a synagogue to attend here in Iowa.  Most 

of the synagogues are several miles away and I don't much like 

driving that far on Saturday.  I do believe their is a conservative 

synagogue in Ottumwa, IA which is about 45 miles from my house, but 

I'm not sure.  Perhaps you can suggest one.



Thanks for reading this note and thanks for providing your teachings 

for others to learn from.  I do have several gentile friends (in 

other states) who have left the church and are wanting to learn the 

Torah correctly.  I will tell them about you.



Best regards,


 


 


rabbi jonathan ginsburg

]]> Tue, 06 Nov 2007 00:59:28 GMT <![CDATA[get the word out]]> http://www.jewishconversionchicago.com/blog.html?p=49


I just wanted to say that I love your YouTube channel. I converted to Conservative Judaism back in August after "doing" Jewish for over a year. In one of your recent videos on how to share that it's possible to convert in a "kosher" way, as it was, I thought you hit the nail on the head--I would have been Jewish so much sooner if I'd only known. Stupid me, it didn't occur to me until right before I began the process to convert that I could. I never heard about anyone converting for anything other than marriage. Once I realized that it must be possible without marriage, I was at a synagogue--my synagogue.



Thanks for helping to get the word out, even if it just starts with fellow Jews being willing to put up a sign that says you're welcome to join.



You rock.
]]> Mon, 05 Nov 2007 14:25:42 GMT <![CDATA[Jews-in-priocess via the eworld]]> http://www.jewishconversionchicago.com/blog.html?p=48
Thursday, November 1, 2007





Dear Rabbi Ginsburg,



I hope this email finds you, your family, and congregation doing well.



My name is vvv and I am best friends with mm you students.. I have also decided to

become a Jew and have been watching your video series regarding Judaism. Tim said that he had

mentioned me in a recent email, but I wanted to personally write you to introduce myself.



I am a Ph.D. student studying psychology, but also have degrees in history and political science.

I love people and am interested in using my knowledge of human behavior (past, present, & future)

to help others and to contribute to making this a better world. There are so many challenges

facing us in the 21st century and I'm trying to acquire the expertise to make a difference in this

world (noting that we can all make a difference each day in the lives of those we have contact

with). My dissertation is entitled, "Understanding Conflict & Violence Through the Application of

Behavioral Analysis" and I hope to use this eclectic model I am developing to help identify the

potential for conflict/violence at its earliest stages so that (hopefully) proactive measures can

be taken to prevent bad things from happening or at least to mitigate their negative consequences.

In situations where conflict/violence is already occurring, this model can be applied to help

identify what is driving the conflict and, hopefully, help provide remedies to end the cycle of

violence. There's a lot more to this, but this gives you a basic idea of what I'm working on

right now. In addition to enjoying being with people, I love to go backpacking, hiking, cave

exploring, golfing, play tennis, and other outdoor activities. Music is also a passion of mine.



We, and I have all decided to begin the process of converting to Judaism and have greatly

enjoyed watching your videos. You'll be happy to know that we have been meeting several times a

week to watch the videos on Judaism and take notes and discuss the topics in the videos, just as

though we were sitting in an actual class. We've learned a lot and feel like we have gotten close

to you and your wife (and we've gotten a kick out of seeing different parts of your home and

synagogue). Just as important, we have also been growing closer in our relationship with G-d. We

are also trying to do our best to live Jewishly, celebrate Shabbat each week, and are learning

Hebrew. I speak several languages so learning Hebrew is fairly straight-forward, but his wife, seems to have an even better gift for learning languages and her progress is quite

impressive ( Their 3-year-old son, , is also picking

up Hebrew and it is cute to hear him say, "Shalom, Abba!" and "Boker tov, Eemah!" When people

come over to the house, he alsoo greets them with, Shalom!" We can say the Shema

and some other prayers in Hebrew and are also learning various Hebrew phrases. Heand I also

wear our kippahs around town (which gets us some interesting looks) and are trying to live as

Kosher as possible. It's interesting that eating Kosher is eating healthy and a good way to

perhaps avoid or delay several ailments such as heart disease, diabetes, stroke, and cancer. He

also bought his wife a silver Star of David necklace (which she wears all the time) and I think it's

sweet that he calls her his "Jewish princess" as they now feel more Jewish than the past with the

actual conversion process.



After watching your videos, I think one of the things I like most about Judaism is the concept of

"Live, Love, and Learn." I believe G-d wants us to enjoy the life He has given us, love Him and

one another (and demonstrate it by our lives), and learn all we can about His will for our lives

and this magnificent universe He has created. The best way to do this, of course, is by studying

the Tanach, Torah, Talmud and making what we learn relevant to our lives. This would be a much

better world if we all did this. We have much to learn, but I believe we are off to a good start

and appreciate your interest and all of your help!



Rabbi Ginsburg, although we haven't met, yet, in person, We I feel like we know you

through your videos and consider you to be our Rabbi and your synagogue to be our congregation.

It's too bad that we live out in the middle of nowhere, but we do the best we can and the Internet

helps. We are all looking forward to studying the various books we just ordered from you

regarding conversion to Judaism and will continue to hold our classes several times a week, takes

notes, discuss, etc. as with the videos. We are also looking forward to making the journey up

there to the Chicago area to meet you and your congregation in person and to complete the

conversion process, hopefully by March 2008 or thereabouts. We realize, however, that completing

the conversion process is merely the beginning of a life-long pursuit of knowing G-d and His will

for our lives and of enjoying the relationships and life He has blessed us with.



At any rate, I thought I would send you this little greeting and look forward to corresponding

with you. Have a GREAT day and keep up the good work!








]]> Thu, 01 Nov 2007 14:08:03 GMT <![CDATA[progress report]]> http://www.jewishconversionchicago.com/blog.html?p=47


I'm just writing to let you know that everything is on track, and that I am learning so many new things every day. I never knew how wonderful Judaism really is, so far everything has been a real eye opener. I have set aside a part of my day just to study, and I find myself utilizing other spare time for study as well, I have purchased the book by Abraham Chill concerning the mitzvot, and found it fascinating and read it cover to cover in one sitting.
 

wonderful. amazing book

 

 I am wondering though what your thoughts are on actually beginning to live a Jewish life at this time. For example what should I be doing at this time besides learning? I have read that one should not celebrate Shabbat until one actually completes the conversion process, and also should I be following kashrut rules at this time?

 

 start observing. don't listen to the stuff about waiting. its just you are not commanded yet.



I have also been contemplating what Hebrew name I should choose, as there is no direct translation of my name I am having a hard time choosing. There are so many personalities that I admire, so it is difficult selecting the right one. Do most people change their name legally , or do they only use it for religious purposes. I would not have a problem with that if it was necessary.



I understand that I still have a long way to go but I know now that I have finally found where I belong. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.


 

call anytime. sounds like you are doing great  847-331-3584
]]> Thu, 25 Oct 2007 15:23:35 GMT