Calling someone “off the derech” can mean many things, depending on who the speaker is. There are apparently many ways of categorizing someone as off the derech. But at the end of the day, it’s a judgment about someone else, which you should probably avoid when you can. It may matter to know whether someone […]
What If You Don’t Like One of the Mitzvot…Can You Still Convert Orthodox?
One of the biggest disagreements about conversion is kabbalot ol mitzvot, the acceptance of the yoke of the commandments. In case you don’t remember, yoke mean burden, not to be confused with a yolk. Fun fact: the “stock” from “being put in the stocks” is a human yoke. Criminals and slaves were put in stocks. […]
Immediately After Conversion, What Needs to Be Done?
You’re in the mikvah. You have your dips in the water and officially cross over into the obligation in mitzvot. What happens once you get dressed? First mitzvah/bracha. This should not happen in the mikvah because you shouldn’t say a bracha while nude. I think some people hear about the “here, have a candy!” bracha […]
Nullifying Conversions vs. Questioning Conversions
If you’re going to convert, you need to understand a key distinction. There’s a lot of talk since 2006 about nullifying conversions. While a few nullifications have occurred, the general problem is questioned conversions. Nullified conversion: the conversion is void. It was invalid at the time the conversion was performed. The person was never halachically […]
Why Not Be a Noachide?
Born Jews are very quick to throw out the advice that a conversion candidate should “try being a Noachide!” They’re very enthusiastic about this, but I find that they rarely know what it entails, much less what it is really like to be a Noachide. Most can’t even name the seven laws. Yet they are […]
Is a Circumcision Absolutely Required for Male Conversion?
I’m reading an interesting book I plan to review on the blog soon. The book describes a halachic issue that never occurred to me before: Can a man convert if a medical condition prevents him from getting a circumcision? Apparently, according to most authorities, no. In fact, at least one great Rabbi (Rabbi Yehiel Yaakov […]
Converts and Birthright
If you’re young enough, every conversion candidate thinks about the possibility of going on Birthright. I went on Birthright after my conservative conversion, but I was on a trip organized by an orthodox organization and the specific trip was actually labeled as “modern orthodox.” I think that effectively just meant that the trip was shomer […]
Do You Have an Adequate Support System?
Just as there are many baalei teshuva who read this blog, there are many conversion candidates reading Beyond Teshuva, a blog created for BTs. [Grammar note: notice that the plural of BTs is not BT’s. That’s your dose of my crazy for the day.] Last week, Beyond Teshuva had a great breakdown of the kinds […]
Ben Stiller Does a Yom Kippur-themed Saturday Night Live Monologue
I’m a few days late, but last motzei Shabbos, Ben Stiller did a Yom Kippur-themed Saturday Night Live opening monologue. I’d say it’s about average quality for what SNL is putting out these days, but it certainly could have been worse. …Meh. But there was a pretty good Borsht-Belt joke at the beginning: “My father’s […]
Interesting Follow-Up: Active Mormons Misrepresenting Themselves to Convert to Orthodox Judaism
Funny how you hear one thing…and then you run into the same thing 40 times in the next week. Here is a story written by an LDS member two weeks ago about Mormons seeking to convert to orthodox Judaism. It’s very well-written and also fairly represents the Jewish reaction. I’m glad to know both sides are […]
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