Interested in learning more about my faith (Christians, marry, beliefs)
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Hello! I'm a 25 year old woman- my mother is Jewish and my father is Lutheran. My maternal grandfather was born into an orthodox Jewish family, but left his family to marry my grandmother (born into a reform Judaism family) when his family did not support the relationship. My grandparents chose to raise my mother and her siblings without religion as a major factor in their lives- still filled with holiday observances and occasional trips to temple (and tons of yummy Jewish food), but my mother did not have a bat mitzvah. My parents then chose to raise us without religion at all.
I've always been very curious about my faith, and am interested in learning more and perhaps beginning to practice. I feel that I missed out as a child not having these beliefs taught to me, and it's something that I want to be able to do for my future children. The trouble is I'm now living in New York City where I know no one with ties to the Jewish community, and truly don't know where to begin. Can anyone suggest any resources for me or places where I might be able to start? They can be specific to the New York City region or just in general. Thanks!
I am not Jewish and I was raised with no understanding of Judaism.
When I started to work, two of my closest friends were Jewish, and I asked them if there was a good book to read about Judaism. They suggested "Jews, God, and History" so I read it and thought it was great. In fact, I read it three times.
It told about Jewish history within the context of European and Middle-Eastern history, so it gave me a better understanding of my European Christian culture as well.
I am not Jewish and I was raised with no understanding of Judaism.
When I started to work, two of my closest friends were Jewish, and I asked them if there was a good book to read about Judaism. They suggested "Jews, God, and History" so I read it and thought it was great. In fact, I read it three times.
It told about Jewish history within the context of European and Middle-Eastern history, so it gave me a better understanding of my European Christian culture as well.
Hiker, you're awesome, but your story can't be true, at least not the part I bolded.
Shabbos is coming, so if nobody else here explains why I think that, I'll explain when I login next after Shabbos.
I've always been very curious about my faith, and am interested in learning more and perhaps beginning to practice. I feel that I missed out as a child not having these beliefs taught to me, and it's something that I want to be able to do for my future children. The trouble is I'm now living in New York City where I know no one with ties to the Jewish community, and truly don't know where to begin. Can anyone suggest any resources for me or places where I might be able to start? They can be specific to the New York City region or just in general. Thanks!
Powerful first post here in this forum. Welcome, brooklyn1234.
And welcome back to your people. Your family's story is a very sad one. The fact that they were Torah Observant Jews only a few generations ago, and now are entirely without their yiddishkite (their Jewishness), it's wonderful that you are now prepared to come along and do a tikkun (a fixing of what was made wrong).
I'm sure many here will give their suggestions on how to get started coming back. Most of what you'll get from this group will be sound advice, I would expect. I would suggest the very first step would be to google the phrase: "ba'al t'shuvah." That's you!
I agree with theflipflop; that book would be one of the last to recommend to someone wanting to learn about Judaism. His explanation of Jewish thought leaves much to be desired, and much of his historical information has been proven to be inaccurate.
In another thread I listed some of the books my rabbi required for his conversion program:
Welcome! It's always wonderful to see our brothers and sisters returning home to the Jewish community, or at least expressing an interest in it.
I think New York City is a wonderful place to be if you're interested in learning more about your Jewish roots. There are plenty of Jewish people there and plenty of people in each type of community to help you on your path.
Just grabbed a few off of my bookshelf that I like. I suggest you reserve these from the library, and buy the ones you love. Trouble is, I love all of these. Caution: there are some, in general, written by Christians; I recommend you read books about Judaism written by Jews, the more observant, the better. All of the ones below were written by Jewish people to the best of my knowledge.
"Embracing Judaism" by Simcha Kling
"How to Run a Traditional Jewish Household" by Blu Greenberg
Anything by Rabbi Joseph Telushkin, especially "Jewish Literacy" and "Jewish Wisdom"
Pirkei Avos
When I started to work, two of my closest friends were Jewish, and I asked them if there was a good book to read about Judaism. They suggested "Jews, God, and History" so I read it and thought it was great. In fact, I read it three times.
Quote:
Originally Posted by theflipflop
Hiker, you're awesome, but your story can't be true, at least not the part I bolded.
Shabbos is coming, so if nobody else here explains why I think that, I'll explain when I login next after Shabbos.
OK, you caught me!
It wasn't when I started work. It was two years later.
In addition, only one friend suggested the book and loaned me his copy. The other friend simply agreed. I later bought a copy for myself.
They are good friends, even though I kind of grossed them out when I had a glass of milk with lasagna for lunch.
I agree with theflipflop; that book would be one of the last to recommend to someone wanting to learn about Judaism. His explanation of Jewish thought leaves much to be desired, and much of his historical information has been proven to be inaccurate.
I wouldn't know about that because it is the only book I have read about Judaism.
When I first got it, it said the author Max Dimont had also written "The Incredible Jews", so I expected "Jews, God, and History" to have a great deal of pro-Jewish bias.
However, I was pleasantly surprised because I didn't sense much bias. A few times, he bragged about what the Jews had accomplished, so I took that part with a grain of salt.
I especially liked his discussions of middle-eastern history and anti-semitism. Heck, I loved the whole book.
Aaagh... Why not to start with a rabbi? He sure will guide you in the right direction. Blood is already in you. You'' just follow the voice.
A wonderful suggestion, but meeting with any Rabbi can be intimidating to someone at first. It's also great to know a little bit about the religion to come prepared to the meeting. I do agree with this great suggestion, though.
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