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​Why I want to be Jewish

OKTOBER 23, 2018

I have been asked this questions a million times, and I have never answered as honestly as now. With this article I want to give all my Jewish friends the full explanation why their religion is such a precious treasure that it makes other people leave their lives behind to join their faith and their nation. And I want to explain to all my non-Jewish friends why and for what have I suddenly left everything behind to join an unfamiliar religion. 

Usually my answer would be that I just felt a strong connection from the first moment, but obviously there are many much deeper reasons. 

Values
From the very first moment I could see that Judaism is so much more than just a religion. One big aspect of Judaism are the values and ethics. When I made my first Jewish friends, I was impressed by their family and future oriented values. Judaism provides a perfect guideline of what is ones role and ones responsibility regarding family and the society and of how to treat each other. I love to see that Jewish young men live for their children and that Jewish young women can thrive in being a woman. I wish to educate my children with those Jewish values for a better world in the future!

Meaningfulness
I find incredibly much meaning behind every single Jewish ritual (as I wrote in my article about Sukkot). It feels like, every ritual makes us understand this life a little bit more. It makes us learn something about ourselves and about the world we live in. One of my favorite rituals has always been the Lulav and Etrog. By combining the four species, Jews recognize importance of existence of different kinds of people and that a nation can't exist without one of them. You can transfer this example to so many other areas of life and it makes you give value to weaker parts of the whole, instead of judging them. On a more spiritual or cabalistic level, the same ritual has an even deeper meaning. I can find those meanings especially in every High Holiday and God-given Jewish ritual. But those meanings are not just to be understood as symbolisms. They give us a chance to grow immensely on a spiritual level by integrating their messages into our lives. That is what makes Judaism so special! 

Truth
When I started to learn Gematria, the teaching of numerological values of letters of the Torah, I realized that the perfection of letter and word combinations cannot have been created by humans. I had to acknowledge the divine as the creation of everything. But especially of the Torah. 

Higher potential of spiritual growth 
The Jews accepted upon them 613 commandments, while non-Jews have to fulfill only 7 commandments. That means, that Jews have a much bigger responsibility to fulfill. But at the same time, they own the treasure of a higher potential of spiritual growth. While non-Jews can make 7 steps towards God, Jews have the potential of making 613 steps towards God. Seven steps for me are not enough, I want to keep growing, although it means to carry the weight of 606 more responsibilities. But those rules are not only responsibilities - they are especially opportunities!
​
My Home
I just feel that Judaism and Israel is where I belong to!

If you are converting or finished your conversion, please share with me your reasons why you want to be Jewish in the comments! 

By Ilana Schiffner

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7 Comments

SIMONE NELSON
NOVEMBER 15, 2018

Wow this blog is such a treasure and I'm so glad I've found it. I also blog about my Orthodox Jewish conversion to Judaism. Thank you so much for being willing to share this journey with us. B'H. Simone x simoneesther.com

ILANA
NOVEMBER 21, 2018

Wow I am impressed! Makes me so happy to find another person who shares the same story! 

LIZETH
NOVEMBER 05, 2018

Hello, my name is Lizeth, I'm from Ecuador, 5 years ago I practice Jewish life, and it's wonderful, thank you! for sharing your experience, I would like to be able to convert soon!
I have a question, what is the process that I must follow to start my conversion here in Ecuador I have not been able to find an exact guide or help to start my journey, I practice Jewish life 5 years ago, as kosher preparo kosher, use the mikvè, I observe Shabbat, I love everything, but I do not know how to become or who to turn to, regards! :)

ILANA
NOVEMBER 12, 2018

Lizeth,  unfortunatelly I can't give you precise information about a conversion process. But there is a person from Ecuador in our conversion community. If you join us you can exchange with him!

TALIA
NOVEMBER 05, 2018

Beautiful Ilana! I can relate to all your reasons! Converting is such a mysterious and beautiful thing to do. I find it both edifying, mystifying some days!

RACHEL
NOVEMBER 04, 2018

Hi. I have a question. Did you pursue college education first? I want to convert but I'm not sure if I should finish my degree and then convert. Or do both at the same time? How did you adjust career wise? Did you have to abandon career pursuits that were different than Judaism? - thanks. Sorry for all the questions.

ILANA
NOVEMBER 04, 2018

Hi Rachel, I finished my university studies first and then started to convert I am sure you can do both at the same time. If you really want to convert, I would actually recommend you to start as soon as you feel ready, because the process takes quite a long time. I had to pause my career because I am converting in Israel and we don't have work permission in Israel while converting, if you are not a permanent Israeli resident. Feel free to ask me any questions, I am happy to help and inspire :) 

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About Me

Welcome to "Jewishbychoice"! 
I am Ilana! 
​German, 28 years old, converted to Orthodox Judaism, currently living in Israel. Fascinated by Torah, Spirituality and Jewish values.
​Today I share my experiences on my blog and assist people in their conversion process. I teach weekly Judaism classes and offer professional conversion coaching.

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