Boker tov my name is enzi

Good morning everyone. I am so excited about being in this forum. i have been going to the synagogue for a little over a year now and this past Purim i felt a strong draw to start the conversion process and had my first meeting with my rabbi that Friday! i previously was a pastor and still am attending seminary but the focus for me is shifting. i have thought about shifting my major but realized that main reason i am attending my school is for social justice reasons so i realize i can use my degree to practice Tikkun Olam repairing the world. i am excited about hearing other stories and struggling and questioning celebrating mile stones with everyone.

Rabbi Tovia Singer (http://www.simpletoremember.com/articles/a/anti-missionary-mp3s/) says in one of his lectures that he had a Methodist minister contact him, asking to listen to his lecture series, and he wanted it overnight. The rabbi was a little perplexed as to why a minister wanted his tapes so quickly, but they were sent out. A few weeks later, the minister contact him and said that he and his wife had listened to all the tapes and had gone through their bible with a fine tooth comb.

They concluded that Rabbi Singer was correct, the OT did not support the NT in any way. Furthermore, the minister and his wife had decided to convert to Judaism.

There was a little snag, though, as when the minister offered his resignation to the church's board, they wouldn't accept it, because he was under contract. He pointed out that he no longer believed in Jesus; he was becoming a Jew. They said that didn't matter, he had a contract. LOL And, if I'm not confusing his story with someone else's, his sermons on the OT and Judaism have been wildly popular at his church.

So, you're not alone in your switch.

thanks for this reply yes i am so excited about this journey and thankful my co pastor and the other leadership christian leaderships things i have been apart of have graciously released me from my duties even the national boards i have been apart of

Welcome to the forum. How does your Rabbi feel about you continuing in school? Does the school know you are converting or is that something you don't have to tell them?

he knows my school knows there is one Jewish person enrolled a few other people considering converting a few atheists, UU students and other students who are of other religons... thankfully It is not just a Christian school

Welcome to the forum!

I must say, even though I have heard of others who have left their faith to embrace Judaism, I commend your bold move.

What was it that brought you to Judaism? I mean it isn't everyday a pastor just decides to convert!

Especially since Judaism isn't a religion that goes out and seeks converts, although we welcome them with open arms.

what drew me to Judaism? lots of things i will give you the brief answer and maybe a longer version later... the short end is i ha been going to the synagogue as a christian for a long time. i identified as a pre nicene creed christian so felt it was ok not to believe in teh divinity of Jesus. i went to thursday mornign minyan on a regular basis since pass over last year. so i took the hebrew class that was offered to get a better understanding of the services. the class was called prayer book hebrew. in one class i remember realizing that i had a "crush" on Judaism. I was not going to do anything with it. honestly conversion did not seem like a viable option for me. than at purim this year i had an immense feeling of peace and calmness and realization that it made since for me to start the conversion process. and here i am

welcome :-)