Becoming Jewish: The Challenges, Rewards, and Paths to Conversion

by Steven Reuben, Jennifer Hanin

Becoming Jewish is the first all-inclusive, step-by-step guide to converting to Judaism. Steven Carr Reuben, a highly respected rabbi, and Jennifer S. Hanin, a convert to the faith, lead readers through the conversion process, providing the right mix of advice, resources and humor for the journey.
Jews-to-be often find the steps to Judaism foreign, complex, and mysterious. From learning an ancient language, to entering the mikvah (ritual bath), to choosing a Hebrew name, to circumcision, to appearing before a bet din (Jewish court), becoming a Jew is anything but quick and easy. In this engaging and accessible guide, Reuben and Hanin offer practical wisdom for every step of conversion,

Throughout, the authors focus on developing a healthy spiritual life, while helping readers understand what it means to be Jewish, absorb Jewish teachings, and live a Jewish life.

Genres: Judaism, Jewish, Religion, Nonfiction

272 pages, Hardcover

First published September 16, 2011

Reviews

[Skylar · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disclaimer: I have had both a conservative and orthodox conversion. I blogged about conversion for two years with a fair amount of success (and my now-closed blog still attracts 17,000 views a month). I tell you this to give a basis for what I am about to say.

This book is drivel. It has pervasive factual errors. I marked over thirty as bad enough to groan at. The rabbi may be a great reconstructionist rabbi, but he appears to have a superficial (and sometimes blatantly incorrect) understanding of Jewish tradition and law.

But for those of you who have read it, you need at least two very important clarifications. Most notably, you should know that the conservative and orthodox movements do NOT require ANY actual Hebrew language knowledge. You must be able to pronounce Hebrew text aloud, that is all. Not even quickly, for that matter. You do not need to be conversational in Hebrew. Yes, you will learn Hebrew phrases and words, but you won't hold a Hebrew conversation unless you want to learn that.

Secondly, I HATED the chapter about the beit din. You are NOT a failure doomed to never convert if you go to a beit din and they say you aren't ready. It happens to a LOT of people. It is not "rare" or limited to situations where you "whip out a BLT" or profess faith in Jesus. This chapter is not just misleading, but doomed to do significant emotional to harm people who will become good Jews, if not on that day.

[Danielle · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've been working my way through books about conversion and this is probably the most disappointing one yet. Where to begin?

- The book tries for a lighthearted, jokey tone but fails in translation to the page.
- All examples seem centered around one experience of conversion (Jennifer, the author's) instead of trying to incorporate others'.
- Factual errors that even I, as someone who's still studying conversion, caught. In the chapter about keeping kosher, the author asserts that pigs don't have cloven hooves--but they do. (It's that they don't ALSO chew the cud that makes them a no-no.) Also, I don't think dying is forbidden on Shabbat--but dyeing might be.
- Which brings me to this: for a book that seems very centered on a Reconstructionist or very liberal conversion experience, the appendix on types of work forbidden on Shabbat seems mildly out of place.
- The author's example of the anti-Semitism she encountered (seeing a swastika tattoo on someone in public but never interacting with that person, and then hearing a remark from a colleague that was certainly ham-handed and insensitive but questionable as to how anti-Semitic it was) seems quaint at best and insulting at worst six years on, when Jewish community centers are regularly the subject of bomb threats and people's lives are literally at stake.
- The issues of how to deal with celebrating holidays (especially regarding Christmas) are glossed over--the book even recommends converts let their kids sit on Santa's lap. This seems unnecessarily confusing, especially when there are many bright and happy Jewish kids who understand that Santa isn't part of their tradition.
- Even though the rest of the book is very high-level overview, there's a needlessly detailed chapter on Kabbalah.
- The book ends with a discussion of the state of Israel which seems totally out of place for a conclusion. (The conclusion itself is more like a paragraph.)

This book could have benefited from another go-around by an editor, preferably by someone who has some sort of knowledge about Jewish traditions. All in all, it seemed very poorly researched and haphazard. There are better books out there--I would recommend "Your People, My People: Finding Acceptance and Fulfillment as a Jew By Choice" by Lena Romanoff as a similar "Conversion 101" book that's much more relevant than this one. Skip it.

[Kat · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the best book for someone becoming Jewish. It really walks you through the conversion process step by step and gives you notes at the end of each chapter that are important to remember. It is light hearted and gives a lot of jokes and personal experiences from the authors as well as others who have undergone the conversion process. A must-read for those converting!

[howie · Rating 2 out of 5]

this might be a good resource on conversion, but it seems a bit too concerned with older converts with families and a bit too outdated for me. i left feeling a bit confused over this one unfortunately

[Zane Carey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting and informative? Yes.
Thinks Israel is also completely innocent (Palestine bombs and Israel just offers peace!) and the Middle East is violent and antisemitic? Also yes :/

[Courtney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very comprehensive! My ancestry is Jewish but I was raised in another religion, so this book has been EXTREMELY useful and helpful.

[Megan Hoffman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super quick read and very surface level. It’s a nice very first intro to Judaism book but doesn’t offer much if you’re already studying or deep in the process.

[Casey Auch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Useful but not earth shattering

[Shelby · Rating 2 out of 5]

During my conversion I found this to be a beneficial guide to conceptualizing conversion as a process. That being said, I converted Conservative, and there is a lot of information in this book that is relevant to other sectors of Judaism but is incorrect in the Conservative movement. I generally took this more like a personal account of the author’s experiences with conversion rather than a step-by-step in conversion because as anyone who has gone through a Jewish conversion knows, there is no “one size fits all” approach. Also, as other reviewers have mentioned the chapter on the Beit Din was painful and at times downright inaccurate as well as discouraging.

[Tensy (bookdoyen)]

I often get asked for books on this topic. This was just published and I plan to read it, but for those exploring paths to Judaism, those who are simply curious about the meaning of Judaism, and those close to anyone becoming Jewish, you might want to purchase a copy. Reviews say it is a friendly, warm and accessible guide.

[Meg Dean · Rating 3 out of 5]

I took a very long time to finish this book. I really wanted to read it thoroughly and understand everything!

I can honestly say...I am in no danger of Becoming Jewish anytime soon! Judaism has a lot of wonderful qualities, but I still cannot reconcile the 1 god thing...

A wonderful resource for anyone wanting to convert or just learn more about Judaism!

3 stars

[Ron · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a secular Jew, this book is a good quick and simple refresher course.