Converting to Judaism?

Question

Is it difficult to convert to Judaism? If I don't enjoy it, can I like stop being Jewish? Will it matter to the Jewish community that I'm Chinese, will they still accept me?

I know my last question may be a bit offensive but I know that some people are selective and prejudiced.

Answer 1

It would not matter to the Jewish community that you are Chinese. There are many converts who are Asian.
Converting to Judaism is a serious commitment. If you choose to convert the Orthodox way, you need to take classes on Judaism, and celebrate the Jewish holidays for a year before you make a final decision on whether or not to convert.
The Jewish view is that if you were born Jewish or if you converted to Judaism, you cannot stop being Jewish.
Whether or not you are a practicing Jew is up to you, but your choices do not detract from your Jewish essence.

Answer 2

it is difficult to convert but not impossible. First they make sure you are choosing the path for the right reason. They try to discourage you, not because of any racism or prejudice but simply because they know it's a hard process and want to make sure you know it too. You can opt out any time of course during the process, for no one holds a gun to your head. However, if you still have doubts you should do more research before starting conversion, to see if it is really for you.

And as for being chinese, I'd love to say it doesn't matter and technically it doesn't. However, if you fall on the wrong rabbi or a close minded community you might come across racism. I hate to admit it, but I am certain it exists in some communities.

As for the conversion you should be aware that Judaism is a community based religion and many of the ceremonies and rituals require a group of people. Therefore to convert you have to live within such a community. If you currently live in a big city then there should not be a problem, but if you are in a small out of the way town conversion is impossible unless you actually move to a city with a Jewish community.

Good luck to you!

Answer 3

It is a really long process converting to Judaism, or at least it is in South Africa. You have to prove to them that you really want to do it, and it take a long time for them to decide that you have proved yourself. Then you have to spend a lot of time studying the religion and the traditions and learn to speak Hebrew and you have to spend alot of time in shul and will be invited to many families to celebrate shabbat because they want you to get a feel for the religion and become a part of it.

You can physically stop being Jewish, you can convert back to whatever religion you like, but the Jewish community will always consider you as a Jew. Once a Jew, always a Jew. Its a lifelong committment, and if you decide you don't want to be a part of it, as hard as you try, you will always be a part of the community.

They will most definitely accept you, regardless of what race or gender you are. It really doesn't matter that you are chinese, as long as you really want to be Jewish, they don't take notice of your ethnicity!

Answer 4

From the Jewish point of view, it doesn't matter if you're a Jew or Gentile. God is accessible to every person. So, there is no reason to convert to Judaism.

God game all mankind (both Jews and Gentiles) 7 universal laws.
The Noahide Covenant:
http://www.highcouncilofbneinoah.org

Information on the ancient Jews of China:
http://www.sino-judaic.org/pointseast/index.html

Answer 5

I know many Asians that have converted to Judaism who are very happy. Judaism accepts everyone, as long as they truly want to be Jews!

Answer 6

i have not switched over yet, yet I plan to interior the subsequent few years. i'm quite excited, and that i visit't wait till i'm in a position too. I favor you the better of luck on your gaining knowledge of. Edit: in case you've self belief that Jesus became the Messiah or had any impact in Judaism, you won't be able to be a Jew. Jews that trust in Jesus are literally no longer Jews, they're Christians.

Answer 7

You don't convert to Judaism, you revert, as you are going back to a belief that predates Christianity, unless you are a Buddhist or somethings else.

Answer 8

yes, it is difficult. you can stop the conversion process, but once you have finished and converted, you will not be able to stop being jewish. yes they will accept you if you are chinese. in my hebrew class there is a vietnamese girl who is jewish because her parents converted. its rare, but it happens.

here is a video of a bunch of kids singing on a chabad trip... about 30 seconds in it focusses on a teenage asian girl singing the hebrew song. chabad is very orthodox...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jc281Ck4-mU

see :) nothing to be worried about

Answer 9

So there are two ways a person can be Jewish. Either be born to a Jewish mother, or convert to Judaism in accordance with Torah Law. Both ways are absolutely, 100% valid, and they are both equally irreversible.

The process of conversion can easily take several years, by the end of which you should be totally certain that the Jewish way of life is right for you. If it isn't, you can back out, no harm done. But once the conversion is complete (I don't know the exact moment for sure, but it's probably when you emerge from the mikveh, that is, the ritual bath used for many purposes, including conversion to Judaism), you're as Jewish as someone born into it. And just as a born Jew can't cease being Jewish (many non-religious Jews might argue this point, but being Jewish is simply a state of being and not a matter of preference... a Jew could adopt another religion and truly believe in it, but they're still a Jew by definition, the same way someone can walk around flapping his arms like wings and quacking and insisting he's a duck, but he hasn't ceased to be human. But I digress.)

Aaanyway, if you convert to Judaism, the community by and large will accept you. You might get some strange looks, but that's just ignorance, and such behavior (that is, ostricizing a convert) is actually strictly prohibited by Jewish law. But there's the ideal, and there's the reality. And just as you'll find Christians who sometimes violate the precepts of their faith and act un-Christian, or Muslims acting un-Muslim, you'll occasionally find Jews acting un-Jewish.

Bear in mind that different movements (all claiming the name Judaism... Judaism as it had been practiced for a few thousand years prior was named "Orthodox Judaism," originally a perjorative term invented by leaders of the Reform Movement to designate Jews who didn't join their movement and who previously would simply have identified their religion as "Judaism") have different standards and requirements for conversion. The only kind of conversion that's universally accepted amongst Jews is orthodox. Basically any movement accepts converts from a movement as traditional as, or more traditional than itself. So Reform Jews recognize conversions from any denomination (their own conversion process being so lax as to not require circumcision, the very seal of the covenant, for men), Conservative Jews recognize Conservative and Orthodox conversions (and generally not reform ones, though this may vary from community to community), and Orthodox Jews, being the most traditional, only accept Orthodox conversions, which are the only ones carried out in full accordance with Torah Law (the Torah being their litmus test for what is and isn't authentic Judaism).

I don't personally know of any Chinese Jews-by-choice. The closest country I can think of with any well known gerim (that's the plural form of "ger," or convert) is Japan. Prof. Setzuso Kotsuji is a famous example ( http://www.aish.com/holocaust/people/The_Japanese_Convert.asp ). He took on the Hebrew name "Avraham ben Avraham," as was the custom for converts at the time. Nowadays converts choose their own names (though still ending "ben Avraham," son of Abraham, or "bas Sarah," daughter of Sarah, for women) so as to avoid the stigma that sometimes comes, unjustly, with being a Jew-by-choice. "_____ ben Avraham" or "_____ bas Sarah" are not uncommon names (in fact, I'm not a convert and my Hebrew name is Daniel Yaakov ben Avraham," but "Avraham ben Avraham" and "Sarah bas Sarah" are unmistakably convert names. The idea is of course that the convert is a spiritual descendant of Avraham and Sarah, but the practice of giving Avraham and Sarah as automatic first names was abandoned when it began creating rifts between Jews-by-choice and Jews-by-birth - divisions that shouldn't exist.

Jews are actually a very ethnically diverse group (I personally have met White Jews, Black Jews, Latino Jews, Persian Jews, and many others), so it's kind of funny that a person who "looks Jewish" in one part of the world would be completely unrecognizable as such in another. It reminds me of a joke...

A guy from Brooklyn was in Hong Kong passing
through the native quarter, and was surprised to see a synagogue. He went in and sure enough, he saw a Chinese rabbi and a Chinese congregation. The service was touching.

As the service ended, the rabbi stood at the
door greeting his congregants. When our
Brooklyn friend came up, the Chinese rabbi said, "You a Jew?"

"Yes, I'm Jewish," replied the Brooklynite.

"Funny," said the Chinese rabbi. "You don't look Jewish."

---

In any event, good luck in your search. And just know that once the conversion takes place, it's permanent - so make sure it's right for you. And also, nothing in Judaism teaches that you need to be Jewish to be on G-d's good side, as it were. Heaven's gate doesn't have a sign on it saying "Jews only". (;

If you want to know what Judaism does teach for the nations, look up the Seven Noachide Laws. There's a growing religious movement today of people who believe in what the Torah teaches, but do not wish to convert to Judaism. They call themselves Noachides or B'nei Noach (Children of Noah), and the follow the covenant G-d established with Noah (as where Jews follow the covenant between G-d and Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob). More on that here: http://www.aish.com/literacy/judaism123/The_7_Noachide_Laws.asp

I hope all this helps, and again, best of luck to you.

Answer 10

Yes.
Yes,
Accept with reluctance, and a few with trepidation.