BR Chicago

Essay
Judaism was not an unfamiliar religion to me. I had taken an intro to religion class while attending the College of Dupage and was introduced to several new religions, but Judaism really caught my eye. An aspect that drew me to Judaism was that there is only one God and is no one else before him. I was always intrigued by Judaism and it wasn’t until I met my fiancé Jerry who is Jewish that I wanted to explore Judaism more in depth. What I‘ve learned is that being Jewish is not just believing in one God and the mitzvot, but also is about being a part of a community. The community does not just extend to the synagogue that I belong to, but the community is all around the world.
Being Jewish also means looking for ways to perfect the world, showing kindness, giving tzedakah, and having a love of learning. These are values that I believe in whole heartily. By trying to make the world a better place and living in the now we have an opportunity to make the world a better place now and for future generations. Giving tzedakah, has become an important part of my life. Not only giving to the synagogue but to worthy causes. After the earthquake in Haiti both myself and my fiancé donated through our synagogue which was donated to JNF to help in the recovery. Helping others has always been a part of my life and do so unselfishly and with all I can. Whether it be helping my brothers or sisters or my friends, or a worthy cause. I also believe in learning and try to learn something new everyday. Judaism is life long learning and I will continue to educate myself throughout my life.
When my grandparents were alive my mother and our family were practicing Catholics but after they passed away we ventured off to study Jehovah’s Witness. I believe this is why I am feeling as though a big piece of me has been missing, not only because of my religion growing up but because neither one was the right place for me. Judaism is much more appropriate for me because I’ve always believed there is only one God and one God only. I believe in the ten commandments and I also believe the messiah has not yet arrived yet. As a Latina I was baptized and raised as a Catholic and was taught Jesus Christ was the son of God and was worshipped as a human form of God. I never quite understood how a person could be a God because I believed God to be a higher being. I know that in the Torah it says that God is not a man, and I believe in this. I believe God to be a higher being and there is no one before him. I also believe that the messiah hasn’t come yet. In Judaism the messiah will come when the world is perfect and there is no sin and hatred and there is peace on earth. As mentioned this is one of the values that I find most appealing is perfecting the world so that one day we can all live in peace and harmony and so the messiah can come. Why would and how could the messiah come when the world isn’t perfect, when there are crimes committed against each other and acts of hate against one another in more than one way.
My relationship to God is very important and special to me. My understanding of God is that there is only one Lord our God and that you don’t put anyone before God. I believe that God wouldn’t take any type of human form nor would he be seen to anyone. I have been searching for a relationship to God my whole life and feel as though I have found it. I feel as though my connection has grown stronger with my studies of Judaism. I was concerned that because of my conversion I would not rekindle my relationship with my grandparents but I’ve learned that that is not the case. Being a Jew means to live in the now and try to make the world a better place! My grandparents would want me to be happy and they would be proud of me in trying to make the world better. Just like in Judaism my grandparents were very big on family and I feel as though my connection to God has grown because my fiancé and I practice Shabbat on Friday nights.
My personal and home life has changed tremendously. I finally feel as though I’m living the life I’ve been searching for. I have traditions now that have taken place by Jews since the beginning. I am very excited to pass these traditions on to my children when we have them. I feel as though having traditions will give my children and myself a sense of stability which was something I lacked growing up. Being a Jew is something to be proud of and I believe there is no need to search elsewhere for answers. We celebrate Shabbat on Friday nights, I have attended Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur services, while keeping the fast on Yom Kippur. We have had a traditional Seder dinner at our house and have attended Seder dinners at our friends houses. I also feel a more close relationship to God now than ever before in my life. I feel as though a part of me that has been missing has been found. I have never been this excited before and am constantly looking for different objects to make our home more Jewish. I have added more Jewish books to our library.
I identify myself as Jew when I speak to people. I get the occasional are you serious you are converting and I keep my head up and say, “Yes I am, and it was the best decision I ever made.” I identify with Israel because it is the Homeland. I believe that Israel is an important part of Judaism because it is a place we can call Home. I am looking forward to the day we can visit. I feel it is very important I learn the history of Israel and have decided to start saving up for our future children Bar/Bat Mitzvah’s that we hope to have in Israel. My fiancé unfortunately has never been to the homeland which is why we decided to do this for our children if we can. I think this will only make our family stronger and even more proud to be Jewish. As I mentioned before I find myself researching other parts of the world and Jewish synagogues. It is very important to me to see where other Jewish communities are located and have been located around the world both in the past and the present. I believe it is important to understand where our communities have been and are currently are to help understand more about ourselves. In doing research I found that there is a strong Jewish population in Mexico City, which I was never aware of. One day I would like to visit there and the Temple which dates back hundreds of years. In the mean time Jerry and I have been active in our synagogue but again there is always room for improvement in anything we do. We do plan to volunteer more in our synagogue and become more active in events to not only become more involved but to meet more people in our local community. I identify with the synagogue and understand the importance of it in modern Jewish Life. It allows us to congregate in a public setting, in a sense of prayer and community and study. Bringing everything together all in one. I feel as though it is vital to keep our synagogue strong not only for current members but for future members. I am very proud to be a part of our synagogue and looking forward to contributing more.
My commitment to prayer is very important to me but again with anything in life there is always room for improvement. I try to pray as much as I can and feel that by praying my relationship to God has become stronger. In Judaism we pray directly to God with no one in between. This is one of the aspects that drew me to Judaism as well and I feel closer to God because of this. I would like to also learn all of the holiday prayers to the point where they just roll off my tongue. As a new Jew I know this will come with time and I know I have to practice which I’m proud to do. Keeping kosher has been a little tougher but again I’m still learning to cope without pork. Growing up Latin, pork is in several recipes that have been past down from generation to generation. We in our house do not mix meat and dairy, and we do not eat pork especially. Also I know certain types of fish aren’t kosher, but that won’t be an issue for me since fish is one thing I have never enjoyed. Our up and coming wedding has allowed us to register and look for new cookware and silverware that will allow us to keep Kosher that way. Friday nights will consist of separate dishes which will have an impact on us and our future family.
My plan to continue Jewish studies will be lifelong. I am fortunate because our temple has Torah study every Saturday morning. I plan on reading more books about Judaism, attend classes at our temple and as mentioned above continue to attend Torah Study on Saturday morning. I would also like to take a Hebrew class so I can have a more knowledgeable base of the language. Being Jewish is life long learning and I plan to continue to learn every day. I feel that is important so that when we have children not only can I help them with their studies but can expand their own knowledge while still learning myself. I am very proud to be here today and feel as though I have found myself.