Finding a Home for the Soul: Interviews with Converts to Judaism - Softcover

Finding a Home for the Soul is a collection of interviews with people who have searched for greater meaning in life and have discovered Judaism's carefully wrought understanding and nurturing of the human spirit, manifested in ritual, prayer, and values. Catherine Hall Myrowitz introduces the reader to forty-two people who have graciously and courageously shared the motivation and experiences that ultimately led to their conversion to Judaism. There are no "leaps of faith" in these profiles: each convert became Jewish gradually. Some describe a connection to those who perished in the Holocaust; others felt a second soul coming into them during the mileveh. Some believe that becoming Jewish was preordained, and there are those who arrived at Judaism through their ongoing relationship and communication with God. Many of the interviews in this volume include dramatic shifts in people's lives as they strive to attain greater Jewish expression and deeper appreciation of their souls' quest. Some of these "Jews by Choice" have become traditionally observant, and some are now less observant while remaining strongly identified as Jews and connected to their communities. Some converts agonized about leaving their former faith, and many were surprised to find the Jewish origin of the rituals they had abandoned. It is the author's hope that those who are seeking to become Jewish will find support for their quest in one or more of these interviews; that non-Jewish families can read these profiles and better understand what it may mean for one of their members to choose Judaism; that the larger Jewish community will enjoy these affirmations of the blessing of leading a Jewish life and understand andvalue more fully those who come to Judaism; and that anyone who reads this book will have a deeper comprehension and appreciation of Judaism as seen through the eyes of those who have chosen it. The interviews in this inspiring volume will give the reader a feeling for the energy and love that people bring to Judaism and the varying yet deep satisfaction they take from it.

Catherine Hall Myrowitz is a convert to Judaism and for fifteen years has been an active member of the East Bank Havurah, an egalitarian minyan in Baltimore. As a clinical social worker, she has led groups for Jews by Choice for the Jewish Family Service. She is a contributor to the book Lifecycles: Jewish Women on Life Passages and Personal Milestones. She, her husband, Elliott, and their children, Rachel and David, live on a farm.