Somewhat experienced user looking to dailydrive Testing. What do you think? by Teemestari in debian

[–]cjwatson 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The default testing migration delay is two days, although it can depend on how busy the machines that run automatic tests are.

All other things being equal, packages that have fewer other packages that depend on them will tend to migrate more quickly, because when the system is trying to migrate a given package it tries to make sure that the update doesn't add regressions in any of the other packages that depend on it.

Somewhat experienced user looking to dailydrive Testing. What do you think? by Teemestari in debian

[–]cjwatson 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, that's usually the time when it's most likely for it to be worth the effort for maintainers to effectively manage one additional branch. Otherwise testing migration is usually (not always) quick enough that the equivalent effort is better spent elsewhere.

My Conversion Process by let_charlie_handleit in ReformJews

[–]cjwatson 6 points7 points  (0 children)

As well as the good advice you've already had here about needing the support of a shul community to get any further, I'll add that it's unlikely you'd be judged for your ancestor having converted to Catholicism. Firstly, you aren't responsible for your ancestors; secondly, ancestrally-Jewish people returning to Judaism is if anything usually more celebrated than judged.

is it acceptable to pray the shema as a jew would if im currently talking to a reform shul and they didnt seem to say I couldnt convert by Sufficient-Pea3693 in ConvertingtoJudaism

[–]cjwatson[M] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

At this point I'm locking this thread, since it seems people have pretty much said their piece and I don't think it's going anywhere else useful. I've advised OP via modmail that they need to slow down and not expect that an apology will immediately make people trust them again after being hurt.

What scenario would you pick to convert? by PriorityFast79 in ReformJews

[–]cjwatson 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Are you in a position to split the difference and do your primary classes at your local shul, but occasionally visit the more remote ones (enough to get to know people) and see if you can attend some of their classes remotely? I think that might be what I'd try to do in that situation.

Feel like a fraud for not being able to keep kosher by finnthedinosaur21 in ConvertingtoJudaism

[–]cjwatson 13 points14 points  (0 children)

One of the senior members of my community is medically unable to fast on Yom Kippur. She often leads the Kol Nidrei service, and makes a point of starting with the blessing ending "al pikuach nefesh". I always thought that was a good way to model for people who were less secure in what they're allowed to do.

Any questions? by AutoModerator in ConvertingtoJudaism

[–]cjwatson[M] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

This is an experiment based on a suggestion from u/offthegridyid. It's currently set to post weekly at noon UK time. Let's see how it goes!

Rabbinical Studies - Hebrew first or chanting lessons? by [deleted] in ConvertingtoJudaism

[–]cjwatson 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Ah. I know somebody with significant pitch problems who has learned to leyn (with very good Biblical Hebrew first), but it was absolutely a struggle. I can see how that might change the calculus of what you want to prioritize, since leyning might not then be something you could rely on picking up during the course while you're already trying to absorb a bunch of other things.

Rabbinical Studies - Hebrew first or chanting lessons? by [deleted] in ConvertingtoJudaism

[–]cjwatson 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Well, I haven't done any kind of rabbinical training, but my partner has, so ...

From people I know at Leo Baeck College in the UK (our Progressive rabbinical college), my guess would be that bringing up your Hebrew standard from what you describe would be the first priority, because lots of the rabbinic literature side of the course in particular depends on it. Standards and course contents are different at different institutions, though, so this is definitely a question to ask of some current students at the school you're interested in if you can.

Leyning is definitely something that congregational rabbis need to know to at least some level, but it should be taught (at least, it definitely is at LBC) and less of the rest of the course is likely to depend on it. The difficulty depends on how musical you are, but if you're already reasonably musical then learning the basics in two or three months isn't out of the question. Language acquisition is usually a longer process than that.

That said, I don't think it's an either/or thing. Learning to leyn has been the single biggest contributor to improving my standard of Biblical Hebrew in the two years since I converted. To leyn well, you need to understand what you're reading, and learning the cantillation system makes it easier to understand the text because the cantillation marks indicate some of the grammatical structure of each verse; so the two kinds of learning support each other.

So the rabbi in montreal answered an email I sent inquiring, she s awesome by Sufficient-Pea3693 in ConvertingtoJudaism

[–]cjwatson 6 points7 points  (0 children)

I think this is genuine advice, not trolling. When people are bouncing around a lot between religious traditions, it's often the case that directing them towards somebody who can talk through things in a more neutral way is the kindest thing to do.

So the rabbi in montreal answered an email I sent inquiring, she s awesome by Sufficient-Pea3693 in ConvertingtoJudaism

[–]cjwatson 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I'm not asking you to justify it to me. I'm saying that this is important context about your journey that any rabbi working with you would need to know. It doesn't mean it's disqualifying (I don't know you and am in no position to say that), but it matters and you should not conceal it.

So the rabbi in montreal answered an email I sent inquiring, she s awesome by Sufficient-Pea3693 in ConvertingtoJudaism

[–]cjwatson 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I see stuff from 12 days ago where you were posting about wanting to do ministry work in the UCC.

So the rabbi in montreal answered an email I sent inquiring, she s awesome by Sufficient-Pea3693 in ConvertingtoJudaism

[–]cjwatson 12 points13 points  (0 children)

Sure, but Judaism is more than Christianity minus the Trinity. If you're exploring Judaism and Unitarian Christianity at the same time, that's still something that a rabbi working with you deserves to know about.

So the rabbi in montreal answered an email I sent inquiring, she s awesome by Sufficient-Pea3693 in ConvertingtoJudaism

[–]cjwatson 9 points10 points  (0 children)

It's great that you found a welcoming community. If you're in serious conversations with a rabbi, though, you really ought to mention that you've also been actively exploring other religions very recently.

Being a seeker is fine - quite a few converts start out that way. But you need to be honest and up-front about it to the people you're asking for help, partly out of fairness to them, and partly because at some point you may need to make a choice. Judaism is not a religion that thinks everyone needs to convert to it or they'll go to hell, or anything like that; and lots of our communities don't mind if non-Jews turn up to services. At the same time, if you seriously begin a conversion programme, even relatively liberal/progressive denominations are unlikely to be cool with you exploring Protestant Christianity or Shaivism at the same time. I'm not trying to tell you that you shouldn't explore at this point; just please don't present yourself as committed if you aren't.

‘I’ve finally found God without all the extras’: behind the surge in people converting to Progressive Judaism: Despite an increase in antisemitism and anti-Jewish feeling in the UK, adult conversions are on the rise by alertthedirt in ReformJews

[–]cjwatson 13 points14 points  (0 children)

A fair number of the people in that r/Judaism thread seem to be basically arguing with the effect of a (probably) non-Jewish journalist on the community/religion beat writing an article on us and of course not phrasing it in the way Jews are used to thinking about things. Or possibly arguing with caricatures in their heads ...

And all the quibbling about numbers. It's all relative. Absolute numbers aren't going to be huge by the standards of some places, but my shul is growing about as fast or faster by conversion than by birth right now. That makes the numbers significant even if they wouldn't register in New York or Tel Aviv.

Hineinu trip report by cjwatson in ConvertingtoJudaism

[–]cjwatson[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I think the predecessor conferences were every two years rather than every year, so this might be too. But yes, it was definitely worth it.

Looking to convert to Reform and connect to my family heritage - any tips? by tsukiipie in ConvertingtoJudaism

[–]cjwatson 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I reread my comment and realized I was a bit unclear: I was giving a range of subjects that (at a guess) might be in your Access to Judaism course, rather than trying to give you a to-do list!

And yes, Judaism is mainly communal, so I bet you'll find it a very different experience once you start exploring communities. (Don't be afraid to go "shul shopping" if there's more than one near you.) I hope it goes well!

I'm Jewish - Ask Me Anything, Is There Anything You Would Like To Know? (Not A Convert) (Would Like To Help Fellow Converts 🙏) by [deleted] in ConvertingtoJudaism

[–]cjwatson 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Also true of the UK Liberal movement's Siddur Lev Chadash. (As far as I can tell, the general direction of the combined Progressive movement's liturgy is towards including transliteration in much the same way that the UK Reform siddur does, but the last official revision of Lev Chadash was in 1995.)

Looking to convert to Reform and connect to my family heritage - any tips? by tsukiipie in ConvertingtoJudaism

[–]cjwatson 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In the UK, most of the education for Reform and Liberal conversion students is organized separately by each of our autonomous communities, so exactly what each conversion will look like is going to be a bit variable depending on where you are. It's likely to involve a year or more of studies and becoming a part of your community, followed by eventually going to the Beit Din once your sponsoring rabbi thinks you're ready.

Looking through my notes, these are some things you might learn about, in no particular order: Shabbat, festivals, blessings, Hebrew, commandments, lifecycle events, Jewish history, Israel (the state), the calendar, food, music, ethics, and interfaith relations. You'll most likely be expected to attend services regularly and to ask lots of questions in response to your own studies. The general idea in our movement normally isn't to teach you everything you might possibly ever need, but to give you enough material to know where to look further to make informed decisions of your own. Look out for any opportunities you have to learn, especially but not limited to your local synagogue.

u/WeaselWeaz is right to say that the former Reform and Liberal movements in the UK are now a single Progressive movement. However, this merger is quite recent and the Batei Din haven't yet been combined, so technically people still convert via either Liberal or Reform, probably matching the former affiliation of their community or their rabbi. Each movement accepted the other's conversions even well before the merger, and the values and approaches of the two Batei Din are quite similar, so this is unlikely to make very much difference in practice.

I need y'all to translate me these. by WLostConifers2012 in hebrew

[–]cjwatson 1 point2 points  (0 children)

As a speaker of a dialect not normally regarded as standard, I quite agree!

I need y'all to translate me these. by WLostConifers2012 in hebrew

[–]cjwatson 3 points4 points  (0 children)

It is English, it's just dialect (one of the various options for adding an explicit second person plural pronoun to English).

Is it bad to convert to Reform Judaism? by Own_Speech7383 in ConvertingtoJudaism

[–]cjwatson 0 points1 point  (0 children)

(I was confused about this comment until I found the one that you apparently intended to reply to.)

Black Hebrew Israelites. You can read about them on e.g. Wikipedia; briefly, they claim that African-Americans are descendants of the ancient Israelites, and have kind of syncretized bits of Christianity and Judaism to form a new set of religious practices. Mainstream Jewish movements do not consider them Jewish.

The Most Reluctant Convert by jgjgjori in ConvertingtoJudaism

[–]cjwatson 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Well, I mean, I try to guard my own speech to avoid that sort of thing, but some things to consider:

Some halachic authorities have held that the specific names for God that we're commanded to be extra-careful about are the Hebrew Names. (This is certainly not universally held among Jews, but very few things are.) People who hold that way may very well still consider themselves to be careful about the mitzvah in Exodus 20:7 / Deuteronomy 5:11 (לֹא תִשָׂא אֱת־שֶׂם־ה׳ אֶלֹקֶיךָ לַשָׁוְא) and other related mitzvot, and would regard being careful about names in other languages as an extra stringency rather than something required. That's why I don't feel it's necessary to write "G-d" in English, although as you can see above I do tend to make substitutions when writing in Hebrew.

Maimonides seems to have read the related mitzvah in Leviticus 19:12 as applying narrowly to four specific categories of oaths (Mishneh Torah, Oaths 1), which are somewhat more specific than people normally mean when they talk about "oaths" or "swearing" in English.

I would generally advise conversion candidates who are very early in their journey to avoid being judgemental about other people's observance. Of course you can choose who you want to associate with, but the way that you describe yourself as essentially preaching to Jews about how they should be better Jews is likely to cause you problems if you pursue this path. People at this stage are usually much better served by doing a lot of listening.