“Have you made a decision for Christ yet?” This is “Christianese” for asking if you’ve been “saved,” “accepted Christ into your heart,” or whatever the preferred vernacular is. For me, it’s a question that asked if I’d converted yet: from Reform Judaism to Christianity (Anglican, specifically). A handful of friends knew I’d been thinking about… Continue reading Moving Beyond Transactional Salvation
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“Jews for Jesus” didn’t convert me
If your life is anything like mine, then it’s not at all unusual to receive a text message from a friend around 10pm asking complex questions about dispensationalism, which leads into a discussion about the missionary organization Jews for Jesus. There were some things I shared in that conversation that I felt were worthwhile enough… Continue reading “Jews for Jesus” didn’t convert me
Becoming Sarahbeth
Excerpted from my essay collection, Things You Can't Un-see. My husband makes fun of me for my obsession with monograms. After he caught me looking at a rotating display case of silver letter charms at a local boutique, I told him, “If you had the opportunity to name yourself, you’d be obsessed with them, too.” … Continue reading Becoming Sarahbeth
What the banning of “Maus” says about us
I knew after reading the introduction to Dara Horn’s People Love Dead Jews that I would end up blogging about it. Actually, I knew it after just reading the description on the book jacket: Often asked by major publications to write on subjects related to Jewish culture—and increasingly in response to a recent wave of… Continue reading What the banning of “Maus” says about us
Your truth, my truth, and The Truth
In my early twenties, I was convinced that God had called me to be single. But mere months after making that great statement, I started dating the man I would eventually marry. God hadn’t called me to singleness after all. I just convinced myself that he did because I believed these fundamental truths about myself,… Continue reading Your truth, my truth, and The Truth
Sanctified in the Unknowing
A recent Buzzfeed article got me thinking about how the pandemic has really wrecked our sense of time. I think it’s safe to say most everyone who answered the question, “Where do you see yourself in five years?” back in 2015 fell far short of their expectations. As a Type-A personality with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder,… Continue reading Sanctified in the Unknowing
Trump Jr Preaches A Backward Truth
“We’ve turned the other cheek, and I understand, sort of, the biblical reference—I understand the mentality—but it’s gotten us nothing. Okay? It’s gotten us nothing while we’ve ceded ground in every major institution in our country.” You’d be forgiven for assuming that the above quote, read out of context, is from any one of the… Continue reading Trump Jr Preaches A Backward Truth
Fearing abundance after a season of suffering
This may sound weird, but it’s true: for the longest time, I’ve been afraid of enjoying God’s abundance. Because I feel undeserving when so many people in the world are barely getting by. Because I haven’t been as faithful as I’d like. Because, because, because. It feels especially weird to praise God for the abundance… Continue reading Fearing abundance after a season of suffering
4 Ways Judaism Influences Me As An Anglican
I converted to Christianity from Reform Judaism in 2008. The distance between childhood and today grows wider, but our roots are some of the strongest influences on the adults we become. The truth is that while my worldview has undergone a radical shift, Jewish culture and theology continue to affect my faith. These are just… Continue reading 4 Ways Judaism Influences Me As An Anglican
Making Peace With Being Inherently Offensive
It's hard to share the story of why I converted without offending somebody. I know this, I've accepted this, but it still bothers me because no one likes to lose friends. There's just no way to share how I was born Jewish and became a Christian without implying that Judaism just wasn't good enough, or… Continue reading Making Peace With Being Inherently Offensive