We’re thinking differently
about conversion.
At Judaism Unbound, we believe if you identify as Jewish, we agree, and we honor you.
We do not require a specific theology, praxis, or political orientation. We want authentic Jews dedicated to learning, compassion, and justice. We see conversion as a personal process of identity and meaning-making that looks different for each person. We acknowledge that we all walk unique paths toward our own self-actualization, and therefore have distinct needs when it comes to a process like conversion.
Though our 12-week intro course, Judaism InBound is not specifically designed for conversion, some may take this course as a part of their conversion journey. That said, if you are interested in converting through Judaism Unbound, we require that students take our Judaism Inbound course before engaging in the conversion ritual accompaniment process with us.
Judaism Inbound´s Fall 2024 Class is now closed, join our email list below to hear when it’s back!
Once students have taken Judaism Inbound, they are eligible to join From Here to Ger, which guides students through a customized conversion ritual creation process.
Join fellow seekers embarking upon the final stage of affirming Jewish identity in a class designed to nurture the space between being and becoming. Through exploring the origins of conversion, the history of Jewish converts, and the creativity inherent in Jewish rituals, students will create their own affirmation ritual for conversion. Within the supportive context of a cohort of friends walking the same path, students will be in conversation with one another’s stories while also grounding their experience in sacred Jewish wisdom. The culmination of the class experience will involve actualizing the conversion rituals and welcoming our newest Jews into our Judaism Unbound community.
We are delighted to announce our new partnership with Darshan Yeshiva. This is a tailored, one-on-one experience specifically for those interested in conversion.
And voila!
10 months of one-on-one rabbinic mentorship with the rabbi of your choice
Asynchronous learning tools, and educational resources galore at your fingertips!
Support for your independent journey
Culminating in curated conversion ceremony
How it works:
You pick one of Darshan’s Judaism Unbound approved mentors
Fill out the Darshan Yeshiva conversion intake form
Get a 30% discount for being a UnYeshiva student
Learn more here
For those interested in converting through Judaism Unbound, but want more information first, we get it!
Sign up to our conversion mailing list to hear about our next information session, relevant classes and more.
We are happy to discuss basic support and possible affirmation rituals with you. You can be in touch by writing to us at hello@judaismunbound.com
Please note, however, that conversion via Judaism Unbound will not constitute a conversion according to many of the mainstream Jewish denominations.
READ
A collection of reading we recommend to anyone interested in learning (and unlearning)
about more about Judaism.
Scroll to see all of our collections by theme!
🔤 FOR THOSE LEARNING THE BASICS
Sarah Hurwitz, Here All Along
Harold Kushner, To Life! A Celebration of Jewish Being and Thinking (1994)
Joseph Telushkin, Jewish Literacy: Revised Edition (2001) and Book of Jewish Values
Melanie Kaye-Kantrowitz, The Colors of Jews: Racial Politics and Radical Diasporism
🌱 FOR THOSE NAVIGATING CONVERSION
Anita Diamant, Choosing a Jewish Life
JewCurious Podcast
Julious Lester, Lovesong: Becoming a Jew
Tamara Eskenazi, Ruth, The traditional Hebrew Text (JPS 2011)
👩🏼🤝👨🏽 FOR ALLIES IN THE JOURNEY
Neil Gilman, The Jewish Approach to God
Robert Shoen, What I Wish my Christian Friends Knew about Judaism
Union for Reform Judaism, How to support a friend who’s converting to Judaism
🧐 FOR PHILOSOPHERS
Victor Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning
Abraham Joshua Heschel, The Sabbath (1951)
Soloveitchik, The Lonely Man of Faith
Martin Buber, I and Thou
Marge Piercy, He, She and It
Harold Kushner, When Bad Things Happen to Good People & Psalm 23
Judith Plaskow, Standing Again at Sinai
Rachel Adler, Engendering Judaism
Joy Ladin, The Soul of the Stranger: Reading God and Torah from a Transgender Perspective
🎨 FOR ARTISTS
Ron Wolfson, The Art of Jewish Living
Ann Brenner, Turn Mourning into Dancing
🔧 FOR PRAGMATISTS
Raymond Scheindlin, A Short History of the Jewish People (2000)
Irving Greenberg, The Jewish Way: Living the Holidays (1988)
Blu Greenberg, How to Run a Traditional Jewish Household
Michael Strassfeld, The Jewish Holidays
Anita Diamant, Saying Kaddish
Arthur Waskow, Seasons of Our Joy
📜 FOR THE BIBLICALLY CURIOUS
Richard Elliott Friedman, Who Wrote the Bible? (audio available)
James Kugel, How to Read the Bible (audio available)
Elyse Goldstein, ReVisions: Seeing Torah Through a Feminist Lens
Gregg Drinkwater, Joshua Lesser and David Shneer, eds, Torah Queeries: Weekly Commentaries on the Hebrew Bible
Joy Ladin, The Soul of the Stranger: Reading God and Torah from a Transgender Perspective
Marc Zvi Brettler, How to Read the Jewish Bible
Benjamin Sommer, Jewish Concepts of Scripture: A Comparative Introduction
Israel Knohl, The Divine Symphony: The Bible’s Many Voices
James Kugel, The Bible As it Was
Yair Zakovitch, From Gods to God: How the Bible Debunked, Suppressed, or Changed Ancient Myths and Legends
Israel Finkelstein and Neil Asher Silberman, The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology’s New Vision of Ancient Israel and the Origin of Its Sacred Texts (audio available)
William Dever, What Did the Biblical Writers Know and When Did They Know It?: What Archaeology Can Tell Us about the Reality of Ancient Israel
LISTEN
JUDAISM UNBOUND EPISODES ON CONVERSION
TALES OF THE UNBOUND
In its inaugural season, our new podcast Tales of the Unbound chronicles the Jewish journeys of two incarcerated individuals, Ari and Josh, along with their chaplain, Amy, and teacher, Marvin, within the confines of prison. Ari, who practiced Jewish rituals for nearly 15 years without formally converting due to prison restrictions, and Josh, a lifer with a deep passion for Judaism but unable to find a rabbi to sponsor his conversion, find hope through the Judaism Unbound podcast. Over a seven-episode arc, the series explores their conversion process, illustrating how spiritual legitimacy and a sense of belonging can transform individuals and their communities, even in the most unlikely of places.
Subscribe today so you don’t miss an episode and listen to the trailer now!
WATCH
An Unrecognizable
Jewish Future
Benay Lappe
The Jewish
Innovator’s Dilemma
Dan Libenson
The Way We’ve Always
Done It Demon
Miriam Terlinchamp
FREE VIDEO COURSES
Introduction to the Old Testament (Hebrew Bible)
Christine Hayes - Open Yale Course
The Hebrew Bible
Richard Elliot Friedman
The Hebrew Bible
Shaye Cohen - Harvard Online Course
Return to Torah
Richard Elliot Friedman
ORGS + COMMUNITIES
Judaism Your Way: Inclusive programming, worship and engagement
Ammud: Jews of Color Torah Academy
SVARA: A traditionally radical yeshiva (check out Queer Talmud Camp!)
Jewish Studio Project : Deep Study through the lens of visual arts
Secular Synagogue: online inclusive synagogue
Ritual Well: A collection of bespoke Jewish rituals for modern living
