A Faith Is Much More Than the Sum of Its Holidays

The first-person article “Cost of Conversion Was Too High for Her” (Sept. 22) saddened and disturbed me. Judaism is a religion chock-full of opportunities for celebration and family traditions. Like putting up a Christmas tree, though, it takes a little effort. The glow of candles on the Sabbath, the taste of honey on Rosh Hashana, Purim pastry, playing dreidel for chocolates on Hanukkah--the list could go on and on. Giving up the traditions of Christianity certainly creates a vacuum. Jewish traditions will fill that vacuum wonderfully if you put forth a little effort. Without a little effort, you have no traditions, regardless of your religious identification.

Most of us don’t select a religion based solely on how spectacular the holidays are. We affiliate with a religion because it satisfies a spiritual longing. Each religion has its own set of ethics, its own way of knowing God, its own way of nourishing the soul in times of crisis. Perhaps this is what you had in mind when you decided your kids should have “a religious legacy.” The legacy you are developing now is of viewing both Christianity and Judaism with alienation and resentment. I feel certain most rabbis would prefer that a child be raised in a happy interfaith home, rather than one in which the mother was filled with bitterness and resentment over her conversion to Judaism.

--JAN DAVIS

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