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Hello,
I am currently applying for seminary and was wondering if anyone had any good recommendations.
A little bit about me: I was adopted at five months and was not raised Jewish. I started going to shul a year ago and have been trying to find any information that might point to me being Jewish I haven’t found much information but I have plans to convert after seminary B’Ezrat. Most days I usually always say modeh ani, and then do netilas yadayim, as well as say the morning brachos. If I am busy or forget to daven shachris I try and make up for it by davening mincha or maariv. I don’t daven every day which I know doesn’t look good for most seminaries. I do keep shomer shabbos the best I can but have had incidences where I have had to answer the phone because of an emergency while I was away for Shabbos. I am by no means the ideal and I want to come out of my year in Israel a better person. I want to grow not only as a person but with G-d. I hope to come out of seminary fully shabbos observing, davening every day, and hopefully have developed better middos.
The seminary I am looking for: I want to attend a seminary that has a good hashkafah and values everyone’s individuality. I also want the school to be frum but modern. I don’t want to feel pressured or bad for not doing things other girls have been doing their whole lives. I would like a school with a beis midrash so I can study with a chavrusa but it’s okay if there isn’t one. I want the school to offer beginner/intermediate courses in Chumash, halacha, etc. Also, I don’t know Hebrew so a school that has a transliterated version of the Hebrew texts would be nice but not necessary. Overall, I want a school that will teach me not just what basic things religious people should know/do but why they do them. I am applying to Machon Maayan and Meorot Yerushalayim. I know Machon has a lot of girls that come from public school but also many from religious households were at Meorot the girls come from little religious backgrounds. Hopefully, I can get some helpful recommendations. Feel free to ask me to specify also I want a seminary preferably in Eretz Yisroel. Many of the seminaries in the U.S won’t take me because I have not converted.
– ThanksI feel like most seminaries won’t take someone who hasn’t converted yet. Even someone Jewish would need to be fully observant in most seminaries. Seminaries for baalos teshuva would be ideal for someone Jewish, but are usually for someone after college. There’s Meorot though for post high school.
I assume Meorot is very good because the Rosh Medrasha is terrific. Be in touch with them if they take someone converting.
I don’t think any seminary (diaspora or EY) will take someone that hasn’t officially converted yet. Keep in mind before converting you cannot halachically keep shabbos to the full extent, but would be required to immediately after conversion as well as in seminary. I’m not sure a frum seminary would accept anyone if they didn’t keep shabbos/yom tov fully before arriving. It’s a spiritual liability. Also know theres no real emergency unless someones life is at risk that you are responsible for. If theres anyone that relies on you for anything else, its best to start explaining to them the times you’d be unavailable going forward and that theres no compromises (unless its pikuach nefesh)
I’d suggest learning as much Hebrew as possible, or at the very least be able to read fluently. Seminary will not have transliterated text (only really for siddur, tehillim, maybe chumash etc.), but in beginner classes or even intermediate they do help translate.
I agree with the other posters. You are wasting your time applying to seminaries. They won’t accept you. What you need is a conversion program.
Here is a URL to try: To get it past the mods, I changed http://www.itim to www+itim. Change it back.
https://www+itim.org.il/en/itim-guide-to-converting-to-judaism-in-israel/You will be considered a foreign citizen attempting to convert to Judaism which means there will be a bunch of hoops to jump through. The five stages are listed over here:
https://en+ami4u.org/conversion-tracks/conversion-for-non-citizens
(Similar to URL above, I changed en.ami to en+ami to get the URL past the mods.)If you succeed in converting, then your conversion teachers will help you find the right seminary.
The whole process usually takes around 2 years. It will be longer with Covid-19 restrictions.Good Luck!
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