Jewish lady learning the Gospel


Fran
 Share

Recommended Posts

Hi there !

 

I am a jewish lady in my 30's married with one child.

I have always been curious about the Mormons, I have done many research and watched many documentaries.

It has been a fews months since I have started meeting Missionnaries and learning.

 

There are so many things I do like about the LDS church and so many things I already do in my daily life but I still have a "problem" with believing that Jesus is God reincarnated to come down to earth and save us from all sins...

 

Not unusual for a Jew to know understand/believe in that concept.

 

I am very uncomfortable with the Missionaries asking me to pray in the name of Jesus and get baptized already. I feel pressured but I still want to learn and love my meetings with them !

 

I hope to get to know more members through this website and have good topics :-)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest LiterateParakeet

Oh Fran, let's be friends!  I'm an LDS person who is interested in Jewish people.  :)     

 

I read a book called Mudhouse Sabbath by Lauren Winner.  She is Jewish but converted to Christianity.  Her book is about the things about Judaism.  It is really beautiful.  And naturally, I read Chaim Potok.  But enough about me.

 

I'm so glad you've joined us.  You can ask questions here.  With the missionaries--you may have already done this, but in cans you haven't--just tell them politely but firmly that you are not ready to pray in the name of Christ yet or be baptized.  Testimony can't be rushed.  I encourage you to take all the time you need.  Brigham Young took two or three years to decide to be baptized.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am very uncomfortable with the Missionaries asking me to pray in the name of Jesus and get baptized already. I feel pressured but I still want to learn and love my meetings with them !

 

Welcome Fran (says the guy who just joined too). It is okay to be uncomfortable with change, in fact I think it is fairly normal for most people. Learning sometimes involves adding onto foundations we might already have and other times it might involve unlearning something we previous thought. If you feel pressure from the missionaries, it is okay to kindly/bluntly let them know. They will have heard it before. Let them know your concerns, spell it out in detail for them. Most missionaries will understand and will still be excited to share the gospel with you. If you haven't already been to church with them on Sunday yet, there is a specific class taught each Sunday which discusses the basics/core teachings. It is called "Gospel Principles" Class. You can attend that class with or without missionaries. This class is usually fairly small in a discussion setting. You will find other people learning about the church or others who have just joined. A great place to do some one on one face to face discussions with others besides the missionaries.

 

Ask them about wanting to go to Gospel Principles class and watch the shock on their face :)  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome, Fran. We're glad to have you here. Hope you enjoy your time with us, and maybe even find a home. I also hope your experience and lessons with the missionaries are and will be a source of great joy and insight for you.

 

A couple of clarifications:

 

There are so many things I do like about the LDS church and so many things I already do in my daily life but I still have a "problem" with believing that Jesus is God reincarnated to come down to earth and save us from all sins...

 

I want to make sure we understand each other. (No word-choice pickiness intended.) Latter-day Saints believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God the Father. Thus, he is God "Incarnate", a Latin-derived word that means "in the flesh". ("Carne" is a Latin form of a word meaning "flesh" or "meat".) That is to say, the Son of God is not an unembodied essence, but had (and has) a body of flesh and bone, just as we do.

 

"Reincarnate" means "to have another body". Some Eastern religions such as Hindu believe in reincarnation, wherein an individual being movies from one form of life to another in successive lives (e.g. a moth, then a mouse, then a person). This idea it forms no part of the revealed Gospel.

 

Again, I'm not trying to correct your word choice. I just want to make sure we understand each other.

 

I am very uncomfortable with the Missionaries asking me to pray in the name of Jesus and get baptized already. I feel pressured but I still want to learn and love my meetings with them !

 

The missionaries specialize in getting people to move outside their comfort zones. :)

 

We believe that Christ is our Redeemer, which means that he saves us from destruction and brings us back into the presence of God, from where we came. So we are his followers. All we do, we do in his name, as he commanded us to do. This includes our prayers to the Father. We do not pray to Jesus, but to the Father -- but even prayer (or especially prayer) is done in Christ's name. As followers of Christ, we have both the duty and the privilege of praying in Jesus' name.

 

Hope that is of some help. Again, welcome.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hello everyone !

 

Thank you for your welcoming messages, and I am glad I already have many replies. It means the forum is pretty active and I like that.

 

Carborendum

Thank you very much  :D

 

LiterateParakeet

Thank you for your interest, you may contact me in private if you wish to discuss many topics with me. Beware I'm very talk active  :P

 

NeedleinA

Welcome to you as well ! I have said that I wasn't ready to say the prayers many times with the first missionaries I was involved with. In Judaism, we pray silently, and even though I always feel connected to God in my spirit, I "speak" to him so many times, or should I say I think of him, since I don't speak out loud !

I did attend church one sunday, I really liked the class but I was very very uneasy with the "mess" thing (sorry I don't remember how you call it) : I had a few converts asking me when I'd get baptized and I declined to eat the bread and drink the water they served, not because I wanted to offend them by refusing, just that it was all new to me and wasn't prepared at all... I wasn't comfortable, was blushing because I might have offended some people, I felt awful after that !

 

 

Vort

Thank you for clarifying what I probably misunderstood  :)

 

Eowyn

Thank you very much !

 

Leah

Hello ! Wow very nice, I don't feel like I'm the exception (well my background is probably different than yours) but I would love to be in touch with you for sure ! (As I am very new to the forum, do you mind sending me a private message ?!)

 

Carborendum

Great ! I love sharing opinions, no need to be specifically easy on me, try me I can take it ahahah

 

Jane_Doe

Hello thank you very much !

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am very uncomfortable with the Missionaries asking me to pray in the name of Jesus and get baptized already. I feel pressured but I still want to learn and love my meetings with them !

That's what they do.  Consider it their job.  You should only do what is comfortable to you and not feel pressured. Pray privately in the manner in which you are comfortable. The Spirit will speak the truth to you and at the point you have a testimony, the other things will come.

 

Best wishes.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have said that I wasn't ready to say the prayers many times with the first missionaries I was involved with. 

 

I was very very uneasy with the "mess" thing (sorry I don't remember how you call it) : I had a few converts asking me when I'd get baptized and I declined to eat the bread and drink the water they served, not because I wanted to offend them by refusing, just that it was all new to me and wasn't prepared at all... I wasn't comfortable, was blushing because I might have offended some people, I felt awful after that !

 

It sounds like you are doing great and actually having very, very normal feelings for many people learning about the church. Don't get discouraged, there is a leaning curve for just about anything new. Missionaries rotate fairly frequently, so it is okay to re-express your concerns about praying to the newer missionaries again.

 

I agree with Vort: "The missionaries specialize in getting people to move outside their comfort zones.  :)"

 

Don't worry about the "mess" part. I think you were referring to the "Sacrament". You don't have to take the bread and water, in fact there are plenty of people who don't for various reasons, so don't worry. 

Sounds like Leah would be a great resource too!

Again, welcome and you are doing great!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi there !

 

I am a jewish lady in my 30's married with one child.

I have always been curious about the Mormons, I have done many research and watched many documentaries.

It has been a fews months since I have started meeting Missionnaries and learning.

 

There are so many things I do like about the LDS church and so many things I already do in my daily life but I still have a "problem" with believing that Jesus is God reincarnated to come down to earth and save us from all sins...

 

Not unusual for a Jew to know understand/believe in that concept.

 

I am very uncomfortable with the Missionaries asking me to pray in the name of Jesus and get baptized already. I feel pressured but I still want to learn and love my meetings with them !

 

I hope to get to know more members through this website and have good topics :-)

Greetings! looking forward to your questions :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

...

Great ! I love sharing opinions...

 

Then I hope you won't be afraid of starting your own posts.  Be sure to read the rules of the forum and the special rules of each board (if any).  

 

There is a specific board for learning the gospel.  Then there is the deeper doctrinal discussions on another board.  Browse around and see what topic interests you.  We'd love to hear from you.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The sacrament is provided for members as a reminder and renewal of their baptismal covenant. So although you're welcome to take the sacrament if you want to, there is no reason for you to do so as long as you have not been baptized. No one is offended if you don't take the sacrament.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

NeedleInA

Well I dislike the part where the Missionaries rotate. I thought I would continue with the first men I met I was very annoyed at first to be contacted by other missionaries. I didn't understand since they did not explain me anything nor introduce themselves. The new men are nice but I am a very reserved person I would not want different missionaries all the time !

Link to comment
Share on other sites

NeedleInA

Well I dislike the part where the Missionaries rotate. I thought I would continue with the first men I met I was very annoyed at first to be contacted by other missionaries. I didn't understand since they did not explain me anything nor introduce themselves. The new men are nice but I am a very reserved person I would not want different missionaries all the time !

 

For what it's worth, usually it's only one of the two that will rotate every ~3 months, which makes the transition a little easier.

 

I do feel for you though, transfers are rough!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome Fran!

 

It's good that you pray to God already.  That's what we do to.  We pray to the same God.  The only thing we do differently is we pray in the name of Christ, His Son.

 

It took me a long while to be comfortable with public prayers too.  I came from the Catholic Church and prayers in Roman Catholicism usually come in a prayer book... so you don't have to fumble with coming up with your own words, you just pick the prayer from the book that best expresses your desire.  So, it was kinda nerve wracking to do an extemporaneous speech type of prayer... I've been LDS for over 15 years and I still get super nervous when asked to offer the prayer outside of my immediate family!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 weeks later...

I am a jewish lady in my 30's married with one child.

I have always been curious about the Mormons, I have done many research and watched many documentaries.

It has been a fews months since I have started meeting Missionnaries and learning.

 

...

 

I am very uncomfortable with the Missionaries asking me to pray in the name of Jesus and get baptized already. I feel pressured but I still want to learn and love my meetings with them !

Welcome, from a newer board member than you.

I agree -- the process of conversion can be daunting. It's supposed to be. But, as with anything worth your while, the cost is directly proportional to the benefit. As we both know the truth is a "pearl of great price", ergo, the cost of obtaining it is, and should be, high. Jesus toldd us that it would be all we have.

As many others have said, I look forward to discussing Judaism with someone who really understands it. Ever since I watched a stage performance of Fiddler on the Roof forty-six years back, the family-centered Sabbath has intrigued me. We Saints are commanded to have the Sabbath be a joyous day, that fasting is joy, and other similar injunctions. But we have no rituals or traditions that help us make it so, aside from the Sacrament (not to be belittled, but it's a five-to-ten minute ceremony, a tiny fracton of the 1440 minutes in the day).

The Sabbath is not the only topic where I see a Jewish perspective's giving us more depth and substance to our own understanding of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, but it's vast enough on its own to take a while to discuss. Please, either start a topic here or look for one (it may already exist) and help us see the beauty of the restoration of the Gospel under Moses.

Your fellow Israelite,

Lehi (of Ephraim)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
 Share