As I struggled to understand him, he stated the words as clearly as he could: “I want to convert”
HEwas confident as he went up for his aliyah. As he said the brachos flawlessly, my mind waxed nostalgic as I recalled our initial meeting more than eight years ago.
Erhan Deri, a Turkish Muslim, speaking heavily accented English, had come to my office. As he sat before my desk, he looked nervous, but also determined.
As I struggled to understand him, he stated the words as clearly as he could: “I want to convert.”
The fact that a non-Jew was sitting across from me inquiring about conversion was not unusual. During an average year, about a dozen people reach out to me regarding conversion. Most are locals who either claim to have always “felt Jewish,” or people who have had exposure to Orthodox Jews. Almost always, their birth religion is a form of Christianity.
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