Who’s Right, Who’s Wrong: Part 2

In my first post on wearing the Jewish star, I was deeply touched and encouraged by the response I received from so many of you. You were kind and gracious, and I have made the decision to wear the star when I go out. I want to declare my allegiance to and love for my faith and for Israel.

In the meantime, I’m still in shock from an email I received from my friend after she read my post. She felt I had represented her well, but she had some news to share: she had converted to Christianity at the end of March.

Her announcement took me by surprise. We aren’t close; we are more like working friends. But that she hadn’t mentioned it previously was disappointing. When we first talked about the Jewish star, I felt as if I were talking to a “landsman,” a person of the faith. She says she is still a Jew, and she is by birth, but is she really?

So far, we have only exchanged a few emails. She is encouraging me to meet with her online, but I’m not sure that would be helpful for me. Some of you might have read Andrew Klavan’s declaration of faith, and intellectually, I could understand his explanation of his conversion journey, but my heart rejected his choice. I don’t want a meeting with my friend to end poorly.

If we were closer, I might feel differently. I want my friends to be able to share the important aspects of their lives with me, and vice versa. I’ve decided to tell her that I’m not quite ready to discuss her decision. On the other hand, our writing group has an online meeting on Tuesday; we could put the topic of conversion to the side, but it could be awkward.

I’m interested in knowing your thoughts on the subject. Have you had friends leave their faith? Did you share that faith with them? What was your reaction?

I do realize that those of you who are Christian might feel that her conversion is a blessing, a good thing, since she has accepted Jesus as her savior.

But I’m not ready to go there.