My Jewish Husband and I

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I just want to thank whoever is reading this for being a friend, ear, advice giver in something that I can’t really go to anyone I know in real life about.

A little background: DH is Jewish, I am Catholic. We’ve been married for about 4 years, together 8 -no kids yet, but we’re working on that ;). Since our marriage, my love/interest/participation in the Catholic faith has skyrocketed. DH is self proclaimed culturally Jewish and does not practice. He attends Mass with me every Sunday, went through the pre-cana prep with me, got married in the Catholic church, we use NFP, we will be raising our kids catholic and we are extremely happy. I say all of this so you will know he is supportive and enjoys that I find so much peace in the Catholic church.

So…when we got married, I knew that if DH were to ever convert to Catholicism it would be a very slow process that would probably take our lifetime together. I have accepted this. He is (and I say this lovingly as I am too) very stubborn and has a hard time with change, especially something that he doesn’t know. Over the last several years, I haven’t really initiated any conversations about Catholicism, but have tried to show with my actions how the Church leads me to the greatest knowledge and love for God through Jesus and in turn gives me peace through whatever difficult situations life gives us. (and we have been through a lot, to say the least). Lately, DH has been asking more questions…which has lead to me read a lot more theology. There have been lots of these conversations and then last night I initiated (timidly) this…spero11.wordpress.com/ (keep in mind it was all very gentle and respectful, but at the same time blunt and honest). I had to post it in my blog b/c it was too long for the forum.

Any suggestions about what I should bring up in our next convo. I know he would get a lot out of reading a book, but he doesn’t have time and me reading to him is out of the question b/c that would take time away from his writing. I feel like the huge walls he used to have up about religion are coming down and I never thought it would happen this fast. I love him deeply and it drives me nuts to think that whatever “Jesus” was forced on him in the past is still affecting and blocking his view today. I guess I’m just looking for another perspective. This is the pushiest, most forward conversation I have ever had with him or anybody about Jesus and the Church and I just don’t know what to do next. I’m praying the rosary every day throughout Lent with a special intention to bring us both closer to God and him to Jesus. I know it’s a marathon with him, but sometimes I just get so excited when we have huge progress that I just want to swoop him up and sprint to the finish line!!
 
I think one way to go about it is to show that Jesus is the fulfillment of the Old Testament - i.e., his Jewish faith.
 
A website that may be helpful to you and your husband: Salvation is From the Jews. It is from a Jewish convert to those looking into converting.

Also, you may want to refer to Jesus by his Hebrew name of Yeshua. Jesus is the Latinization of it. Doing so might help your dh get past some of the negativity he has learned to associate with the name Jesus.
 
Thanks I really appreciate the suggestions and the link!

I think you are right that using what he knows (the Old Testament) and showing how Jesus fulfills it is a great way, especially since he is very focused on the history of things. I need to become more familiar with the Old Testament…

I will also take a look at the link and I hadn’t thought about referring to Jesus by another name, but it might help erase some of that lasting negativity that he has.

I feel like I pushed hard, so I’m going to let him bring it up next. I feel like I kind of need a break too, to recharge b/c it’s a little exhausting, even though it is very exciting. Lately he’s had some questions almost everyday, so I may try to opt for a lighter conversation at dinner tonight, God willing.
 
Hi,

I know you said your husband doesn’t have time to read but I would like to recommend two books to you to help you understand more about your Catholic faith and its roots in Judaism.

The Crucified Rabbi (Judaism and the Origins of Catholic Christianity) by Taylor Marshall

Jesus and theJewish Roots of the Eucharist (Unlocking the Secrets of the Last Supper) by Brant Pitre.

Both of these are excellent books. They are very deep and connect the Old Testament to the New Testament. I also recommend these books to Protestants who don’t undertand the Roman Catholic faith because it gives them the appropriate context as to why Roman Catholics worship and practice as they do.
 
=Spero11;7649244]I just want to thank whoever is reading this for being a friend, ear, advice giver in something that I can’t really go to anyone I know in real life about.
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A little background: DH is Jewish, I am Catholic. We’ve been married for about 4 years, together 8 -no kids yet, but we’re working on that ;). Since our marriage, my love/interest/participation in the Catholic faith has skyrocketed. DH is self proclaimed culturally Jewish and does not practice. He attends Mass with me every Sunday, went through the pre-cana prep with me, got married in the Catholic church, we use NFP, we will be raising our kids catholic and we are extremely happy. I say all of this so you will know he is supportive and enjoys that I find so much peace in the Catholic church.
Click to expand...
So…when we got married, I knew that if DH were to ever convert to Catholicism it would be a very slow process that would probably take our lifetime together. I have accepted this. He is (and I say this lovingly as I am too) very stubborn and has a hard time with change, especially something that he doesn’t know. Over the last several years, I haven’t really initiated any conversations about Catholicism, but have tried to show with my actions how the Church leads me to the greatest knowledge and love for God through Jesus and in turn gives me peace through whatever difficult situations life gives us. (and we have been through a lot, to say the least). Lately, DH has been asking more questions…which has lead to me read a lot more theology. There have been lots of these conversations and then last night I initiated (timidly) this…spero11.wordpress.com/ (keep in mind it was all very gentle and respectful, but at the same time blunt and honest). I had to post it in my blog b/c it was too long for the forum.
Click to expand...
Any suggestions about what I should bring up in our next convo. I know he would get a lot out of reading a book, but he doesn’t have time and me reading to him is out of the question b/c that would take time away from his writing. I feel like the huge walls he used to have up about religion are coming down and I never thought it would happen this fast. I love him deeply and it drives me nuts to think that whatever “Jesus” was forced on him in the past is still affecting and blocking his view today. I guess I’m just looking for another perspective. This is the pushiest, most forward conversation I have ever had with him or anybody about Jesus and the Church and I just don’t know what to do next. I’m praying the rosary every day throughout Lent with a special intention to bring us both closer to God and him to Jesus. I know it’s a marathon with him, but sometimes I just get so excited when we have huge progress that I just want to swoop him up and sprint to the finish line!!
Click to expand...
My dear friends in Christ,

I’d love to be of asistance but when I clicked on your blog; I got titles but could not access the actual post? I’m much better at sharing our faith than operating a computer 😊

If you could give he hi-lights; perhaps I can be of help?

God Bless,
Pat
 
Senecus said:
Food for thought - Jews for Jesus: jewsforjesus.org/
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As a Protestant organization, though, it might not be quite the right thing for the OP and her husband. A seeker who doesn’t know the difference and can’t discern what is good theology and what isn’t might find it more confusing than helpful when considering the Catholic faith. 🙂
 
y-jesus.com/index.php nice site its not a catholic site but it is vey good as an intrduction to Jesus in a non denominational way.

but one thing I suggest is that you pray for his conversion and ask for The Holy Spirit to guide you and to open your husbands heart to the truth. Then be patient and marvel at how the Spirit works.

I can recommend the rosary as a very good prayer ; especially good here as Mary in Fatima asks us to pray the rosary for conversion. 👍
 
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