‘Spark Ignited’: Inside difficult Israeli conversion

In last week’s essay I discussed a wonderful new book, “Spark Ignited” (Menorah Books), that describes the spiritual journey taken by two women that culminated in their conversion to the Jewish faith. This week I will to devote the bulk of this column to its prime author, Michaela Lawson, describing, much in her own words, her biography and some of her frustrations during a journey from her previous Christian faith to her acceptance of Judaism.

Michaela Lawson was born in Michigan to non-Jewish parents. Her father served in U.S. Army Intelligence and later in the CIA, which, according to Michaela, made for some rather interesting childhood experiences. She lived in a variety of locations, including in Europe, the Orient and the United States.

Throughout her life she was tugged by an inner spiritual urge to connect with G-d. This connection was reflected in her initial devotion with the divine in fundamentalist Christianity, Messianic circles, and later in her activities in the Christian Zionist world. However, none of these experiences provided her with a genuine feeling of truth and connection with G-d, a sense that was to haunt her for some time. This spiritual gap was to ultimately lead her search to the Jewish faith, and by her early 40s she converted to Orthodox Judaism.

After her conversion she settled in Israel. A short time later she married and, in her words, “put down roots amongst the people and the land, building a bayit ne’eman with children and grandchildren in both Israel and America.”

For ten years she lived on a moshav south of Chevron and has many fond memories of riding horseback in the desert. Currently, both she and her husband live in Jerusalem where she continues her spiritual quest in study.

In my interview with her in Jerusalem last summer, Lawson devoted the bulk of her discussion to the conversion process, for which she had some pretty harsh impressions that she wishes to be shared with you. I requested that these impressions be written down for me to share with you. The bulk of the rest of this essay reflects those sentiments: