I would head over to the local synagogue and ask the people there. They will be in he best position to help. Jewish people are not big on trying to convert folks, so no worries about that. All the practicing Jewish people I know are super well versed in their religion and culture and quite happy to share their knowledge.

Bookwoman..I appreciate you correcting me...I understood what you are telling me but used the wrong term. I also appreciate Zalco...I do know that Jewish people seem to be some of the most lovely, non judgy people. I should contact a Synagogue and see if they have either some classes or at least resources. I only recently learned of where my "actual" parents were from, so it is newish to me and I find it interesting as when I was growing up I had an affinity to the differences between the jewish culture and the christians.

Interesting question, Anne. My family is a mix of religions. My paternal grandfather was Jewish (Ashkenazi). His parents emigrated from England in the 1800's. His wife, my grandmother, was Presbyterian, the daughter of Scottish immigrants. They were both opera singers, and when they went on the road my father, then a child, boarded at the Episcopalian Cathedral of St. John the Divine, where he was a boy soprano. I was raised Lutheran, my mom's religion. But when I was born my grandmother insisted I be given a saint's name as a middle name because she was temporarily a Catholic. (Her conversion lasted about a year.)

My grandfather had seven siblings. Some married Jews, creating a large Jewish branch of the family. At least one married a Catholic, resulting in a Catholic branch of the family. I'm proud of all my talented, creative, accomplished relatives.

I'm also related to two Jewish converts, one on the Scottish Presbyterian side and one on the Lutheran side. One converted because she married a Jew; the other simply because she wanted to be Jewish.

I can't say I'm interested in any organized religion, but I relate strongly to Jewish history and my Jewish heritage.

Anne, I would think with all the interest in genealogy today you shouldn't have much trouble finding the sort of group you're looking for. Maybe someone here can give you specific suggestions.

Just a suggestion but you might want to attend classes at two different synagogues to help learn more facets of Jewish life.

Two online resources:

https://reformjudaism.org/learning/judaism-classes/intro-judaism-0

https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/how-to-learn-more-about-judaism-online/

I refer to myjewishlearning.com fairly often to understand customs and phrases my cousins mention. I also am Christian but I have Jewish cousins.

I would recommend you get your hands on a book called "To Be A Jew", written by Rabbi Donin. If your library doesn't have a copy and they can't interloan one for you, just Google the title. You can pick up a second-hand copy for less than $5.

It's well written and explains in what I consider simple terms, customs and traditions. If you come across something that confuses you, just ask here again. Someone is always around and ready to share.

You can Google Reform Jewish congregation and add your zip code. It will give you the closest congregation to your area. Call. Make an appointment with the Rabbi and explain what you're looking for. If he's worth his salary, he'll be more than happy to help.

It is against Jewish law to seek out converts, so don't worry that you'll fall victim to unwanted attention. I realize a one on one experience could be intimidating, so try to get your hand on the book.

"It is against Jewish law to seek out converts"

This is interesting to hear. Too bad other religious groups don't practice such tolerance and acceptance of the beliefs or non-beliefs of others. The world would be a better place if so.

Although, politics in the Middle East and elsewhere suggest that many of those assumed to be adherents of this "law" seem to think they've found loopholes or exceptions.

Traditionally, someone who wants to convert to Judaism is turned away three times, as a way of testing the person's commitment. In practice, at least in Reform congregations, that isn't the case, but conversion does require a great deal of study. And, for Orthodox and Conservative conversions, if you're a man and haven't been circumcised, you must undergo a circumcision. That's commitment!

My paternal grandfather was Ashkenazi Jew, too. I know extremely little about it and would like to know some. He married my grandmother, a Christian, and that was not viewed well in his family. Hence, I didn’t know any of them. But I am proud of that as part of my heritage. Thank you, Anne, for asking about this. I will follow with interest.

Suzieque, according to Jewish law, a person inherits their Jewishness from their mother. This is why when a Jewish man marries a non Jewish woman, the children are not considered Jews and they have no "right of return" to Israel that all Jews have. Traditionally, orthodox Jews treated the man as dead (they "sat shiva"--a funeral rite) for him and never recognized him again.

I am Jewish and have always thought Judaism unique in that it is both a religion and an inherited ethnicity. Ask people what they are and people respond, "I'm Italian." or "I'm German." etc. But Jews always say, "I'm Jewish."

Just to add to what laceyvail writes: in the Reform tradition, if your father is Jewish but your mother isn't, but you're being raised Jewish, then that 'counts', and there's no need for you to undergo a formal conversion. Here is some more information on the issue: https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/patrilineal-descent/

Just one more bit to add; once one does an orthodox (strictest interpretations) conversion to Judaism, they are considered 100% Jewish. There is no distinction made between "born a Jew"and "Jew by choice", When the conversion is not orthodox, it can be open to debate.

For example, not being political but because this is a well known case, Ivanka converted in an orthodox conversion and is considered Jewish.

My former husband is Jewish, but non practicing. I am Roman Catholic and had my 3 children baptized in the Catholic church. His father, who at 93 is one of the oldest Holocaust survivors.

liira, did your former father-in-law have any objections to your children being raised Catholic?

yes, he objected to us even getting married and didn't attend the wedding. My 3 children are his only grandchildren and now my oldest son looks after him.

Ashkenazi jews have a higher incidence of several genetic health disorders.

For Christmas 3 years ago we were given a couple of DNA tests by a cousin. I was excited to do it but anticipating that I was basically as boring as could be. I am a first generation American, Dad is UK citizen, mom is New Zealand citizen but from Scottish ancestors. Imagine my surprise when I got back that I was 3.2% Ashkenazi Jewish. I was so excited as I grew up with quite a few Jewish friends and was always so envious of the traditions and history. I did some research and found it all so fascinating. Although for the life of us we couldn’t figure out where it would have originated. But as I know very little about my dad’s family beyond my immediate family I figured that’s where it came from. Fast forward a year or so and I check my ancestry profile only to discover the little slice of the Jewish dna is now gone! There was an article on the site about how with updated technology and a bigger database, quite a few people would see the ashkenazi Jewish portion of their profile decreased or gone altogether. Needless to say I’m bummed but not surprised. Enjoy getting to know your heritage.

I still need to get the book suggested. I really do appreciate all the opinions offered. I need to find my kindle and charge it and hope i can get the book there as I have many days of sitting ahead. I guess I am a Jew for Jesus but I do want to embrace my ethnic background.

I am debating whether to comment on the last part - and figure might as well.

AS noted above, Jews do not seek out others to convert, and will not readily agree to converting until it is clear that this is well thought out..

Jews for Jesus is not considered Jewish. They might be embracing Jewish roots and customs but Jews believe the Messiah is yet to come.

I hope I am not being confrontational but this is a key point.

It's really interesting to find out our backgrounds and heritage and I have heard some truly incredible stories.

Just to add to what salonva has rightly said, Jews for Jesus is an organization funded by evangelical Christians, and is considered by most Jews to be an underhanded way of trying to convert Jews to Christianity. It overlays something called 'Messianic Judaism' (i.e. belief that the Messiah has already come in the person of Jesus) onto traditional Jewish forms of worship.

It's certainly possible to be ethnically Jewish, in whole or in part, and also be a Christian in your beliefs, but that doesn't mean you're a 'Jew for Jesus', which is something else entirely.

I hope I didn't offend anyone....I did not mean to. I only recently found out that by birth I am Ashkenazi forgive the spelling Jew. I am actually proud of it. I also am a proud Christian....I in no way wanted to insult anyones beliefs in any way, shape or form.

No offense taken at all. This discussion has enabled us to talk about issues that many people might not understand.

And FYI, you can just say that you're Jewish. There's no need to qualify it with Ashkenazi (which you spelled perfectly), since that's what the majority of American Jews are. Jewish people don't generally make a distinction between being Ashkenazi and Sephardic, unless they're talking about, say, food served at Passover, as the traditional cuisines are quite different.

I know just a little about this but would like to add to the conversation some of the notions I've developed over the years based on what Jewish friends have explained to me. And what I've learned as a voracious reader of European history. Those who are active adherents know more than I do and I welcome their corrections.

Off and on throughout the centuries, Jews experienced inconsistent tolerance and intolerance from their neighbors in the communities where they lived. Often there was more tolerance in Muslim regions and less tolerance in Christian ones. The Spanish Inquisition was perhaps the most extreme example of violence and intolerance - convert to Christianity or we kill you, or leave. All three happened.

At times in the past, when Jews were treated as an underclass, there could be restrictions concerning where they could live, what occupations they could have, marriage restrictions, and so on. So they tended to stick together, often live by rule or by choice apart from others, work together, and intermarry less than those in other groups (in the most recent centuries). That's inbreeding and why some genetic problems have a higher incidence among some of these groups than in the general population.

Many who immigrated to the US in the late 19th and early 20th centuries did so because of discrimination, violence, and awful living conditions where they were. For that period, the flow was principally from Eastern Europe.

Many of those regions in Eastern Europe had numerous and multiple changes of nationality because of moving borders in the 19th and early 20th centuries, and not just for Jews. A family and its descendants could have started the 19th century with a Polish culture and nationality, then became Russian citizens, then became part of Austria Hungary, then Russian briefly and then became Poles again after WWI, all without moving from their towns. Poles tended to be Catholic, Russians tended to be Russian Orthodox, and Jews tended to be ostracized by all but all had their own cultures. So, from the same town, an immigrant to the US in 1890 who was Catholic might have said "I'm a Pole from Russia" while a Jew from the same town might have said "I'm a Jew, my village was in Russia, and my neighbors were Poles". Jews didn't have their own country at that time and for them, they tended think of members of the majority population segments in various countries as being not only of a different religion but belonging to ethnicities and cultures they lived outside of. That may be why the answer to the ancestry question might be different for a Jew as from someone else.

Today, being of Jewish ancestry for some seems to be meaningful to them as being both a religion and for many also a culture. And for others, it may be neither. One couple we're friends with - the husband has Jewish ancestry, the wife was raised in a Catholic family. Through his family, she became exposed to and then attracted to the Jewish religion and became very active in a religious group and has remained so for many years. He doesn't go to services or observe much as far as I can tell, she rarely misses an event. She never converted. What would you call each of them, if anything? I'd say active participation should trump ancestry.

Long way around to comment to you Anne that if your upbringing was neither religiously Jewish nor culturally Jewish, I wouldn't think there's much to your connection. What percentage of your ancestry did the report say was Jewish?

It is about 40 percent....my birth father is Jewish, as were most of his family on both sides...I just didn't know they were my family until recently