Sarahbeth Caplin's Blog, page 8

Emotions And Experiences Make Terrible Hermeneutics

The online world of deconstructing Christians is a sad one. In private Facebook groups and DMs, I read story after story of adult children being disowned by their parents for coming out of the closet; rape victims being forced to apologize for “adultery” before their congregation; abused wives told by pastors to endure beatings like… Continue reading Emotions And Experiences Make Terrible Hermeneutics

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Rethinking Sex, Celibacy, And Abundant Life

I’m currently reading The Thrill of the Chaste by Dawn Eden. I read it before when it was first published in 2007, but this is an updated edition in which Eden, who was born Jewish, describes more of her journey to becoming Catholic. I’m naturally a sucker for these stories, so I had to buy… Continue reading Rethinking Sex, Celibacy, And Abundant Life

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From Deconstruction to Reconstruction: a story of doubt to faith

A condensed version of this post originally appeared on Rev. Kyle Norman’s blog. I became a Christian in the fall of 2008, after growing up in a liberal Jewish household. You would think that someone who made such an extreme conversion would have a great deal of certainty about her faith. But from about 2012… Continue reading From Deconstruction to Reconstruction: a story of doubt to faith

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How To Love Your Hostage Neighbor

You may have seen the viral video of a group of Christians singing worship songs on an airplane. While some people are criticizing those who were offended, the Jewish side of me raises an eyebrow at the whole thing. That’s because I know how it would have affected me if I were on that plane… Continue reading How To Love Your Hostage Neighbor

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What’s Amazing About Grace? Everything

I’ve been reading Philip Yancey’s What’s So Amazing About Grace? I’m normally a fast reader, finishing at least two books a week, but this one is so heavy on the topics of grace and forgiveness that I’m forcing myself to slow down. But it’s a slower read for me because it’s bringing up some personal… Continue reading What’s Amazing About Grace? Everything

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Judaism Is More Than The Old Testament

Every year (except 2020), a Christian friend will share on social media about a Passover seder held at their church. I’ve addressed the many issues with that, so I won’t rehash them again. But I did realize something as I was reminded, once again, why these church-hosted seders are so attractive to Christians in the… Continue reading Judaism Is More Than The Old Testament

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Moving Beyond Transactional Salvation

“Have you made a decision for Christ yet?” This is “Christianese” for asking if you’ve been “saved,” “accepted Christ into your heart,” or whatever the preferred vernacular is. For me, it’s a question that asked if I’d converted yet: from Reform Judaism to Christianity (Anglican, specifically). A handful of friends knew I’d been thinking about… Continue reading Moving Beyond Transactional Salvation

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“Jews for Jesus” didn’t convert me

If your life is anything like mine, then it’s not at all unusual to receive a text message from a friend around 10pm asking complex questions about dispensationalism, which leads into a discussion about the missionary organization Jews for Jesus.  There were some things I shared in that conversation that I felt were worthwhile enough… Continue reading “Jews for Jesus” didn’t convert me

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Becoming Sarahbeth

Excerpted from my essay collection, Things You Can’t Un-see. My husband makes fun of me for my obsession with monograms. After he caught me looking at a rotating display case of silver letter charms at a local boutique, I told him, “If you had the opportunity to name yourself, you’d be obsessed with them, too.”   … Continue reading Becoming Sarahbeth

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What the banning of “Maus” says about us

I knew after reading the introduction to Dara Horn’s People Love Dead Jews that I would end up blogging about it. Actually, I knew it after just reading the description on the book jacket: Often asked by major publications to write on subjects related to Jewish culture—and increasingly in response to a recent wave of… Continue reading What the banning of “Maus” says about us

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