10-03-2020, 03:26 PM
I'm not sure what changes have been made to the process in the last 13 years. When I made aliyah, there was a different authority for Orthodox aliyot than for non-Orthodox aliyot. I needed to send letters from the president and the rabbi of my congregation to indicate my standing in the local Jewish community. I drove to Chicago to meet with the shliḥat aliyah, and we cemented my plans. I went alone at 27 years old, and I first went to an aliyah center in Raanana, where I stayed for two days before friends from Rishon LeZion brought me to live with them until I got a job and everything.
As far as I'm aware, Orthodox converts have a more difficult time making aliyah because the authority in charge of Orthodox conversions only accepts converts who completed their process under specific rabbis' auspices. No one knows who the accepted rabbis are, so when you go to apply for aliyah, they might reject you out of hand. It's easier for Reform and Conservative, since these conversions are accepted by the aliyah agency without contest - so long as you have active standing in the Jewish community and can demonstrate that. This may have changed recently, but I doubt it.
I'm not sure what further information I can provide. I came without a job lined up, and I ended up sleeping on a friend's couch for nearly two months while I got my first few checks and could get lined up with an apartment. I started as an English teacher, then I was a flight attendant, and now I'm working at the front desk of a large hotel. Actually, because of COVID-19, I'm sitting at home on unemployment under lockdown.
The only thing that I can really recommend is that you relate differently to the Reform and Conservative movements. They are perfectly fine as independent approaches to the whole concept. You should read their own publications rather than looking down your nose at them, as is the typical Orthodox view of anything non-Orthodox.
Good luck with your journey!
As far as I'm aware, Orthodox converts have a more difficult time making aliyah because the authority in charge of Orthodox conversions only accepts converts who completed their process under specific rabbis' auspices. No one knows who the accepted rabbis are, so when you go to apply for aliyah, they might reject you out of hand. It's easier for Reform and Conservative, since these conversions are accepted by the aliyah agency without contest - so long as you have active standing in the Jewish community and can demonstrate that. This may have changed recently, but I doubt it.
I'm not sure what further information I can provide. I came without a job lined up, and I ended up sleeping on a friend's couch for nearly two months while I got my first few checks and could get lined up with an apartment. I started as an English teacher, then I was a flight attendant, and now I'm working at the front desk of a large hotel. Actually, because of COVID-19, I'm sitting at home on unemployment under lockdown.
The only thing that I can really recommend is that you relate differently to the Reform and Conservative movements. They are perfectly fine as independent approaches to the whole concept. You should read their own publications rather than looking down your nose at them, as is the typical Orthodox view of anything non-Orthodox.
Good luck with your journey!