Rabbi Yonassan Gershom, a 65-year-old Conservative Jew who lives on a hobby farm in rural Minnesota, was interviewed about his faith. The Rabbi explained that Judaism is not a faith or a race, but rather started with Abraham, Sarah, and Hagar. He discussed the differences between Orthodox, Reform, and Conservative Judaism. The Rabbi's life revolves around observing Jewish law and rituals like keeping kosher, praying three times daily, and observing the Sabbath from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday. Though he has faced anti-Semitism, the Rabbi appreciates Judaism for giving him a sense of history and belonging through traditions like annual

1. Seth Allen
ID# 1004263
ICS2015 World Religions
12/20/2012
My Interview with Rabbi Yonassan Gershom
I had the privilege of visiting with Rabbi Yonassan Gershom who actually lives in
my town of Sandstone, MN. At first I was a little leery and scared of doing this interview
as I had no idea of what to expect. However, after the first few minutes of conversation
with the Rabbi, I was put completely at ease. Rabbi Gershom was very easy to talk to
and eager to talk about his beliefs and was extremely knowledgeable not only about
Judaism but also Christianity.
Rabbi Gershom is 65 years old and was born into a Jewish family. He
lives in rural Pine County on a hobby farm with his wife, Caryl. When I asked him how
he came to be a member of the Jewish faith, he explained to me that it is not a Jewish
“faith” – that is a stereotype. Judaism is a tribal faith that started with Abraham and
Sarah and Hagar. Judaism is also not a race as some believe, as you can be converted
into Judaism as was his wife.
He explained that there are 3 different types of Jews: Orthodox, Reform and
Conservative. The main differences between them are not necessarily all theological,
but much has to do with how much service you are willing to do and how well you are
willing to observe the Law. Rabbi Gershom says that he is more conservative in
theology and modern in observance. He wears the head covering and has a long beard
and is very strict in his observance of the Law. I asked what scriptures or holy books

2. they use. He said that the Old Testament comprises only about 5% of their Holy Books.
There are many more including the Torah,Talmud & Midrash.
When asked if he attended a synagogue, he said that there weren’t any in
this area. The closest one is in Duluth and since he doesn’t drive on the Sabbath, that
doesn’t work for him. The litnes test for Judaism is different than that of Christianity.
Whereas most Christians attend church every Sunday, that is not the same for Jews.
What is important for them is to remain kosher and observe the Sabbath, which can be
done in your own home. Being a “Rabbi” is not the same a being a pastor. A Rabbi is
someone who is a studier of Judaism. The Sabbath begins 18 minutes before sundown
on Friday and ends 45 minutes after sundown on Saturday.
The next question that I asked him was how often he prayed. Although he said
that he can talk to God at anytime during the day, there were three liturgical prayers that
were offered daily: Morning (Shacharit), afternoon (Mincha) and evening (Maariv). The
morning prayer was learned from Abraham, the afternoon prayer from Isaac, and the
evening prayer from Jacob. The morning prayer also is taken from the verse in
Deuteronomy that says “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind.”
Rabbi Gershom also mentioned that he has a prison ministry in which he will pray with
people who request prayer. He is not limited to praying only three times per day.
When asked how his religion affects his daily life, Rabbi Gershom replied that his
life is run according to his religion and it has a great affect on it. Living in rural
Minnesota has had a great affect on the jobs that he can do, since he is a strict
observer of the Sabbath and won’t work on it, which in turn has affected his level of

3. income over the years. It is also very hard to find kosher meat in this area, so he is a
vegetarian. There is a large movement on Jewish vegetarianism. The Garden of Eden
was vegetarian and meat eating wasn’t permitted until after the flood. Generally, Jews
do not hunt because the animal must be slaughtered in a specific way by an official
slaughterer. Fishing is fine, however. Meat was for special occasions traditionally.
Not everyone celebrates Christmas – which sometimes produces a feeling of
being left out. In light of the recent Connecticut school shootings, he wrote to all three
of the major media (NBC, ABC & CBS) to ask if any of the students that lost their lives
were Jewish or another religion. He seemed to be bothered by the fact that someone
donated 26 Christmas trees in memory of the lost lives. The next day one of the major
networks reported that one of the students that died was Jewish. He didn’t know if his
emails had anything to do with it or not, but was very glad that they recognized that not
everyone is “Christian.”
Rabbi Gershom also shared about the Jewish annual holiday cycle. We mostly
hear mostly about Hanukkah and Passover, but there are so many more! The year
begins with Rosh ha-Shanah, the Jewish New Year in September, which is a time of
repentance. They wear white clothes and eat foods that symbolize prosperity. He
said that it is kind of like the Chinese New Year without the dragons. This is followed by
Yom Kippur, which is the Day of Atonement. This is the most holy and serious of
holidays. If you observe it correctly and make peace with family members & friends,
you will be forgiven. He was adamant about the fact that they do not need a human
sacrifice to be forgiven – they do not need Jesus to save them, only to make sure they
observe the Law correctly. Next comes Sukkot which is a celebration of the Feast of

4. Tabernacles. This is a very joyful festive holiday that lasts for seven days. They eat
meals, wave palm, willow and myrtle branches which symbolize that God is everywhere.
In December, they celebrate Hanukkah. During the eight days of Hanukkah a
gift is given each day. The Menorah is lit each night and potato pancakes are eaten.
“Purim” is the next holiday which is in March. This is the Feast of Esther and they have
carnivals for the kids and wear costumes. The most popular Jewish holiday is
“Passover” which symbolizes the Israelites deliverance from slavery in Egypt. This
ceremony is usually performed in their homes by eating matzoh, which is unleavened
bread during the entire week, and having a Seder meal. The last holiday is “Shayuot”
which comes in May or June. This was the day when God gave the Law to Israel at
Mount Sinai.
I asked Rabbi Gershom if he had ever been treated differently because of his
faith. I was surprised to hear that people in our own community had mistreated him. He
told of one instance when he and a group of Jews were going to have a gathering down
in Robinson Park and when they drove in the parking lot, someone had gathered a
bunch of rocks and turned them into a swastika. They decided they would take
something that was bad and turn it into something good, so they took the rocks and
turned it into a circle of unity. There was also a time when someone came up to him in
the grocery store and asked him when he was going back to Israel. When he was in the
10th grade, he applied for a summer job at the YMCA and did not get hired because he
wouldn’t sign a paper stating that Jesus Christ was his Savior. So he got a job at a
bubble gum factory instead … and can’t stand bubble gum to this day! He has also
been the brunt of many Jewish jokes over the years. In fact, he asked me if I had ever

5. heard any Jewish jokes at school and if I had ever laughed at them. He said that
sometimes you are not seen as a person – but a “Jew.”
When asked what about his religion he appreciates the most, he responded that
it gives him a sense of being grounded in history – a sense of belonging. He also
appreciates the Ten Commandments.
I did not find any discrepancies in what he said versus what I read in my
textbooks. All of the information was quite the same. Rabbi Gershom was full of
information and spoke quite fast – my interview with him lasted about 1 hour and 10
minutes. One thing that impressed me was how much he new about Christianity –
compared to how little I knew about Judaism. I think in order to share the Gospel with
him I would need to study Judaism more and build a relationship with him first.
Because of his sensitivity to not everyone being “Christian” or celebrating Christmas,
one of the things that I could do would be to send him Jewish holiday cards which would
let him know that I recognize he is Jewish. By building a friendship with him would open
other doors down the road to begin sharing Jesus with him. Because of his knowledge,
I think that I also need to become more grounded in my own Christianity.
This was one of the best assignments that I have had all semester. I learned so
much from this interview!