For this I became a Jew? Yes, for exactly this I became a Jew.

In keeping with Jewish tradition that makes no differentiation between those who are born Jews and those who become them, I rarely talk about being a convert. But in light of the antisemitic attacks in America over the last two weeks, and as we celebrated Shavuot, a holiday honoring a convert, I wanted to break that silence.

My beit din — the rabbinic court that signed off on my conversion — was exactly 16 years minus a month ago. I completed my conversion after four years of study — because I’m nothing if not both thoughtful and stubborn. Back in 2005 when I started the process, and in 2009 w...