The proselytizing of jews: Its history and consequences

Psychologists, sociologists, and others have, for the past century, sought to explain the motivations for religious conversion beyond the simple theological explanation of Divine intervention. Specifically, they have raised the possibility that suggestion, hypnosis, and/or schizoid tendencies, for example, have played decisive roles in the process. Conflict has resulted from the publication of disparate viewpoints, especially between those who accept converts' narratives about their pre-conversion motives at face value and those who question the validity of such recollections.Less often considered, except perhaps in cases of great historical import, are the psychological consequences of conversion. The ripple effects of conversion, as well as the impact on the individual, are examined here. Consideration of psychological antecedents and consequences, in historical and contemporary settings, underlie tentative conclusions regarding today's sudden conversion experiences.Lita Linzer Schwartz and Natalie Isser are co-authors ofProselytization, Conversion, and Commitment, and of several articles and papers focused on historical and contemporary examples of religious conversion.