I’m offended. No Christian has offered me $50,000 to join their church. Seriously, where are their priorities?
But as I mentioned last September, a Jewish man was offering that much to bring people to his synagogue:
DOTHAN, Ala. — Larry Blumberg is looking for a few good Jews to move to his corner of the Bible Belt. Blumberg is chairman of an organization offering Jewish families as much as $50,000 to relocate to Dothan, an overwhelmingly Christian town of 58,000 that calls itself the Peanut Capital of the World. Get involved at Temple Emanu-El and stay at least five years, the group’s leaders say, and the money doesn’t have to be repaid.
Looks like the first family to take Blumberg up on his offer has made the move! And 10 others families may soon follow:
Matthew and Michelle Reed, along with their 2-year-old son and newborn baby boy, are the first of what could be a stream of people to move to Dothan under a program that offers Jewish families as much as $50,000 to relocate and get involved with the city’s only synagogue, Temple Emanu-El.
…
“It’s been freaky how easy this has been,” said Matt Reed, 25, taking a break from moving boxes inside his new home on Whatley Drive. The curly-haired Ayden, 2, plays with a new trash can while his mom watches after Sam, just 6 weeks old.
Michelle Reed’s Jewish family has roots in Dothan, while her husband was raised Mormon and is in the process of converting to Judaism. Their mixed background wasn’t a drawback for program organizers — as many as half of Temple Emanu-El’s members have similar histories.
…
About 400 families have since applied for the relocation project, and 60 of those were qualified after initial screening. Finalists go through a vetting process that includes written references — including one from their rabbi — home visits, checks for criminal and financial problems, and interviews.
I think this is the impetus we’ve been looking for.
Let’s get twenty currently Jewish people to renounce their faith and come out as atheists to offset Blumberg’s $1,000,000 conversion plan!
It’s not a perfect balance, but it’ll work just as well.
(via The Invisible Pink Unicorn)