She’s a kid, Cynic. She’s been brainwashed to believe that religion is a fantasy construct made up to explain why the sky gets dark at night. Or maybe her parents (probably, in fact) pay only lip service to their Judaism. Are they twice-a-year Jews? Probably. Frankly, I didn’t like Judaism much when I was her age. I liked being a Jew, and I was always a Zionist, but the religion bothered me. Part of that was because I was in my twenties. Part of it was because I was brought up to believe it was a pain in the ass, always having to follow all these extra rules, clean up and prepare for holidays, go to synagogue on a workday, etc., etc. My mother and grandfather never taught me about the joy in Judaism, only the duty. I discovered the joy all on my own, years later. My brothers? They’re not religious at all. This organization is doing a wonderful thing, trying to catch kids who think the way I used to, and give them a reason to like Judaism.

As for the Jewish question (Yes I realise that that can be misinterpreted)
“Samantha was able to articulate that she avoided Judaism because she was trying to be the Jew she thought she should be and not the Jew she is,”
This just makes my mind boggle.
So what markers does she go by to decide what she should be if she rejects Judaism, the cornerstone for Christianity, and the 2000 plus years of social progress made from those roots?
Maybe the Jew that she is trying to avoid came about through lack of understanding or ignorance of her roots or is it through trying to curry favour with her “detractors”?

There is, but probably not in Lubbock, alas. I wonder if there’s online stuff you could join. Skype Shabbat… betcha you could find it somewhere. Although I have no problem at all with women rabbis and cantors. I go to a Conservative synagogue. I’ve been to some Reform schuls, both liberal and some that are as close to Conservative as you can get without being one. I prefer Conservative. I like my service in Hebrew. Is there a JCC in Lubbock, or is the Jewish population too small?