orthodox conversion to judaism

There are two introductory prayers preceding the Shema to enable us to be in the proper spiritual mood to make the declaration of our faith: Yotzer Or (Who Foms Light) and Ahavath Olam (Everlasting Love).

The third Shema is said during Maariv and there is another Shema said before retiring at night.

The Shema consists of three chapters, taken from the Torah. The first chapter begins with the proclamation: "Hear, O Israel, The L-rd is G-d, the L-rd is One." It tell sus we must love G-d and dedicate our lives to the carrying out of His will, ourselves and through our children. It reminds us of the two mitzvot of tefillin and Mezuzah. It speaks of the foundations of Judaism:

-The unity of G-d: G-d is the Creator anf He is One and that there are no other gods.
-Submission to the reign of G-d: to accept the Divine discipline (all of the laws and precepts He gave us in the Torah) in our daily behaviour both in regard to our duties toward G-d and our duties towards our fellow man.
-Love of G-d: to understand that we owe evrything to G-d who we must love with all of our heart and soul.
-Self Sacrifice: to be ready to give our very life rather than be forced to give up faith
-The Study of the Torah and its Perpetuation: that we shall teach our children Torah at all times.

The second Shema is the main prayer in the second part of the Morning Service which begins with the blessing Yotzer Or, "Who Forms Light". The Shema is the key part of the morning service because it is our confession of faith and our oath to G-d.

Another reason for reciting the Shema early before its regular recitation in the blessing of Yotzer was that there is a time limit when the Morning Shema can be said. It must be said within the first quarter of the day (the daylight day). If sunrise is at 6 and sunset is at 6, then it is a 12 hour day and the Shema should not be recited later then 9am. If the morning service starts at 9:30 on Shabbos, then by the time the Shema is reached during Yotzer the dealine would have been reached.

The second chapter contains a promise that if we carry out G-s commands, the Jews will be happy people in their land. If not, we will suffer which will force us to learn the ways of G-d and to return to Him. There is another reminder of the importance to teaching children, tefilin and Mezuzah.

The third chapter contains the commandment of Tzizit, the distinctive garment that is a constant reminder fo all the precepts of the Torah. There is a reminder that G-d brought us out of Egypt and made us His people and we accepted Him as our G-d.