| Non-Fiction
 The Return to Judaism
Descendants from the Inquisition Discovering Their Jewish Roots
by Sandra Cumings Malamed
ISBN 978-1-56474-504-0
336 pages, cloth, $32.50
Publication Date: November 2010
During the Inquisition in Spain and Portugal many Jews were forcibly converted to the Catholic faith. These Conversos, as they were called, were required to give up their religion, their traditions, and in some cases even their names.
During the 1990s, historian Sandra Malamed conducted a series of probing interviews with people of Spanish and Portuguese descent, who considered themselves Christians or even non-believers, but who nonetheless practiced various Jewish traditions—often without knowing where the traditions came from. When she explained to them what these customs were all about, they were fascinated to learn that Judaism might be part of their families’ history. The word spread, and before long people from all around the country and beyond began to contact Malamed.
Included: a brief history of the Inquisition, the interviews with 50+ descendants of Conversos, a survey of Sephardic Judaism worldwide today, lists of Sephardic surnames, timelines, glossary, bibliography, index. Illustrated with black and white photos throughout.
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