Thursday, July 14, 2011

How Generous

Almost six centuries after most of them converted to Christianity, a rabbinical court has declared that descendants of a "lost tribe" from the Spanish island of Mallorca can once more be considered Jews.

[...]

Some of the Chuetas continued to practise Judaism in secret and at great personal risk. They became a target for the Inquisition, which condemned hundreds to death. Members of the community were persecuted in the 15th and 17th centuries.

[...]

A decision by the ultra-orthodox rabbi Nissim Karelitz recognises that the Chuetas of Mallorca, who were persecuted by the Spanish Inquisition and remained a distinct group within Mallorcan society until the 1970s, had the right to call themselves Jews.

  UK Guardian

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