Albuquerque hosts 2nd Annual Crypto-Judaic festival April 8th and 9th

[CrackSmokeRepublican]

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Albuquerque hosts 2nd Annual Crypto-Judaic festival April 8th and 9th

    Albuquerque
    March 28, 2011
    By: Neala Schwartzberg


Salinas served as the ecclesiastical headquarters of the Spanish Inquisition in New Mexico

During the time of the infamous Spanish Inquisition, thousands of Jews were given the choice of conversion to Catholicism, or being killed (usually in a decidedly unpleasant manner). Most complied, becoming outwardly Catholic. These are the Crypto-Jews (or "hidden Jews).

Many of Sephardic Jewish ancestry chose to flee Spain during the Spanish and Portueguese inquisition hoping to find greater safety in Mexico and then the area that eventually became the state of New Mexico. For hundreds of years, even though they were now living in the New World, these early jewish settlers still lived with the every day fear of being persecuted for their heritage and their religious beliefs. And in fact, history shows that the persecution of hidden Jews did indeed carry over across the ocean.


Now, however, over 500 years later, New Mexico's Jewish Sephardic population is coming out to share their ancestral roots with the community at large.

The Second Annual festival celebrating New Mexico's Hispano/Latino Crypto-Jewish families, "Festival Djudeo Espanyol 2011", will be held on April 8th and 9th at Temple Nahalat Shalom, 3606 Rio Grande Blvd. NW, Albuquerque.

The two-day event will feature Sephardic services, a social hour, lectures, poetry, panel discussions, a sephardic dinner and flamenco dance performance. All events are open to the public.

Sponsored by Congregation Nahalat Shalom, the Crypto-Judaic Center of New Mexico, and the Martin Sosin-Stratton-Petit Foundation; the annual festival honors the untold history, language and culture of the Crypto-Jewish families who fled the Spanish inquisition in 1492, and settled in new Mexico. Descendants of the original families who settled here, are invited to attend the festival to rediscover their roots and share their rich cultural heritage.

The festival begins with a sephardic shabbat service, a blending of Ladino, Spanish, Hebrew and English prayers with Sephardic melodies at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, April 8. The service will be held at Temple Nahalat Shalom and led by congregation member Stephanie Cohen.


Festival speakers include Dr. Dennis Otero of the Olive Tree Fellowship in Albuquerque; Isabelle Medina Sandoval, author, educator and poet; and others to be announced.

Admission to Saturday's activities will be by donation of any amount.

The Crypto-Judaic Center of New Mexico, a co-sponsor of the festival, is a newly formed, non-profit, secular center for counseling, research and education in crypto-Judaic history, languages and culture.

An ongoing weekly class in Crypto-Judaic studies, taught by Daniel Heurta, is currently offered on Wednesdays at 6:00 p.m. at Temple Nahalat Shalom. Further details on the classes and festival events, and directions to the temple are available online at www.nahalatshalom.org.

http://www.examiner.com/article/albuque ... th-and-9th