Rabbi Shlomo Pereira and the Jews of Portugal Lecture on Youtube

The history of the Jews of the Iberian Peninsula often focuses on the history of the Jewish communities of Castile … More

Hebrews of the Portuguese Nation: Conversos and Community in Early Modern Amsterdam

I used this extensively during my dissertation to help draw a picture of life in the Amsterdam Jewish community that … More

Torah Reading for Vayigash- First Aliyah in the Spanish and Portuguese Melody.

The following is a practice run of the Torah Reading for Vayigash. This is the First Aliyah in the Spanish … More

A List of Recommended Books on the Sephardic Experience

I found an excellent list of books on the Sephardic experience. It was put together by David Shasha. E.H. Lindo, … More

Secret Jews: The Complex Identity of Crypto-Jews and Crypto-Judaism

I am extremely happy to announce the release of my book titled Secret Jews: The Complex Identity of Crypto-Jews and … More

Coming Sephardic Lectures in the Dallas Area

For those in the Dallas area, the Jewish Federation of Dallas will be hosting a series of lectures on Saturday … More

Song From a Withered Limb: Las Posadas and the Converso Crisis of the 16th Century

The following article was originally presented  at the national conference of the Society for Crypto Jewish Studies in Dallas, Texas … More

Spanish Village Named “Kill the Jews” Changes Its Name

For regular readers of this blog, you are well aware of the long history of Jews living in the Iberian … More

A Fading Shavuot Tradition from Salonika

The Spanish and Portuguese exiles from the Iberian Peninsula  in the 15th and 16th centuries found rest in what might … More

Forced Converts and Contemporary Coercion

The problem of conversion under physical duress may seem relevant to history of Spanish and Portuguese Jews forced to convert … More