Heritage Hunters 4 Part II The Tribunal of Zaragoza and Crypto Judaism Book Review

Raiders of the Unknown (Mystic-Skeptic Radio)

The book The Tribunal of Zaragoza and Crypto-Judaism 1484-1515 sheds light into the histographical proof of the Crypto-Jewish experience of certain individuals summoned by the Inquisition in the 15th Century. During that time period the inquisitorial tribunal tried and prosecuted countless “Catholic” heretics for the crime of Judaizing. Ms. D’Abrera profound understanding of the subject exposes the social and political issues connected with this crucial part of Jewish history as well as the controversies that are part of this academic field. In page 172 she defines their negative belief system which is seen by the Inquisition as heresy, according to the 1484 Valencian Edict of Grace: “… if you have believed, taught or said you believe something against the Catholic faith or if you know anyone who has blasphemed. “

Ms. D’Abrera not only addresses how the Inquisition persecuted the anusim systematically, but her research adds important facts to the limited resources on this subject. Her scholarly approach documents and explains the sources thoroughly corroborating her findings. The book exposes the Inquisition record, and lets it speak for itself something other scholars fail to do in many cases. She addresses many important issues not dealt with by other scholars, such as Ben Zion Netanyahu, Norman Roth and Henry Kamen. They view Conversos not as Crypto-Jews, but as sincere Catholics who were falsely accused of practicing Judaism due to their Jewish lineage. On the other hand Haim Beinart and Fritz Baer, using multiple sources, portray them show Crypto-Jews as Jewish martyrs who died honoring Torah. D’Abreira is part of the new generation of scholars who study the Inquisition records to find clues which point to a real Crypto-Jewish community. These findings are not based on a preconceived agenda, but build a case based on the historical evidence. She writes”…the inquisitors’ questions and conduct throughout the trials indicate that they were far more interested in the religious behavior of the defendant after he or she had been received into the Church, rather than presuming to judge whether the conversion had been genuine or not.” (P. 51)

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She also contends with contemporary scholars such as Henry Kamen who “believes that the inquisitors possessed minimal understanding of Jewish religious practices” and were not able to adequately document Jewish practice, something she shows to be contrary to the available evidence (P.57) The inquisitors posessed books such as Directorioum inquisitorioum, which assisted them in being able to distinguish Jewish practices from false accusations during their trial by Christian Anti-Semites from the community who resented the conversos (P.57-58)

D’Abrera’s conclusions are that the anusim in Christian Spain, specifically Zaragoza experienced in captivity to an alien creed many challenges, an that the doubt raised by some scholars of their historical legitimacy is driven by their own philosophical perspectives. To her Benzion Netanyahu’s elaborate theory not only undermines their Jewish practices as real but gives the inquisitors the power to falsify their testimonies for political purposes. Thi

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