http://tspwiki.com/index.php?title=1478
Here are some one liners...
No One Expects the Spanish Inquisition! -- The infamous Spanish Inquisition is established this year against the wishes of the Pope (but he caves anyway). I then talk about the forced conversion of Spanish Jews and the descendents of those same Jews living in Texas today.
No One Expects the Spanish Inquisition!
The Tribunal of the Holy Office of the Inquisition is established this year in Spain. At this time the modern day "Spain" does not exist, but the monarchies of Castile and Aragon have joined in the secret marriage of Queen Isabelle the 1st and King Ferdinand the 2nd. (It is not clear how secret the marriage is since they had to get the permission of the Pope first.) The Spanish Inquisition is created after Queen Isabella receives three reports of crypto-Jews who have pretended to convert to Christianity but continue to practice Judaism in secret. One of the reports comes from Tomás de Torquemada, who will become the infamous Inquisitor. While it is clear that Pope Sixtus the 4th doesn't like the idea of a special Inquisition, Queen Isabella threatens to remove military support for the Pope so he finally allows it. By 1492, the Jews will be expelled from Spain. [1] [2]
My Take by Alex Shrugged
I'm going to ignore the running joke of Monty Python's Flying Circus and ask the serious question: Were there really secret Jews amongst the Christians in the 15th century? The answer is "Yes". The 15th century began forced conversions of Jews and while many of these conversions were sincere, a substantial number were not. When one's life is on the line, some folks are willing to swear to anything. In secret these Jews would light candles on Friday night with the shades down. Such crypto-Jews exist in the modern day... especially in Texas. They are not Jews in the literal sense but they retain some Jewish practices and marry amongst themselves. I've met one couple in Austin who were crypto-Jews that converted to Judaism. They are fine folks and not at all unusual in Texas.[3]
I'm going to ignore the running joke of Monty Python's Flying Circus and ask the serious question: Were there really secret Jews amongst the Christians in the 15th century? The answer is "Yes". The 15th century began forced conversions of Jews and while many of these conversions were sincere, a substantial number were not. When one's life is on the line, some folks are willing to swear to anything. In secret these Jews would light candles on Friday night with the shades down. Such crypto-Jews exist in the modern day... especially in Texas. They are not Jews in the literal sense but they retain some Jewish practices and marry amongst themselves. I've met one couple in Austin who were crypto-Jews that converted to Judaism. They are fine folks and not at all unusual in Texas.[3]
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