Posted by:
Tevai
(
)
Date: February 28, 2018 04:50PM
tumwater Wrote:
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> The stream on Jews in CO and NM in Spanish
> families has me intrigued, I'm from northern NM
> and come from Spanish heritage.
A prospective "Welcome to the tribe!" tumwater... :D
If you go to YouTube and do a search for: "Dr. Henry Abramson, Sephardim," a number of really interesting lectures will come up, some of which I have already seen and highly recommend, and others which I have yet to see.
Dr. Abramson (who is a historian; he teaches history at university level) is in the midst of a new series right now, titled "The Sephardic Diaspora."
I just finished listening to Part 3: "Who Was the Chida?"...and I am looking forward to listening to Part 1 and Part 2 of this new series (I often listen to his lectures when I am working in the kitchen).
[EDITED TO ADD: I have just finished Part 1, which is a well-done and well-presented overview of this history, but may be a bit overly detail-rich as an easy Intro. In my life, I have always (instinctively) looked for the "most easily accessible door" to enter a subject new to me, and this optimum "new door" has often proven to be sideways or peripheral to the main subject I am trying to learn. For me, I think, right now, that Part 3 would have been an easier-for-me "entry door"...but I also haven't heard Part 2 yet, so consider this a preliminary report which is subject to future revision. And to clarify: mostly I am listening to these lectures first, as I work in the kitchen or wherever, and I look at the video screen when there is something I really want to see at that moment. Then later, when I am NOT working in the kitchen or whatever, I actually VIEW the video. :) ]
[EDITED TO ADD: I just finished Part 2, the title of which is going to sound both odd and arcane: "Who Was Samuel Usque?," a person I had never heard of before a few hours ago---and very probably no one reading this has probably ever heard about before either. Regardless, Part 2 of this series is a pivotal presentation, in that it explains not only "why" and "how" Portugal became so mixed-up in all this (which is a very important part of the story), but FAR more importantly, it explains the HUMAN story which WAS the living reality of the Jews, and the "hidden Jews"/"Christians," of the pre-Inquisition (including the Expulsion) period...the Inquisition itself period...and the [mostly] post-Inquisition period (which includes the Spanish colonization of what is now the southwestern United States).
If you want to know the human story of the people who actually lived those lives, Part 2 of this series is where to begin---even if you, like me, had never heard the name "Samuel Usque" before today.]
If your brain initially works better with facts, dates, and data points, then my recommendation is that you begin this series with Part 1.
If you are more interested in the human story of the PEOPLE who did these things, and WHY they did these things, then I recommend beginning with Part 2.
The other important item of note is: as part of this new series, there will be (in a week or two, if I am remembering correctly) an evidently to-the-point presentation specifically about the "Crypto-Jews" [meaning: "secret Jews"..."hidden Jews"...Marranos...anusim (this is the word in Hebrew)...pick whatever term you feel most comfortable with].
Dr. Abramson is exceptionally good at presenting what is often very convoluted history in understandable and interesting ways to general audiences---I understand he is also markedly popular with his university undergraduate and graduate students as well---and I am very much looking forward to what he has to say about the hidden Jews of northern New Mexico and southern Colorado.
Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 02/28/2018 07:48PM by Tevai.