Why Understanding America's Religious Landscape Is the Most Important Challenge Facing Us TodayThe 1990s saw the U.S. Navy commission its first Muslim chaplain and open its first mosque.There are presently more than three hundred temples in Los Angeles; home to the greatest variety of Buddhists in the world.There are more American Muslims than there are American Episcopalians; Jews; or Presbyterians.
#448082 in Books HarperSanFrancisco 1994-09-03Ingredients: Example IngredientsOriginal language:EnglishPDF # 1 8.00 x .72 x 5.31l; #File Name: 0060603402320 pagesGreat product!
Review
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. A very informative and heartwarming collection of storiesBy GilahEvery year when we get to Holocaust Memorial Day I think what is there left to tell us about this; so many stories; books; movies; lectures - I thought I knew it all . And then I read this book.I had no idea that Spain - the same Spain that threw the Jews out of their country 500 years ago effectively ending the Golden Age period for Spain and its Jews; that same Spain was a haven for Jews fleeing the Nazi onslaught in the rest of Europe. While France went along with the Nazi plan of rounding up the Jews; herding them into camps and exterminating them; in Spain; if they got there somehow; the Jews were protected. The stories in the book are first hand accounts of the many families who were saved; including the author's family..I would give this book 5 stars but there is some sloppy writing as well as factual errors here and there.This was a very heart-warming book; the kind that reaffirms my faith that people can be good and do the right thing even in the worst situations.59 of 61 people found the following review helpful. Fascinating mix of heroism; personal histories and religionBy Laura HamiltonI found this book at my Jewish boyfriend's mother's house. She checked it out of the library as part of a Sephardic reading group. I started skimming through it and couldn't put it down; had to buy my own copy here on ! Trudi Alexy and her family fled Czechoslovakia to escape the Germans and were chased through France and finally Spain before they felt safe. Spain; in spite of its history of ultra-conservative Catholicism; Inquisition; expulsion of the Jews; etc.; was one of the few safe havens for Jews fleeing the Germans during WWII. I was surpised to find this out; since Franco was a part of the Axis powers; a rigid ultra-Catholic; a dictator; and a Fascist. But I guess he wasn't an anti-Semite; because he basically looked the other way when Jews began pouring into Spain illegally to escape being killed in the concentration camps of Occupied Europe; especially Vichy-controlled France; which practically did all they could to deliver the Jews over to the Germans; nasty anti-Semites that the French are. In contrast; Spain not only looked the other way when Jews came pouring over the border; in many cases Spanish diplomats would demand that arrested Jews in other countries be released to them as Spanish citizens; even in cases where the Jews were Ashkenaz; not even Sephardic! The Spanish Red Cross also made a great effort to get food; clothing and letters shipped to Jews in concentration camps in the rest of Europe; even as the International Red Cross did absolutely nothing to help. There are horrific stories from the survivors themselves; tales of fleeing the Nazis with only the clothes on their backs; of escaping concentration camps and struggling over the Pyrenees in mid-winter without even a proper coat. Tales of getting to Spain and turning themselves in to the police to find warm beds; food and even money provided for them by kind hearted Spaniards from all walks of life. Then there are stories from the people who smuggled them into Spain; the risks they took to save thousands upon thousands of people from certain death. And tales of the Secret Jews; or Marranos; or Crypto-Jews; who were forced to convert during the Inquisition; or who were expelled from Spain; and the constant threats that they faced. Many of them continued practicing their Jewish rituals in absolute secrecy; in most cases not even letting their children know that they were of Jewish blood until age 12; when they were less likely to slip and give the secret away to outsiders. Many Crypto-Jews live in Mexico and New Mexico today; their ancestors having arrived in the 1500's after the expulsion from Spain. The Inquisition follwed them to the New World; however; so they continued practicing the most minimal Jewish traditions; such as ritual prayer; in absolute secrecy. Trudi interviewed some people who only identified as Catholics; but had listened to an NPR show on the Crypto-Jews and identified ancient and distorted Jewish traditions that their own family practiced! These people were utterly shocked to find out that they were of Jewish ancestry. I don't personally see the big deal; but I guess if you're a major Christian; then you might think it's a bad thing. In most cases though; the families were not only aware of their Jewish ancestry; but fostered it in secret while living a public life of Catholicism. They would intermarry only amongst one another and kept to fairly tight-knit communities. I liked the stories of the people who escaped to Spain during WWII best; since they were so full of heroism and drama; but really the whole book was fascinating.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Worth readingBy Tzippy. RExcellent book. Everyone should read it.
