Concentration Camps in Italy?

[Bengalzona]

(12-27-2017, 02:28 PM)Dill Wrote: Well done, B! You laid out the logic of Jewish exclusion very clearly. I would only add there was one more knock against them, namely that they "killed our savior."

On a side note, the family of one of my all time favorite philosophers, Spinoza, was expelled from Spain during the first phase of the Inquisition, eventually settling in Amsterdam. In expelling the Jewish "elites" from Spain, they diminished the kingdom's human resources and enriched England, France and the Dutch Republic's.

Love these history threads.

The Jews in Spain around the time of the Reconquista and since are an ethnic subdivision of Judaism known as Sephardi Judaism. It is one of the three largest subdivisions along with Ashkenazi (Central and Eastern Europe) and Mizrachi (Middle East and North Africa). Like Jews throughout Europe, they adopted much of the local culture and flavor and the Yiddish spoken in Iberia had a strong touch of Spanish mixed with it (just as Yiddish in other parts of Europe will sometimes have German, Slavic, or other languages mixed in based upon location). But the culture mix in Iberia was different in that it was not just a mix of two cultures (Jewish and Christian), but also a mix of three cultures (Moorish, as well). This mix of cultures brought some tremendous beauty (such as the mix of Christian and Moorish architecture in Spain). This is also true for the Sephardic Jews and their music. If you ever have a chance to listen to Sephardic music, it is a real treat.

But just as a cultural mix can bring out monumental beauty and creativity in some, it can also inspire tremendous hatred and lack of tolerance in others. This was true when the Moors initially invaded Spain and again 700 years later when the Christians expelled the Moors. Unfortunately for the Jews, who really didn't want to get involved, the fervor of the Christian Reconquista carried over to them and they were in the path of a steamroller.

Not a very effective way for a religion to seek converts.