For the first time since the expulsion of Spain's Jews in 1492, a descendant of forcibly-converted Spanish Jews who immigrated to Israel, returned to Judaism and received rabbinical ordination will return to Spain to serve as a rabbi. Rabbi Nissan Ben-Avraham, a resident of Shiloh, has been appointed as Shavei Israel’s new emissary to the Bnei Anousim (whom historians refer to as "Marranos") in Spain.
Shavei Israel is a non-profit organization that strengthens ties between the State of Israel and descendants of Jews around the world, including the Bnei Menashe of India, the Bnei Anousim in Spain, the Subbotnik Jews of Russia, the Jewish community of Kaifeng in China, the "Hidden Jews" of Poland from the Holocaust era and others.
Rabbi Ben-Avraham was born in 1957 in Palma de Mallorca, Spain and was named Nicolau Aguilo. He immigrated to Israel in 1978, formally returned to Judaism and Hebraicized his name. He later married, was ordained as a rabbi, and became a father of 12 children.
As Shavei Israel's emissary in Spain, Rabbi Ben-Avraham will teach Torah, Jewish culture and tradition to Bnei Anousim, and will assist those seeking to learn more about their Jewish roots.
“This is a very moving and historic development,” said Michael Freund (pictured at left), founder and chairman of Shavei Israel. “It marks the first time that a member of the Bnei Anousim is returning to Spain, where he was born and raised, in order to help his fellow Bnei Anousim learn more about their Jewish roots.” According to Freund, there are tens of thousands – and maybe even more – of Bnei Anousim in Spain, who are conscious of their special connection to the Jewish people. "We owe it to them and to their ancestors to reach out to them, embrace them and welcome them back home," he said.
Rabbi Ben-Avraham is a descendant of Mallorca's Jews who were forcibly converted to Catholicism in the 14th and 15th centuries. They were never fully accepted by their Catholic neighbors, who referred to them as Chuetas, which means "pigs,” and rejected them.
They suffered from centuries of discrimination, which reinforced their identity and communal cohesiveness. The Chuetas were forced to marry only among themselves and faced various social and professional restrictions up until the modern era. An estimated 15,000-20,000 still live in Mallorca, though many have assimilated in recent years.
In the early Middle Ages, Spanish Jewry was one of the oldest and most successful Diaspora Jewish communities. But from 1391 onwards, a series of terrible disturbances and great tribulations befell the Jews of Iberia, resulting in unprecedented waves of expulsion, persecution and forced conversions. These tragic events culminated in 1492, when the remaining Jews were formally expelled by the Spanish monarchs. Many of those who had been compelled to convert to Catholicism – known by the Hebrew term Bnei Anousim – remained behind, where they nonetheless continued to preserve their Jewish identity and to practice Jewish tradition covertly, away from the prying eyes of the Inquisition and its enforcers.