Juan Marcos Bejarano Gutierrez

Why Did Spanish Jews Convert to Christianity? Juan Marcos Bejarano Gutierrez

Hundreds of thousands of Spanish Jews converted to Christianity at various points in history. The first conversions occurred under the Visigoths. The second under Islamic rule. The last stemming over a period of more than one hundred years occurred under the Kingdoms of Castile, Aragon, Navarre, and later the Kingdom of Portugal. Why did so many Spanish Jews convert to Christianity when faced with persecution? Were they different from German Jews? Were they weaker or less committed to Judaism? Or were there other factors that caused them to react differently? Find out the theological and cultural differences that shaped the responses of what was once the largest Jewish communities in Europe.