Sanhedrin calls for Crypto-Jews to return from exile
Earlier this month, the nascent Sanhedrin had a special meeting regarding Crypto-Jews. Also known as Bnei Anousim (Heb: “compelled against their will”), Crypto Jews were Jews who, when faced with forcible conversion to Catholicism during the Spanish and Portuguese Inquisition in the late 15th century, chose to continue practicing the Jewish faith in secret. The ban on Judaism continued in the Spanish colonies in America well into the 17th century.
In 1868, with the creation of a new constitutional monarchy that allowed for the practice of faiths other than Catholicism, Jews were finally permitted to return to Spain. From 1868 until 1968, Jews could live in Spain as individuals, but could not practice Judaism as a community.
The Sanhedrin’s proclamation is as follows:
To the holy children of Israel who were forced to convert to Christianity, Islam, or become Atheists. May G-d always be with you.
You are our brothers and sisters, our own flesh and blood. Whoever has a Jewish mother is a Jew forever and ever. So, whatever the other nations did to you, and forced you or your ancestors to do, it did not and will never separate us. We love you deeply, and praise you for observing Jewish traditions, commandments and customs, secretly, to the best of your ability, and for many years. And we commend the Crypto Jews who already made the brave move of returning to the Torah openly, despite the hardships and obstacles. We also call for the return of all those who didn’t return yet, to the Torah, to the people of Israel, and eventually to the holy land of Israel.
What did G-d promise?
The prophecies of G-d came true and are still coming true. From the Exodus from Egypt, through the exile to Babylon, the return, the second exile, and the gathering of exiles that has recently begun and is still ongoing today.
G-d has promised to the people of Israel in the Torah (Deuteronomy 30:3-4): “Then, the Lord, your God, will bring back your exiles, and He will have mercy upon you. He will once again gather you from all the nations, where the Lord, your God, had dispersed you. Even if your exiles are at the end of the heavens, the Lord, your God, will gather you from there, and He will take you from there.”
He also promised through the Prophets (Ovadia 1:20): “And this exiled host of the children of Israel who are with the Canaanites as far as France and the exile of Jerusalem which is in Spain (Sepharad) shall inherit the cities of the southland.”
He also promised us in Psalms (68:23): “The Lord said, ‘I shall restore from Bashan; I shall restore from the depths of the sea’.”
No matter how many difficulties there will be on the way, we know for certain that you will overcome all of them, and return to us soon.
The end of the exile
There are two classes of exiles: 1) the physical exile of the Jews being expelled from the land of Israel, and 2) the identity exile of Jews losing their Jewish identity and losing their belonging to the people of Israel.
Thousands of years of murders, threats, compulsion, and oppression caused a lot of Jews to lose their identity. We request of anyone who knows he is from the descendants of the Crypto Jews, based on his traditions in the family and the Jewish commandments and customs they practiced, to begin as fast as possible the process of returning to the people of Israel and the Torah. And to join a Jewish community, whether classical or one of Crypto Jews who had already returned.
Why is it difficult to return to the people of Israel?
Any one of the Crypto Jews who returns now to the people of Israel is paving the way for all the Crypto Jews that will do so after him- like Nahshon, son of Aminadhav, who got into the Red Sea first and paved the way for all the people of Israel. It is worthy and important to return to Judaism and to not give up, because it is a great deed that will bring blessings to millions of Jews. When people are building a railroad, they work hard, and because of their effort, anyone who wants to use the train can travel very quickly and effortlessly. The same is true for the Crypto Jews who return to Judaism now.
What about a person who isn’t a Crypto Jew but wants to become Jewish?
Unlike other religions, we don’t believe that the entire human race should become Jewish. A non-Jew can sanctify himself without converting to Judaism by observing the commandments that were given to Noah, and that apply to the entire human race. As they used to say in the school of Prophet Eliyahu (Eliyahu Rabbah 9): “Regardless of a person’s gender, social status, or him being Jewish or not, the Holy Spirit is bestowed upon him solely based on the righteousness of his deeds.”
That said, anyone who wants to become a Jew because he believes in the Torah and wants to accept it and practice all the commandments that were given to the people of Israel, with no exception, can learn and convert, like many did before him. And the Jews are obligated to accept him with open arms.
If a non-Jew can be holy, then what is special about the people of Israel?
There are many things that are special about the people of Israel, but we would like to focus on one of them – the people of Israel as witnesses. On Mount Sinai, G-d gave the commandments to the people of Israel, and one of them is the commandment of being a witness. If a person sees something or knows something to be true, he must testify if his testimony is required.
Prophet Isaiah wrote (43:10): “You are My witnesses, says the Lord, and My servant whom I chose, in order that you know and believe Me, and understand that I am He; before Me no god was formed and after Me none shall be.”
The people of Israel were chosen to testify that there is a Creator. That He is one, not three nor any other number. That He doesn’t have a physical image. That He is good and merciful, and spoke to millions of Israelis, our own ancestors, on Mount Sinai. Our ancestors heard Him speak with their own ears and saw with their own eyes all the miracles in Egypt, on the Red Sea, in the desert, and in the conquest of the land of Israel.
Because our people witnessed all those great things we must testify to the existence of the Creator, and guide the whole world on how a person can, and should, reach holiness. We therefore call upon all of you to continue, together with us, the testimony of our ancestors, and bring closer the eternal happiness of a full redemption.
The classical Jews around the world, and especially in South America
It is important for us to say that we are not okay with the way you are being treated by many Jewish communities. In the Talmud it is said (Sota 37) that each Jew is responsible for the practice of the commandments of all other Jews. It is therefore the responsibility of any Jew in the world who can help you to return to Judaism to do so.
And in the Torah it is said (Leviticus 19:18) “And you shall love your friend like you love yourself”. Any Jew who has the ability to help must do so, just like he would want other Jews to help him if he were in a similar situation.
It is also said in the Torah (Deuteronomy 22:1) “You shall not see your brother’s bull or sheep straying, and ignore them. You shall return them to your brother.” This is the commandment to return possessions lost to the owner. If we are commanded to return physical objects that were lost to a brother, we obviously must return souls that were lost, or more accurately, stolen, from the entire nation of Israel.
It is therefore highly forbidden to reject you and alienate you from your communities. It is mandatory for any Jew that was raised Jewish, and it is of the highest importance, by the command of the almighty God Himself, and by the written and oral Torah, to help you return to Judaism and to fully accept and embrace you once you do so.
We intend to write a separate letter to the Jewish communities where we will explain the seriousness and evilness of what they are doing, in the hope that they will abandon their evil attitude towards you and will begin accepting you with the love that you deserve.
And it shall come to pass that on that day, the Lord shall continue to apply His hand a second time to acquire the rest of His people, that will remain from Assyria and from Egypt and from Pathros and from Cush and from Elam and from Sumeria and from Hamath and from the islands of the sea. And He shall raise a banner to the nations, and He shall gather the lost of Israel and the scattered ones of Judah. He shall gather from the four corners of the earth (Isaiah 11:11-12).
The Semikha was reinstated in the year 5764 (2004) and the Great Sanhedrin was formed with Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz the elected president and Rabbi Yoel Shwartz the head of the court. Today there are about one thousand Semukhim. The Great Sanhedrin appointed the “Sanhedrin for the dispersed of Israel” to specialize in dispersed communities and to help bring all the dispersed back to the Torah, to the people of Israel, and to the holy land of Israel.
The Sanhedrin’s proclamation was provided by Yaffah Batya daCosta, Founder and CEO of Ezra L’Anousim, an organization that works with rabbis and Torah education institutions to help Anousim trying to return to the Nation of Israel.
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