Left: ‘Shaar Hashamaim’ Synagogue, Belem, Brazil, 1984. Right: Service in in the &
Left: ‘Shaar Hashamaim’ Synagogue, Belem, Brazil, 1984. Right: Service in in the ‘Shaar Hashamaim’ Synagogue, Belem, Brazil, 1984. xThe Jewish community of Brazil began in 1500 with the arrival of the Portuguese as many Jewish people were hoping to escape the repressive antisemitism in Europe and start new lives overseas. However, this antisemitism followed them to the Americas. The Spanish and Portuguese Inquisitions were focused on Spanish and Portuguese overseas colonies and its estimated 40,000 victims were a majority, though not exclusively, Jewish.In 1630, the Dutch occupied Pernambuco state - including the important port city of Recife with a large ‘New Christian’ population and for the first time, Jewish people were allowed to be open about their faith. The Kahal Zur Israel synagogue was established in this time period, making it the first synagogue in the Americas. This lasted until 1654, when the Dutch lost control and Pernambuco was conquered again by the Portuguese. The majority of Jewish people in Brazil left with the Dutch, with many going to the Netherlands Antilles and the first Jewish people arriving in New Amsterdam, which is now today New York. The remaining Jewish people in Brazil were forced to live in secret or risk being killed.The decree against Jewish people was abolished by the Portuguese in 1773 and fifty years later, synagogues were established - including Shaar Hashamaim in Belém which holds services to this day. Beginning in the 1820′s, Moroccan Jews began arriving and established synagogues and communities of their own. In the 1930′s, thousands of Ashkenazi Jewish refugees arrived from Europe escaping the increasing violence and antisemitism that turned into the Holocaust. Today, Brazil’s Jewish population is estimated at 120,000 giving it the 9th largest Jewish population in the world. -- source link
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