EVIDENCES TEST

Tempo de leitura: 5 Minutos

Evidences Test– Bnei Anusim Descendants –
Sefaradi Spanish Portuguese
Name:
Age:
Address:
Job:
E-mail:
Country:
Notes:
City:
Home town:
Please mark the squares with the traditions that have been maintained in your family. This is a small
compilation of traditions that some families still practice today, mosto f the time without knowledge of their
Jewish origins. There are many variations to these traditions, as each family may add a different but
similar way of practicing them. You are invited to write down any variations practiced in your family next
to the questions or at the end of this survey in the provided space. Please respond and return the survey
as soon as possible.
General Traditions
□ Has anyone in the family (father, grandfather, or other relatives) ever mentioned that the family has
Jewish roots?
□ Was there an ancient Jewish community in the city where your family came from?
□ Does anyone in the family speak an unfamiliar language similar to a different type of Spanish? Ladino?
Hebrew?
□ Did any relative have to avoid Catholic churches?
□ Did anyone in the family participate in secret meetings, or meetings where only men or fathers were
allowed to participate? Any secret prayer group?
□ Were there common biblical names in the family?
Meals:
□ Was fasting a common practice?
□ Was it forbidden to eat meat with blood, and sometimes the veins of the meat were removed with a
special knife?
□ Were eggs with blood spots thrown away?
□ Was pork not eaten, either because it was considered unhealthy or heavy?
□ Were milk and meat never cooked or served together?
□ Were only foods prepared by the mother or maternal grandmother considered “good”?
□ Have a boy fasted for 24 hours when he turned 7 years old?
□ Was it customary to kiss a piece of bread that had fallen on the floor?
□ Was it forbidden to eat the meat of warm-blooded animals that hadn’t been properly bled?
□ Were fish without scales considered acceptable? Were mollusks and seafood also considered
unacceptable?
General Traditions:
□ When serving a drink (wine, beer, rum, brandy…), was it customary to pour a little “for the saint”?
□ In some homes (sometimes of older people), were there drawers in the dining table?
Customs:
□ Were candles lit on Friday night?
□ Was there a cabinet (oratory), cupboard, or wooden box where candles were lit and the doors were
closed?
□ Was Easter celebrated?
□ Was it common for people to fast during Holy Week?
□ Was the house cleaned, especially on Fridays during the day?
□ Was it forbidden to do many things on Friday night, even washing hair?
□ Were candles lit in front of the altar and burned until the end of the day?
□ Were there “meetings” on Friday night?
□ Were there special clothes for Saturday, whether simply new clothes or clean ones?
□ Were there celebrations that differed from Catholic practices, such as “Pure Day” or a spring party?
□ Were eight candles sometimes lit for Christmas?
□ Was it customary to tear one’s clothes when something important or sad happened?
□ Was sweeping the floor away from the door considered superstition?
□ When sweeping the house, was it done from the corners toward the center of the room before
collecting the trash?
□ Was it customary to bless children by placing hands on their heads?
□ Was it believed that pointing at the stars was not good?
□ Did some believe that warts would grow on their fingers?
Funerals:
□ Were all mirrors in the house covered when someone died?
□ Were stones placed on graves when visiting cemeteries?
□ Was the water in the deceased person’s home changed after their passing?
□ Was it customary to cut the nails and hair of the deceased and sometimes wrap them in paper or cloth?
□ Was the body buried as quickly as possible?
□ Was the house cleaned after the funeral?
□ Was the room of the deceased kept with lights on for a week?
□ Were candles lit in the rooms of the deceased and the family, and family members were not allowed to
enter or leave the house for a week or more after the day of death?
□ Did men let their beards grow for a period of time?
□ Was the deceased’s seat at the table maintained, and complete meals were sercved and these meals
were offered to a homeless or poor person?
□ Was there a habit of not eating red meat for a week after a death in the family?
□ Did they fast after the death of a relative?
□ Was it customary to invite a homeless or poor person into the house to eat, serving them the
deceased’s favorite food?
□ Did women in the family have to cover their faces with a veil or something similar?
□ Was it customary to enter in the deceased’s room for eight days and say, “May God give you a good
night. You were like us; we will be like you”?
□ Was it customary to place a gold coin or bread in the mouth of the deceased and then give it to a poor
person?
□ Was it customary to give alms at every street corner until the funeral procession reached the cemetery?
□ Was it customary to donate good clothes and food to at least one poor person every Saturday for a
year?
□ Were many candles lit in the days leading up to the “Pure Day” for the deceased?
□ In some places, was there a man known as the “Abafador” who would assist seriously ill people before
the doctor entered the house? The Abafador would close the door and stop the sick person from
breathing, saying calmly, “Come, my son (daughter), our God is waiting for you.” After the task was done,
the Abafador would go to the relatives and say, “He (she) was gone like a little bird…”
Birth
□ Was it customary to place a rooster’s head at the top of the door where the birth was to take place?
□ After childbirth, was the mother not allowed to undress or change clothes for 30 days? Did she have to
rest in bed and stay away from contact with other people for 30 days? Additionally, during her menstrual
period, was she also isolated?
□ During these 30 days, did the woman only eat chicken in the morning, afternoon, and evening to regain
her strength back?
□ Was it customary to throw a silver coin into the baby’s first bath?
□ Was it customary to say a special prayer on the eighth day after the boy was born, where his name was
mentioned?
□ Was there a circumcision or baptism on the eighth day after the baby was born?
□ Was it customary to light a candle or a lamp in the room where the birth would take place because the
baby could not be in the dark until he was circumcised or baptized?
Marriage
□ In the family, was there no problem marrying close relatives? Cousins?
□ Do family members usually marry their sons or daughters to another family considered “a good family”?
□ Did the bride, groom, father, and mother-in-law have to fast on the wedding day?
□ In the wedding ceremony, were the couple’s hands tied with a white cloth?
□ After the ceremony, was a meal served with wine, herbs, honey, salt, and unleavened bread?
□ Did the bride and groom eat and drink from the same plate and glass?
Below, you can write your personal stories as proof of your heritage. You can also use the back
of this page.