A Journey Through the History, Memory, and Legacy of Sefarad.
ONLINE
Thursdays, 12:00-1:30pm (ET), June 12 -26
"Therefore, we order all Jews and Jewesses of whatever age they may be... [to] depart from all of these our said realms and lordships with their sons and daughters, their servants and relatives, and leave none of them to remain, unless they convert to our Holy Catholic Faith."
-Alhambra Decree, 1492
Course Description:
The Iberian Jewish or Sefardic legacy is more than recounting a history; it is a far-reaching segment of Jewish and world history with profound consequences unfolding today. Yet, despite its enduring importance, many, if not most Jewish communities do not have a clear understanding of the relevance, significance, and impact of these events and experiences. Join Dr. Isaac Amon, a descendant of the 1492 Spanish Exiles, on a journey across time and space.
Week I: In the Beginning: From King Solomon to the Ends of the Earth
Week II: Challenging Religious Authority: The Birth of Heresy and the Inquisition
Week III: In the Footsteps of the Crypto-Jews: A Story of Agony, Survival and Redemption
Thursdays, 12:00 - 1:30pm (ET)
This Course is presented in partnership with the Jewish Heritage Alliance, an organization that preserves and promotes the Saga of Sefarad and its impact on the Jewish People and the world.
Dr. Isaac Amon is an attorney and counselor at law, Adjunct Professor at Washington University School of Law in St. Louis, and Director of Academic Research at Jewish Heritage Alliance, an educational platform dedicated to promoting the legacy of Sefarad, or Iberian Jewry. He was a Legal Fellow at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia in The Hague, Legislative Director at the Missouri Department of Corrections, and an ISIS war crimes investigator. In Summer 2024, he was a scholar in-residence at Oxford University through the Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy (ISGAP). The grandson of Ashkenazi, Sefardi, and Mizrahi immigrants to the United States in the 20th century, he often speaks on the law, international criminal justice, and Jewish memory, including antisemitism, the Inquisition, and the Holocaust.
