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Jeremiah 33:12-13 |
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Here is what Adonai Sabaoth says: Yet again shall there be in this place, which is waste, without man and without beast, and in all the cities thereof, a habitation of shepherds causing their flocks to lie down.
In the cities of the hill-country, in the cities of the Lowland, and in the cities of the Negev, and in the land of Benjamin, and in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, shall the flocks again pass under the hands of him that counteth them, saith the Lord.
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Click on the Tallis above or the special Sephardic Issue of the TJCI magazine below to purchase from our Secure Web Store
Spain
Here we are as we prepare to enter the Prado in Madrid, Spain.
Cathedral in Toledo, Spain where Anusim victims were hung by chains on the walls.
 Dona Gracia meeting her relative Senor Serrano in Toledo, Spain
Israel
Dona Gracia with John Daly & friend in Ashdod
Ein Avdat -Springs in the Negev desert
Anusim group at the SHI Center
Dona Gracia singing Hatikvah at Ben Gurion's gravesite overlooking the Negev!
This picture was taken by one of our group when we saw Gamla. Raptors are being raised at Gamla in fulfillment of Ezekiel 39
The Hurva (Ya'akov) Synagogue in Jerusalem is now being rebuilt. Please Pray For The
Peace of Jerusalem
SHI Anusim Study Group at the Dona Gracia Hotel/Museum in Tiberias learning about a great Anusim heroine of the 16th century, Dona Gracia Nassi
Our SHI Anusim Study Group with Ze'ev our guide during the farewell dinner at the Dona Gracia Hotel in Tiberius
DNA Testing
Click on the box for DNA Testing
Anusim Names
Click on the map to check out the SHI Anusim Names Project
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Sephardim Hope News ...And the regathered shall inherit the Negev. Obadiah 1:20 
Sh'vat-Adar 5768/January-February 2008 |
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Greetings!
 We are excited about all that HaShem is doing in these days of restoration of his B'nai Anusim of Israel! "...the exiles of Sefarad shall return and inhabit the Negev" Obadiah 20. Here we are in the beautiful Galilee with our Anusim group!
We are also thankful for the kindness of those who help in this vision of return. We as hidden lost Sephardic Jews belong to HaShem and his Torah will be accomplished. The Torah continues to give light to us, in spite of much pain and darkness that many are coming from. Lost identity is not something that we have chosen and we continue to pray for those who will open their hearts and doors to help guide us gently. The B'nai Anusim of Israel have had 500 years of being forced to hide, wander and live in fear, so it is no wonder that much patience is needed in these efforts of identity recovery.
As SHI, we believe G-d's Torah covenant of return and one day we desire to stand in the land of our Jewish forefathers with dual citizenship in two great nations. We have no rose colored glasses, yet we offer our commitment and love for our lost traditions and culture. This is all the true Anusim desire, to stand with our brothers and sisters without feeling like rejected orphans.
Sephardim Hope International recently returned from an amazing time in Spain and Israel that transformed those who joined us. We thank HaShem for the wonderful people we met and experiences that we shared together and wanted to give you an updated report.
Here we are at the Dona Gracia Hotel-Museum in Tiberas, Israel with some of the Anusm group and supporters. It is always a fun and educatonal time at this location.
Please read below for more observations of the trip. |
| Madrid & Toledo, Spain
Spain brought us the great opportunity to discover Madrid again and to go to the important city of Toledo. We took the new fast train to meet our good friend and family, Samuel el Coso(also a Serrano) who showed us around this ancient city of Jewish expulsion in 1492.
The San Martin Bridge where the Jews were ambushed for their jewels, killed and thrown into the waters of the Tangus river is still such an impacting experience to walk over. We prayed to HaShem for comfort as the pain of 500 years can still be felt on its bulwark crossing.
One of the blessings was meeting Don Cipriano Gonzalez who helps the needy at the ancient building that was part of the original gates to the city at the "Socoro de los Pobres" organization.
Another amazing treat was the meeting of a long lost ancestor, Mr. Serrano , whose family craft of ceramics has endured many generations both in Madrid and Toledo. His shop has an underground cellar that is part of the old tunnels under this ancient place where people from the synagogues and then cathedrals could travel undetected toward the river.
The group also visited the Transito Synagogue that is now a government run museum.
- Isaiah 60:9
Surely the isles shall wait for Me, and the ships of Tarshish first, to bring your sons from far, their silver and their gold with them, for the name of Adonai your G-d, and for the Holy One of Israel, because He has glorified you! |
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Ashkelon, Israel
Our SHI friend, John Daly from "Friends in Deed, Inc." met us in Ashkelon, Israel to connect us to Head Chabad Rabbi Lieberman of Ashkelon. We enjoyed the Q&A interaction and warm hospitality.
Be'er Sheva And The Negev Desert
The Negev desert brought the group some intriguing sites of the Tel Be'er Sheva and the springs in the desert at Ein Avdat. The beauty of the desert and the ibex surrounded us as we learned some secrets of the desert "blooming as the rose" as it awaits its proper inhabitants... the exiles of Sefarad!
An exciting new element was the recent discovery of "fresh water pools" that lie alongside the Dead Sea that are now visible from the receding water. These pools consist of fresh water from rain in the rocks and mountainsides that may also flow from Jerusalem! Could this be part of Ezekiel's prophecy of part of the Dead Sea being "healed"?
- Ezekiel 47:8-9
8 He said to me, "This water flows toward the eastern region and continues down to the 'Aravah. When it enters the sea, the sea of stagnant water, [the Dead Sea,] its water will become fresh. 9 When this happens, swarms of all kinds of living creatures will be able to live in it wherever the streams flow; so that there will be a vast number of fish; for this water is flowing there, so that, wherever the river goes, everything will be restored and able to live." |
Jerusalem of Gold
Our group was blessed to visit the Jerusalem Support Center as we took a large supply of brand new baby and toddler clothing donated to SHI to give to the new Olim and those in need of additional assistance. Thank you Gina and Michael Utterback and staff for all you do for Israel through this special department of COG!
Jerusalem brought some precious time of prayer at the Kotel, the prayer place under the "Temple Tunnel Tour" and G-d's promise of the "return of his people" Israel to the land. We believe HaShem is faithful and will do as his Torah says. Even as we visited and mourned the great losses at Yad Vashem, we were reminded that G-d will not forget the 500 year old holocaust of his forgotten ones of Sefarad.
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The Holy City of Safed
We were enlightened and delighted at the Karo Synagogue to view a 500 year old Torah scroll brought by the sages from Spain to Israel during the Inquisition. What a memorial of the courage and strength that HaShem gave to his people. This area of artists is always a special place to buy art, hand crafted candles at the factory and the beautiful hand crafted Teffelin made especially in Safat for prayer.
History at the Dona Gracia in Tiberias
Our trip ended in the beautiful museum-hotel, Dona Gracia where we shared the history of Dona Gracia Nasi, the heroine to the Jews during the Inquisition. We sat in a "hidden synagogue"(with period style chairs and with the altar area facing north instead of east), took pictures of the replicated areas of Turkey, Venice, Antwerp and Ferera where Dona Gracia traveled. The hotel holds intricate diorama cases(tiny miniature dolls that depict the story scenes). We dressed in costumes of the era and imagined the past intrigues that took place.
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The Future Anusim Vision
The future of the Anusim is a complicated one, but we know that HaShem is with us and will continue to build and "prepare a highway" in the wilderness. We continue to ask for your support as we cannot do this alone. Your financial gifts are always appreciated.
SHI continues to build the names project and we thank you for your stories and information. We see an awakening like never before and we are the living witnesses of "the dry bones" of Israel coming alive.
Anusim Names Project
Sephardim Hope International is working to develop a network of B'nei Anusim (Children of Anusim/Crypto- Jews) for the purpose of education and mutual support. This project is called the Anusim Names Project. We believe it is part of the biblical fulfillment of Obadiah 20.
If you feel you have Benei Anusim/Jewish roots in your family line, please email brief information, names, origin, to: anusimproject@sephardimhope.org . You may also fill out the e-Form on our website: Anusim Names Project .
Your information will be held confidentially, unless you include permission for possible research in Israel.
More about the Anusim Names Project....
- Dona Gracia Serrano-Fenn | |
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Thank for all the wonderful support (your financial help is SO important to pay some of the loans on the center and taxes each month!) and prayers by our good new and old friends. This is such a great task to draw all the Ruths and Naomis together!! We need much help to accomplish our part! Please remember SHI in your giving and please continue writing and emailing us!! More "Anusim" are reaching out and asking questions, giving us information for the future Aliyah gatherings!!.
Isaiah 49:8-9 says Here is what ADONAI says: "At the time when I choose, I will answer you; on the day of salvation, I will help you. I have preserved you, and I have appointed you to be the covenant for a people, to restore the land and distribute again its ruined inheritances to their owners, to say to the prisoners, 'Come out!' to those in darkness, 'Show yourselves!' They will feed along the paths, and all the high hills will be their pastures.
May the Psalm 126 also comfort our hearts as scripture says, "Then our mouth was filled with laughter and our tongue with singing: then said they among the heathen, The Lord hath done great things for them. The Lord hath done great things for us; whereof we are glad. Turn again our captivity, O Lord, as the streams in the Negev (south). They that sow in tears shall reap in joy."
Hashem willing, we will head for Mexico in March. We hope to interview and retrieve some of the amazing history of the 200 member family clan of the Serranos and who came from Spain to Mexico in the late 1980's. The clan settled in Teul, Zacatecas, Mexico, until my grandfather Pantaleon and Felicitas moved to Guadalajara with their six children. My father who passed away last Shavout was born after their move.
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Awakening The Sephardim To The Negev!
Sephardim Hope International is a benevolent international non-profit organization to bring the message of the Sephardic Anusim Jews (the descendents of the forcibly converted ones) from Spain to the awareness of the Jews, the Christian Church and the world. This is a prophetic message of hope and part of the story of Biblical Zionism.
Sephardim Hope International is also a support to the nation of Israel working in partnership with other organizations bringing aid and comfort to Jerusalem and the Jewish people.
Sephardim Hope International is a tax-deductible 501 (c)3 charitable organization formed for the above purpose. Donate tax-free to help support Sephardim Hope International in this endeavor of education, benevolence and helping the Anusim to make Aliyah to Israel.
To donate by regular mail please use the address at the bottom of this newsletter. You may also donate securely on-line by clicking here. Or you may call (408) 422-5498 and ask for Drake Fenn to donate by phone.
We look forward to hearing from many of you. Remember that you can respond to our newsletter or email directly with questions.
May Ha Shem continue to bless you and your families in this great year! Please do contact our administrator Drake (my awesome husband and webmaster) at Drake@SephardimHope.org for speaking and music engagements.
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Loving Shalom,
Dona Gracia Serrano Fenn
Sephardim Hope International
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