Communicated
The Jewish community in Porto presents the film “Sfard” about “Dreyfus the Portuguese”
Sfard reveals the astonishing circumstances under which Captain Barros Basto built the largest synagogue on the Iberian Peninsula and was expelled from the army.
The Jewish community in Porto, Portugal, has offered to watch a feature film called “Sfarad” for free on YouTube.
This ninety-minute feature film tells the story of the Jews of Porto over the past hundred years. The film was shown only once in Portugal, to a dazzled audience of 1,000 people, and shows that the community – founded in 1923 by Eastern European Jews and by Portuguese army officer Captain Barros Basto, who converted to Judaism – was shaken by news of the presence of Jews. In the Portuguese villages there are descendants of Jews who still practice Jewish rituals mixed with Catholicism. They were the Marranos.
While traveling through the north of the country and the Beira regions, on foot or on horseback, the captain witnessed one of the most romantic adventures of the twentieth century. This led to the construction of what became the largest synagogue on the Iberian Peninsula, named Kaduri Mekor Haim. However, the rescue efforts of the Marranos did not live up to expectations, as they had no desire to change what they were already practicing in their “religion”, now known as Maranism.
In the 1930s, the captain was subjected to anonymous defamatory denunciations, which led to an in-depth investigation against him by the state and led to his forced separation from the army.
What began, according to two anonymous whistleblowers, as a case of homosexuality and alleged embezzlement, ended with a conviction for participating in circumcision operations.
Thus was born the “Portuguese Dreyfus Affair”, which shook and terrified the entire society.
One of the smallest communities in Europe faced the fact that it had one of the largest synagogues. The religious leader of the time, Pole Sröl Finkelstein, often prayed alone in the large empty temple.
The film ends in the 21st century, with society now restored in terms of number of believers, religious practices, and culture.
“Sfarad” itself is the product of the revitalization of a community that has already produced other films about the history of Jews in Portugal.
The goals of the Jewish community in Porto are to promote Jewish religion and culture. It houses not only films, but also synagogues, study centres, kosher restaurants, a nursery, a cemetery, a choir, an art gallery, the Jewish Museum of Porto and the Holocaust Museum, which over the past two years has had more and more visitors. From 100,000 people. School-age children.
Watch the feature film “Sefarad” here – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avCv0sqRyPA&t It is one of the most meticulous Portuguese cinema productions ever, directed by Luis Ismael, with the participation of members of the current community in Jewish ritual scenes, in addition to famous Portuguese actors.
© Jewish Community of Porto
