The Faith of Remembrance

"One of the most important books on crypto-Judaism in the New World, bringing together Wachtel's classic combination of anthropologist and historian into psychological and spiritual investigations of the Marrano community. Based heavily on archival research of Inquisition cases in Mexico City and Lima, this book stresses the syncretist tendency of this group whose knowledge of Judaism and Hebrew was minimal and who couldn't help mixing in a good deal of Christian practice and theology."-Jonathan Israel, Institute for Advanced Study "Wachtel is truly a brilliant and impeccable scholar. Innovative and massively researched, The Faith of Remembrance is written from the heart."-Nancy Farriss, University of Pennsylvania From reviews of the French edition "Wachtel combines a rigorous microhistorical inquiry with the desire to bring us 'the lived, the affective, and the immediate,' or the emotion aroused by sampling the chronicles of suffering in the jails of the Holy Office. With the help of a wealth of details, he immerses us ... in the everyday world of the Marranos."-Danielle Rozenberg, Archives de Sciences Sociales des Religions "Wachtel unravels the complex history of each case study with the mix of prudence and audacity that has become his trademark. It is at this level that his microanalytic approach demonstrates its full potential: not only does it allow the author to be attentive to the details, opacities, and contradictions of each episode, but it also makes possible a keen contextualization of the Marrano experience."-Jacques Revel, Annales: Histoire, Sciences Sociales