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Delegation of 16 Europeans, whose ancestors were forced to convert to Catholicism during inquisition over 500 years ago, seek to renew their ties with Jewish people, state A delegation of 16 Bnai Anousim from Spain, Portugal, Italy, and France arrived in Israel over the weekend. Bnai Anousim (referred to as "Marranos" by historians) is the name for Mediterranean European Jews who were forced to convert to Catholicism on pain of death during the Spanish Inquisition.   
(IsraelNN.com) For the second year in a row, a vivid exhibition tracing the history and experience of the Bnai Anousim (Jews who hid their identity for fear of persecution) is drawing large crowds across Brazil as it tours the vast South American country.www.shavei.org), a Jerusalem-based group that reaches out and assists "lost Jews" seeking to return to the Jewish people.
Poland's latest generation of Jewish youth face a multitude of questions, choices and challenges as they address their past and plan their futures. Twenty-two of those young people are participating in a three-week Jewish learning seminar in Jerusalem organized by Shavei Israel, a nonprofit organization that aims to strengthen ties between Israel and the descendants of Jews around the world.
Jin Jin and Nina Wang are students in Hebrew University's preparatory program. They will soon commence their BA studies, but they already have long-term dreams. Jin wants to eventually serve as a diplomat in the Foreign Ministry. Wang hopes to use her diverse knowledge of languages to represent Israeli companies in China. The two women belong to one of the smallest Jewish communities in Israel - immigrants from Kaifeng, China - which numbers just 10 souls.  
For years they lit candles in secret, carefully avoided attending church, and hid their Bibles. Now, they have decided to come out into the open. Thousands of descendants of Anousim (known as "Marranos") are seeking to return to Judaism. But along the way it has become clear that even after the Inquisition, they now face a new foe: some Jews are placing obstacles in their path.
Couple from Benei Menashe Tribe of India renew their vows Jewish-style, fulfilling a long lost dream of returning to Jewish homeland Ya’akov Manlun, 97, and his wife Orah, 88, new immigrants from the Benei Menashe Tribe of India, wed Friday in a lavish ceremony joined by many guests in Kiryat Arba. Ya’akov and Orah have been married for almost 70 years, and have recently made aliyah to Israel. The couple concluded their conversion process days ago and asked to be remarried under the Law of Moses.