ACTIVITIES
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method used by Dr. Laitman in his own self-discovery and spiritual growth. Some of the elements in this work, which represents a treatise on the meaning of life, include the internal processes which affect each individual, the pleasure and pain principles and the search for inner riches. His objective is to achieve a new global education based on universal values in order to found a harmonious and integrated society. Casa Sefarad is hosting the presentation of “A Guide to the Hidden Wisdom of the Kabbalah”, which will be attended by Michael Laitman.
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JUNE > Palacio de Cañete > C/ MAYOR 69 > MADRID > 7:30 pm
suffered by the author when, during the Six Day War, he received four bullet wounds and, seriously injured, had to wait for several hours to be rescued by a helicopter. Meir Shalev will be talking about his life and work at an event organised by Casa Sefarad in collaboration with the Ático de los Libros and the Embassy of Israel. The author will also be signing copies of the book at Casa Sefarad’s stand at Madrid’s Feria del Libro book fair (stand 15) on Sunday, 5 June at 12 o’clock.
Meir Shalev presents “El chico de las palomas” (A Pigeon and a Boy): a marvellous story of the power of love
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■ Meir Shalev was born in Israel in the same year (1948) that the State was founded, and is considered to be one of the greatest narrative voices of his generation. His unique style combining a sentimental tone with references to his ancestral land has won him many awards in Israel and other countries, and his work has been translated into more than 20 languages. He is coming to Spain to present his novel “A Pigeon and a Boy”. The story takes place, once again, in 1948: a young soldier suffers a fatal wound, but before he dies he manages to send a last pigeon with a message for the girl he has loved since he was a child. Almost thirty years later, this episode intertwines with the story of falling in and out of love of an Israeli guide who accompanies tourists who are interested in bird watching. Two of the most important elements in “A Pigeon and a Boy” are humour and sensitivity. This book has been acclaimed by readers in Italy, France, Germany, Holland and Israel: it is based on a painful experience
Professor Alcala presents his book ‘Los judeoconversos en la cultura y sociedad españolas’ (Converted Jews in Spanish culture and society)
JUNE > Palacio de Cañete > C/ MAYOR 69 > MADRID > 7:30 pm > FREE ADMISSION
■ The quality of Angel Alcala’s work has been demonstrated in more than 20 books and numerous articles, many of which relate to Spain’s Golden Century. He is a member of the Royal Academy of History and the Argentine Academy of Moral Science and Politics; Professor Alcala has taught philosophy at Pontifical University of Salamanca and Spanish literature at the City University of New York. The prestigious Editorial Trotta publishing house has published his book "Los judeoconversos en la cultura y sociedad españolas", a compendious study which establishes the importance of converted Jews as a channel for communication between Jewish and
Christian Spanish culture. The four main chapters of the book address, among other issues, the attacks on Judaism in the 15th century; the effects of the Inquisition and the expulsion; the literary output of the anti-Jews and converted Jews; and the life and work of converted Jews such as Miguel Servet and Fray Luis de León. The Prologue states, “from 1492 the continuing Jewish influence on Spain was no longer due to clearly Jewish minds, but to converted Jews filtered through the chiaroscuro of the baptismal font, which in the vast majority of cases they had been forced to accept as a result of explicit violence or social pressure”. Angel Alcala will be presenting his book “Los judeoconversos en la cultura y sociedad españolas” at an event hosted by Casa Sefarad. At the presentation, the author will be discussing the historical and literary aspects of his work with the representatives of the academic world: José Martínez Millán (Professor of Modern History at the Autonomous University of Madrid), Miguel Ángel Ladero Quesada (Professor of Mediaeval History and Member of the Royal Academy of History) and Luis Suárez Fernández (Emeritus Professor of Mediaeval History at the Autonomous University of Madrid and Member of the Royal Academy of History).
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JUNE > Palacio de Cañete > C/ MAYOR 69 > MADRID > 7:30 pm > FREE ADMISSION
“Jewish Spanish in expressions and sayings” and “Buenos Aires and the Sephardic Jews”: two conferences focusing on Buenos Aires ■ Around 40,000 of the 200,000 Jews who live in Argentina have Sephardic origins. The origins of some of the successive waves of Diasporas which have settled in Buenos Aires, Rosario, Cordoba and other parts of Argentina go back to Turkey, Syria and Morocco.