Albert Sattin

Albert Sattin is a retired psychiatrist who, with his wife, Renee, visited the town of Belmonte, Portugal in the 1980s. They were able to attend a worship service in a private home where the Jewish citizens of Belmonte were praying in Hebrew. This was shortly after they had “come out” from their “Christian” identity, reclaiming their ancestry.The climax of the service was the very loud Hebrew declaration:“Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, The Lord is One.” It felt as if the roof was blown off!Over the centuries, they had lost most of their knowledge of the Hebrew language.Ironically, though they are Sephardic Jews, they had been instructed by an Ashkenazic Rabbi.