{"id":51228,"date":"2025-07-30T10:15:07","date_gmt":"2025-07-30T14:15:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/roman-era-church-in-spain-may-have-been-a-synagogue\/30\/07\/2025\/"},"modified":"2025-07-30T10:15:07","modified_gmt":"2025-07-30T14:15:07","slug":"roman-era-church-in-spain-may-have-been-a-synagogue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/roman-era-church-in-spain-may-have-been-a-synagogue\/30\/07\/2025\/","title":{"rendered":"Roman-era \u2018church\u2019 in Spain may have been a synagogue"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\n<\/p>\n<div data-article-body=\"true\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Archaeologists working at a site in Spain say they have uncovered evidence of what may have been a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/style\/article\/egypt-synagogue-restoration-mime-intl?cid=external-feeds_iluminar_yahoo\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:synagogue;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">synagogue<\/a> used by a hitherto unknown Jewish community.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">While excavating the site, previously believed to be a church dating from the 4th century, experts found materials and architectural evidence that led them to hypothesize that the building was, in fact, a synagogue, according to a <a href=\"https:\/\/revistavegueta.ulpgc.es\/ojs\/index.php\/revistavegueta\/article\/view\/1163\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:study;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">study<\/a> published earlier this month.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Artifacts such as fragments of oil lamps and a piece of roof tile decorated with menorahs were found during excavations in C\u00e1stulo, a former Roman settlement in southern Spain, whereas no materials that have a clear association with the Christian faith have been found at the site.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">In contrast, archaeologists have found evidence of Christian worship at another site in the town, study author Bautista Cepri\u00e1n, an archaeologist with the C\u00e1stulo Sefarad Primera Luz project, told CNN on Wednesday.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p>The building has several features that are common in synagogues but not churches. &#8211; F. Arias and B. Cepri\u00e1n<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The building also has a squarer shape than Christian churches, which tend to be more rectangular, and archaeologists found what could have been a hole for supporting a large menorah, as well as the foundations of a central raised platform, or bimah, which is common in synagogues but not in churches, he added.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">In addition, no tombs were discovered at the building, which was built near an abandoned Roman temple \u2014 something that would have been feared by Christian residents because of its association with paganism, he added.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cIt\u2019s a hidden, discreet and isolated spot that would not have been visited often by the Christian majority,\u201d Cepri\u00e1n said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Taken together, this evidence points to the existence of a previously unknown Jewish community in the town, the study authors argue.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cThe reinterpretation of the building from a church to possibly a synagogue followed a process of logical reasoning based on the historical and archaeological data in our possession,\u201d Cepri\u00e1n said.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img alt=\"A fragment of roof tile decorated with what appears to be a menorah - F. Arias and B. Cepri\u00e1n\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"540\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/KtjVfCRiz3kbX2WU9CNwZg--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTU0MDtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/cnn_articles_875\/a997deb9a595893ba1ad63dbb918015a\"\/><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p>A fragment of roof tile decorated with what appears to be a menorah &#8211; F. Arias and B. Cepri\u00e1n<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Nonetheless, the lack of written records of a Jewish community in C\u00e1stulo leaves room for some doubt, as the study authors acknowledged.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Speculating about the daily life of the community would be \u201ca very dangerous exercise,\u201d Cepri\u00e1n said, but they would have lived alongside their fellow Roman citizens in the town.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The population is then thought to have disappeared, as it is not named in the anti-Jewish law enacted by Visigoth King Sisebut, who ruled what is now Spain from 612 to 621, whereas the Jewish communities in other nearby towns are specifically named.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">As for what would have happened to them, \u201cit is difficult to know,\u201d Cepri\u00e1n said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">One possible explanation is that the Christian clergy feared the local population would convert to Judaism, given the \u201cclose and friendly relations\u201d between the two groups in the region at the time, he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">This concern drove Christian leaders, who were becoming increasingly influential in the Roman Empire, to foment fear of and opposition to Jewish communities, said Cepri\u00e1n.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">This culminated in episodes starting around the end of the 4th century in which Jewish citizens were pressured to convert to Christianity, with those who refused \u201camicably invited\u201d to leave their hometowns, he said, adding that this kind of incident could have plausibly occurred in C\u00e1stulo sometime between the end of the 5th century and the beginning of the 7th century.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Now the team will work to protect the site and excavations will continue, Cepri\u00e1n said. They aim to allow the public to visit at some point in the future, he added.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cWe can\u2019t rule out the possibility of finding more definitive evidence that allows us to update our hypothesis of a possible synagogue to an actual synagogue,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Sign up for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/newsletters\/wonder-theory?source=nl-acq_article\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:CNN\u2019s Wonder Theory science newsletter;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">CNN\u2019s Wonder Theory science newsletter<\/a>. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cnn.com\/account\/register?source=external-feeds_iluminar&amp;cid=external-feeds_iluminar_yahoo&amp;registration_email_campaign=https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/newsletters\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:CNN.com;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">CNN.com<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.yahoo.com\/news\/articles\/roman-era-church-spain-may-132718102.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Archaeologists working at a site in Spain say they have uncovered evidence of what may have been a synagogue used by a<br \/><button class=\"read-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/roman-era-church-in-spain-may-have-been-a-synagogue\/30\/07\/2025\/\">Read More &rsaquo;<\/a><\/button><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":51229,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/cnn_articles_875\/7e049228dff4fc416a2c1aa309babe07","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51228"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=51228"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51228\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/51229"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=51228"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=51228"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=51228"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}