História

A história da vila remonta ao século XII, quando o concelho municipal recebeu foral de D. Sancho I em 1199.Belmonte e a vizinha Covilhã, apesar de situados no interior de Portugal estão conotados como poucas regiões portuguesas com os Descobrimentos marítimos Portugueses. Entre as curiosidades que permeiam a história da vila está o facto de que o descobridor do Brasil no século XIV, o navegador Pedro Álvares Cabral, ter nascido em Belmonte.

Comunidade judaica

A comunidade de Belmonte abriga um importante facto da história judaica sefardita, relacionado com a resistência dos judeus à intolerância religiosa na Península Ibérica.

No século XVI, aquando da expulsão dos mouros da Península Ibérica, e da reconquista das terras espanholas e portuguesas pelos Reis católicos e por D. Manuel, foi instaurada uma lei que obrigava os judeus portugueses converterem-se ou a deixarem o país.

Muitos deles acabaram abandonando Portugal, por medo de represálias da Inquisição. Outros converteram-se ao cristianismo em termos oficiais, mantendo o seu culto e tradições culturais no âmbito familiar.

Um terceiro grupo de judeus, porém, tomou uma medida mais extrema. Vários decidiram isolar-se do mundo exterior, cortando o contacto com o resto do país e seguindo suas tradições à risca. Tais pessoas foram chamadas de "marranos", numa alusão à proibição ritual de comer carne de porco. Durante séculos os marranos de Belmonte mantiveram as suas tradições judaicas quase intactas, tornando-se um caso excepcional de comunidade criptojudaica. Somente nos anos 70 a comunidade estabeleceu contacto com os judeus de Israel e oficializou o judaísmo como sua religião.

Em 2005 foi inaugurado no cidade o Museu Judaico de Belmonte, o primeiro do género em Portugal, que mostra as tradições e o dia-a-dia dessa comunidade.

Among all the texts and notes of Rabbi Baruch Shalom Halevi Ashlag (the Rabash), there was one special notebook he always carried. This notebook contained the transcripts of his conversations with his father, Rabbi Yehuda Leib Halevi Ashlag (Baal HaSulam), author of the Sulam (Ladder) commentary on The Book of Zohar and of many other works on Kabbalah. Not feeling well on the Jewish New Year in September 1991, the Rabash summoned his prime disciple and personal assistant, Michael Laitman, to his bedside and handed him that notebook. Its cover contained only one word, Shamati (I Heard). As he handed the notebook, he said to Laitman, “Take it and learn from it.” The following morning, he perished in his student’s arms, leaving him and many of his other disciples without guidance in this world. Committed to Rabash’s legacy to disseminate the wisdom of Kabbalah, Laitman published the notebook just as it was written, thus retaining the text’s transforming powers. Among all the books of Kabbalah, Shamati is a unique and compelling composition whose power persists long after the reading is through.

Shamati (I Heard):
* Free Download (PDF)
* Purchase at Kabbalah Books
* Read at Kabbalah Library

And those who delve in the secret have a part in Bina, so they will shine and radiate from there, from the secret of the internality of the Torah, and measuring a level, that is, as the brightness of the firmament. There is no reward as the reward of the disciples of the Torah and knowing its secrets, to the glory of its Creator.

–Rav Moshe Cordovero (RAMAK),
Know the God of Thy Father, 148 

WORKS:

1. "Pardes Rimonim" ("An Orchard of Pomegranates") - Ramak's first book, which secured his reputation as a mystical genius.
2. Ohr Yakar ("A Precious Light") - A Magnum opus of some 16 volumes in its extant manuscript form, which had occupied Ramak throughout his adult life - a classic commentary on the Zohar, Sefer Yetzirah and the Zoharic literary offshoots. Its publication ended around 2005 in Jerusalem (some 22 volumes). Certain parts of it - such as Tefilah le-Moshe and Shiur Qomah - were also published independently.
3. Tomer Devorah ("Palm tree [of] Deborah") which exists in an English translation by Rabbi Moshe Miller (1993).
4. "Eilima Rabbati" - of which 2/3 are still unpublished!
5. Ohr Neerav ("A Pleasant Light" - can also mean "a mixed light" and "a darkened light")- exists in an Annotated English translation by Ira Robinson (1994).
6. " Sefer Gerushin" ("The Book of Banishments") - a disclosure of Ramak's fellowship and their devotional piety in the Galilean outskirts of Safed. A highly informative texts in regard to RaMaK's devotional piety and the use of landscape as the negotiator between heaven and earth.

• Beth Yosef, a commentary on Arba'ah Turim, the current work of Jewish law in his days;
• Shulchan Aruch, a condensation of his decisions in Beth Yosef;
• Kesef Mishneh (Venice, 1574-5), a commentary of Mishneh Torah by Maimonides;

• Bedek ha-Bayit (Salonica, 1605), supplements and corrections to Beth Yosef;
• Kelalei ha-Talmud (Salonica, 1598), on the methodology of the Talmud;
• Avkath Rochel (Salonica, 1791), Responsa
• Maggid Mesharim (Lublin, 1646), and supplements (Venice, 1646)
• Derashot (Salonica, 1799), speeches, in the collection 'Oz Tzaddikim'.

–The Rav Raiah Kook,
Igrot (Letters), Vol. 2, 8

Turning the hearts and occupying the minds with noble thoughts, whose origin is the secrets of the Torah, has become an utter necessity in the last generation.

–The Rav Raiah Kook,
Mist of Purity, p 65


There is no need for asceticism, and there is no need to correct the external. Do not correct your externality, but only your internality, since only your internality is about to be corrected. The primary cause for the corruption of the internality is pride and self-centeredness. If you wish to cleanse your sins, you should engage in annulling self-centeredness instead of asceticism, to feel that you are the lowest and the worst of all the people in the world. Yet, one should take note and lower oneself only before opportune people, before our society, and not before strangers.

–Rav Yehuda Ashlag (Baal HaSulam),
Pri Hacham (A Sage’s Fruit), p 75