I am your God and Lord

Leonor de Carvajal

1589–1595

I am your God and Lord
Who with infinite power
Freed you from Egypt
Where you lived in suffering
And harsh despair.
Do not revere
Foreign gods before me,
And make no trophies
In the likeness of the array
With which I adorned the heavens.
Worship none of these
And honor none of them in any way;
I alone will be your God,
For I am very jealous in many things
As you will see.
Do not swear in my name
In any vain matter
And without great need;
You will be well punished
If you do such evil.
Remember to sanctify
The day I have reserved;
Six days you may work
At whatever pleases you most;
But on the seventh, I forbid it.
Because in six days, He created
All of creation,
On the seventh I rested:
That is why I sanctified it.
You shall follow in His footsteps.
Honor your father and mother
And you will live long,
Always happy and content.
Behold the land you will possess
By the hand of the Almighty.
Refrain from killing anyone,
Abstain from fornication,
And stealing from others
And bearing false witness
Against your fellow man.
Do not covet what is another’s:
Neither his wife
Nor a slave he may own
Nor his ox or ass; it is an ugly trait
That the Lord does not desire.
All the people heard the thunderings
Of the mighty Lord;
And they moved a distance away
From His great glory,
Terrified at what they had heard.
They all asked Moses
To tell them
What the Lord had commanded him
And they said they would obey
For fear that He might kill them.
He told them, “Do not fear,
For our Lord did this
Merely to test you
And see if you fear Him
After seeing so many signs
Sent for your benefit,” etc.

Translated by
Steven
Capsuto
.

Credits

Leonor de Carvajal, “Yo soy tu dios y señor (I Am Your God and Lord)” (prayer, Mexico, 1589–1595). Published in: Michelle M. Hamilton, “La poesía de Leonor de Carvajal y la tradición de los criptojudíos en Nueva España,” Sefarad, vol. 60, no. 1 (June 30, 2000): pp. 75–93 (81–82).

Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 5.

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Creator Bio

Leonor de Carvajal

d. 1596

Leonor de Carvajal was the seventh of nine children born to Francisco Rodríguez de Matos and Francisca de Carvajal. The family left Spain around 1579, settling in New Spain (Mexico). However, in 1589 and 1590, most members of the family were arrested and convicted of Judaizing by the Inquisition. They repented, renouncing Judaism and declaring their devotion to the Catholic Church, and were punished. Five years later they were again arrested for Judaizing. Despite initial resistance, after being subjected to torture, Leonor confessed, implicating her family and acquaintances. Her confession includes depictions of various crypto-Jewish rites and customs, as well as the texts of poems and songs (some partial) recited and sung on these occasions, among them a poem about the Ten Commandments, Sabbath songs, and more. It offers fascinating insights into the practice of crypto-Jews and the important role that women played in passing on traditions within this community. Like her brother, Luis Carvajal, who refused to repent or renounce his Judaism, Leonor was burned at the stake in 1596.

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