Jose Urquiza prays in Hebrew at home in Milagros, a particularly impoverished section of Trujillo, Peru, while his family watches. The Urquizas are among the last remaining practitioners of Judaism in Milagros, the former neighborhood of Segundo Villanueva, whose charismatic leadership began the Peruvians’ movement toward Judaism. Jose Urquiza, who taught himself to read Hebrew using an Aleph-Bet chart, has practiced Judaism for more than ten years with his family. Yet, they were passed over for conversion by the Beit Din which visited Trujillo in November 2001. Regarding the Urquizas present difficulties, Jose says, "We try to study the Torah and the Shulkhan Arukh (code of daily Jewish observance) day and night," referring to his careworn, photocopied versions of the texts. "The problem is, we need someone to teach us, because we cannot understand our responsibilities very well on our own."

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