SOME OF THE ROOTS OF ANTI-JEWISH HOSTILITY IN THE TEACHINGS OF THE MEDIEVAL CHURCH….Misconstrued Scriptures.

   THE “ REPLACEMENT  THEORY “ as propounded by Ignatius,Tertullian,Augustine, Chrysostom, Cyprian and others. The theory suggested that God has closed His dealings with the Jews because of their unique crime and their persistent unbelief. He has therefore “replaced” Israel by covenanting with the Christian church, which is henceforth the “new Israel”, –although there is no such term in the scripture.

   The theory arose out of mis-representations of some scriptures.e.g.-

    The parable of the barren fig tree….Matthew, 21-v.18/22.    The fig tree was said to represent the people of Israel and their unfruitfulness throughout their long history, leading to their rejection by God.   The more accurate meaning could be that God powerfully answers words spoken in faith and under the leading of the Holy Spirit..  In no way does the parable imply the total rejection of the nation of Israel, but it could imply a rejection of its religious system.

   The  parable  of  the  tenants….Matthew, 21-v.33-46… The parable is said to represent in allegorical form the final abandonment by God of the Jewish people, who had rejected His servants,- the prophets, failed to produce fruit,murdered His Son, and had finally lost their privileged position.  The parable probably implies that the existing religious leaders of Israel will lose their position as the guardians of the theocracy in Israel, and that the contemporary nation will forfeit its place in favour of another. Future Israel is not excluded from the benefits of salvation.eg.-Romans,11,v.25.-“ Israel has experienced a hardening in part until the full number of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved….”

   The  parable of the wedding banquet …Mathew, 22-v.1-14…The parable is aid to show how the Jews, the first invited guests, had persistently refused the many prophets’ invitations to enjoy fellowship with God at His banquet, and had finally brought destruction upon themselves and their city ( i.e..by the armies of Titus in 70.A.D.)   The parable points to the generosity and breadth of God’s appeal to all peoples to respond in faith to His invitations. The one gate-crasher guest who was without a garment of faith was ejected. The parable does not exclude those Jews who will have responded in faith by the time of the Tribulation.-Rev.ch.7-v.14.

  Nowhere do these parables indicate a final rejection of the people of Israel, but rather, the futility of its religious system and the blindness of its current leaders. God’s continued faithfulness and care and promises for Israel are detailed in scripture :-

“O Jerusalem,Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets ….how often I have longed to gather your children together…For I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.”- Matthew, ch.23,v.37-39. See also Zech.,ch.12, v.10.

   “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you ; and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria…” Acts ch.1,v8.

  “Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly : “We had to speak the word of God to you first…Acts,ch.13,v.46.

  “Paul….tried to convince them about Jesus from the law of Moses and from the prophets..” Acts,ch.28,v.23.

    The first covenants made by God with Israel are covenants of grace, based on faith ,-

“Abram believed the Lord, and He credited it to him as righteousness.-Gen.ch15,v6.

The covenant  contained God’s promises of many descendants and a title to a land,- “To your descendants I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates…”-Gen.15,v.18..

         ( to be continued..)

AUTHORS ANCIENT AND MEDIEVAL… A SUMMARY.

    Because the Jews were regarded as the deicidal race, they were then classed as a special kind of heretic, deserving of punishment and servitude and degradation,  but yet afforded some protection as the “witness people” to the truths in the scripture. Church codes and edicts provided for certain safeguards for the Jews, but restrictions were also placed on them,such as the prohibition of land ownership and confinement within the ghettoes.

    These conditions, built on church doctrines and rules allowed many writers free rein to heap abuse upon the Jews as a despised people.The Jew was said to be synonymous with the unjust usurer, the oppressor ot the poor, the ritual murderer of Christian children, the blasphemer, the poison of wells, the conspirator, the incorrigible unbeliever, the sorcerer, a companion of devils, an agent of Satan, an enemy of God and Christians, a fearful image bearing an eternal curse incurred upon the whole race as the offspring of Judas, and the betrayer of Jesus, their Messiah, the Christ of the church.

ANCIENT AND MEIEVAL AUTHORS…contd…

PETER  ALPHONSI, 1062-1110…In his “ Dialogue” he alleged that the Jews had misunderstood their prophets and neither had they obeyed the law. Their talmud and midrashim contain fables which they regard as literal truth.

PETER OF CLUNY, 1122- 1156…In his “Treatise against the Chronic Obstinacy of the Jews”  he attacked as fables the writings in the Talmud. He argued that the Jews were inspired by Satan, and that they should be made to finance the first Crusade.

THOMAS AQUINAS, 1125-1174…He maintained that the Jews should suffer in perpetual servitude. They should be protected as witnesses to the truth of Christianity, although they are heretics. Their possessions should be treated as belonging to the state.

PETER OF BLOIS, circa. 1200..He asserted that the Jewish concept of the Messiah was, in fact the Antichrist.

RAMON  LULL, 1234-1304…He urged that Jews should be compelled to hear Christian sermons. He accused the Jews of blaspheming Jesus and His mother Mary, and that if they did not convert they should be expelled from Christian lands because their devilish presence was a threat to the faithful.

NICHOLAS  DONIN, circa. 1240…In his “Disputation “ with rabbi Yehiel Ben Joseph he showed that the Talmud and other writings were the source of a new religion, and that it was divorced from the Old Testament . The Jews were no longer living witnesses to the truth of scripture because they had turned aside to the heresies found in the Talmud . This was said to contain lies about Jesus , the virgin Mary and the pope, and it even sanctioned the killing of Christians.

RAYMOND  MARTINI,circa, 1278…In his “Dagger of Faith” he contended that the Jews had been rejected by God because of their sin at Sinai during the worship of te golden calf. He argued that they believe in two Messiahs, but remain in ignorance of God . He saw no possibility of a restoration to their homeland, although a remnant will be saved.

ABNER OF BURGOS, 1270- 1348… In his “Wars of God” he accused the Jews of reciting prayers against Christians during their synagogue worship.

GERONIMO DE SANTA FE, circa. 1414… He wrote two treatises ,:-“To prove the Perfidy .

of the Jews,” and “Concerning Jewish Errors drawn from the Talmud, “ all with the intention of pointing up the lies and fables in the Talmud. These he said contradicted the law of God and the laws of nature.

PAUL OF BURGOS, ( otherwise known as PABLO DE SANTA MARIA.), .1434…In his “Scrutinium Scripturarum”  he accused the Jews of spiritual blindness regarding their own sins and heresies, which will cause their long dispersion.

ALPHONSO DE SPINA, 1459…His book, “The Fortress of Faith” probably mooted the concept of the Inquisition. He accused the Jews of spiritual blindness, ritual murder, well poisoning  and other crimes against Christians. Their treatment of Jesus will ensure their eternal damnation

ANCIENT AND MEDIEVAL AUTHORS…contd….

MOHAMMED, 570-632.. He produced the words for the Koran, which contains promises and maledictions for the Jews, for example :- “And we said to to the children of Israel after him, “Dwell in the land; and when the promise of the world to come comes to pass, we shall bring you a rabble.” ( i.e. as a crowd gathered out of various nations.)-  Sura 17: 105-6       “And well you know there were among you that transgressed the sabbath , and we said to them,” Be you apes, miserably slinking ! And we made it a punishment exemplary for all the former times and for the latter.”-Sura 2-62

AGOBARD, archbishop of Lyons, 779-840…In his letters to his superiors he accused the Jews of blasphemy , superstition and of maligning Jesus Christ in the “Toledoth Jeshu”. He also alleged that they curse Christians in their prayers, that they steal  Christian children in order to sell them on to Arab traders, and that they seduce Christian women. He considered that the Jews are cursed, unclean, a generation of vipers, a useless and sinful race.

AMULO, archbishop of Lyons, 841-852…In his treatise directed against the Jews he stated that the Jews believe in two Messiahs, that they malign Jesus as though He were Lucifer. Their unbelief in Christ is detestable. He accused the Jews of using their money to induce Christians to renounce their faith.

“The TOLEDOTH  YESHU “…An anonymous and fabulous  work  which appeared in the 10th.century, probably derived from an earlier oral source. It contains blasphemies against Jesus Christ and Mary. It was ignored by scholarly Jews, but a few saw it as an example of the Jewish hatred of Christians. It thus served as a further pretext for  the oppression of the Jews in Europe.

ANCIENT AND MEDIEVAL AUTHORS….contd…

SULPICIUS SEVERUS, 4th. century…He contended that  the Jews suffer dispersion because of their rejection of Jesus Christ.

MAXIMINUS, circa.427… His treatise that the Jews are uncircumcised in heart and that God has rejected the, as He did Cain. Christians are represented by Abel, who was slain because his worship pleased God.

AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO, 354-430….Among his writings he claimed that the Jews are guilty of deicide, carnality in worship and blind to the truth that salvation is received only through the grace of God. Judaism is corrupt, and Israel,  as the older son, has been replaced in God’s dealings by the Christian church, which is His younger son.  The Jews now live under a divine curse, but they are to be preserved as the “slave librarian” of the church. The Jews exist, not for their own sake, but for the salvation of that nation. They remain as enemies of God and will be punished by a future of wandering servitude among the nations.  Even so, the Jewish people are to be protected as a witness to the truth of Christianity and the scriptures.  The Old Testament properly belongs to the wholr church, and the men of faith in the Old Testament are members of the church.    Although the Jews are to be kept in subjection socially, they are to be loved spiritually because their defection from the truth of the gospel has allowed the Gentiles to be grafted into the olive tree of God’s kingdom. The Jews will be grafted back into the olive tree at the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.

PRUDENTIUS, 4th.century…He saw the Jews as an enslaved and subdued people, who will always suffer because of the murder of  their Messiah.

ISIDORE OF SEVILLE, 570- 636…In his “Contra Judaeos” he argued that many Jews would not believe and would be supplanted by the Gentiles, that Jerusalem and the temple site would be abandoned. He asserted that Jewish rituals would cease to be practised. The covenant of the law they did not understand, but the new covenant calls both Jews and Gentiles to faith in Jesus Christ.

THE TEACHING OF JACOB, 634…This argued that the law had passed away, and that the rituals of the Jews had ceased because of their transgressions. The church has now replaced Israel in God’s purposes.

PSEUDO  EPHRAIM, 4th. century…He warned that the Jewish festivals should be avoided.Israel he likened to a broken vine, which has been replaced by the church. Israel is now without hope, and will be subject to continual punishment.

EPIPHANIUS, 310-403 approx. He considered that “real Jews” are like the Herodians,-  lazy,dishonest and perverse.

PSEUDO-CYPRIAN, late 3rd.century…This unknown author created a perverse and malicious interpretation Old Testament history in order to portray the continued ungodliness of the Jews.

GREGORY OF NYSSA, 331-396,…Among his writings he claimed that the Jews are guilty of deicide, that they are enemies of God, advocates for the devil and haters of Christians and the prophets.

AMBROSE OF MILAN,340-397,…He claimed that the Jews are guilty of covetousness, and that their forms of worship are marred by unbelief and folly.

CHRYSOSTOM OF ANTIOCH, 344-407,…He wrote eight “Homilies” against the Jews in the period 386-394. In these sermons he warned all Christians against any association with the Jews or Judaizers because of the murder of Jesus Christ, and because they themselves are a depraved and debauched people. God’s vengeance upon them will never end, and it will cause their everlasting dispersion  and bondage among the nations. Their rituals will never be restored, even with a rebuilt temple. Their rites are abominable and useless, and only serve Satan and his demons.

METHODIUS  OF  OLYMPUS, circa. 240…He accused the Jews of being earthly-minded and using only a literal interpretation of the scriptures. They have  brought about their own destruction.

THE DIDASCALIA, 3rd. century…This church instruction affirmed that the Christian church had now replaced the synagogue because of the disobedience and unbelief of the Jews. They are now not able to obey the law or worship without the temple. Although the Jews are guilty of the death of Jesus , Christians could still term their “brothers.”

JEROME, 340-420…Among his vast output he asserted that Christians are the “spiritual Jews”. The carnal Jews are descended from Judas, not from Judah. The Jews he termed as serpents,haters of men and guilty of cupidity in their commercial dealings. The synagogue is a place of depravity and vice, infested with devils. Despite all, the Jews must  be prayed for.

CYRIL OF JERUSALEM,.315-386…He denounced the patriarchate of Jerusalem, and considered that Jewish worship is shameful.

EUSEBIUS OF CAESAREA, died 340…He asserted that the ancient Hebrews were primitive Christians, as were all the patriarchs. The Jews were an unworthy people for whom the law was needed, but even with this help, they would finally lose their independence and their distinct worship. The judgement upon them would last until the end of this age, with a continuous dispersion among the nations.

HILARY OF POITIERS, died 367…In his commentary on Psalm 51 he maintained that the Jews are a perverse and wicked people, haters of God and the ones who crucified God himself and killed the prophets. Their glory is their iniquity.

THE EPISTLE TO DIOGNETUS, 3rd. century….This letter made little use of the Old Testament, but it accused the Jews of keeping superstitious and foolish customs, because God has no need of offerings. Jewish rituals , such as abstinence from certain foods, circumcision and sabbath observance are useless. Jews are supposed to be involved in the martyrdom of Christians.

THE  SIBYLLINE  ORACLES,circa.3rd. century…This document was re-worked  by Christians to explain that the dispersion of the Jews was due to their rejection of Jesus as their Messiah. Because of their unfaithfulness they needed the law, God is displeased by their insincere worship.

APHRAHAT, a Syrian writer, circa. 336….In his homilies he warned that the Jewish rituals and customs are to be avoided because the Old Covenant was now superseded. He expected no restoration for the Jews.

EPHRAIM, died 373….(a Syriac)…His hymns refer to the perversions of the Jewish religion.

AUTHORS….ANCIENT AND MEDIEVAL… A DIGEST ..contd.

TERTULLIAN…155-222.. In his “Adversus Judaeos” he asserted that the Jews “have ever been guilty of the crime of idolatry”, but that the Mosaic system had now fallen into disuse because the law and the old spiritual truths were now completed in Christ. The prophecies of His first coming were ignored by the Jews, who are now hateful towards Christians and they are “seed plot of all calumnies against us.

THE  DIALOGUE  OF  TIMOTHY  AND  AQUILA, circa.200.. an anonymous  work , which claimed that the Jews are now rejected by God and are being punished by expulsion from their land. The writer conceded that Jews who repent may be baptised into the Christian faith.

IRENAEUS  OF  LYONS, 125-202…His thesis was that the Jews are being punished as Cain was because their worship was not true to the pattern God had given them, and that they had finally rejected their Messiah. They had denied the Eternal King and had chosen a robber instead. All Jews are responsible for this deicide.  The church is now the “true Israel”. Christians are the sons of Abraham, while Jews occupy the place of Esau, who was supplanted by his younger brother, Jacob.   Christians have a spiritual understanding of the law, but Jews are the slaves of the law and the traditions they have created.  The Jews as a race are hard of heart, disobedient before God, and destined for destruction.

ARISTIDES, circa.170…He understood the Jews to be superstitious and indulging in angel worship and customs controlled by the phases of the moon.

MELITO  OF  SARDIS, circa.190…He claimed that the Jewish people are exclusively responsible for the crucifixion and the Gentiles actually welcomed Jesus as the Christ of God. Judgement has befallen the Jews as a result of their rejection of Jesus as their Messiah. Their privileged place has now been taken by the Gentile church.

ORIGEN  OF  CAESAREA, –183-253. His verdict on the Jews was that they are being punished because of their unbelief and deicide. They have been rejected by God and their place is now taken by Christians…..(See summary later).

CLEMENT  OF  ALEXANDRIA, circa. 210…His view was that the Old Testament scriptures belong to the church and were fulfilled in Christ. Although the Jews were guided by God through the centuries they have been unfaithful and hard-hearted and lazy, and their understanding of God is that He is their Master, but not a loving Father.

CYPRIAN, circa. 246…He considered that the Jews had failed to understand the scriptures, and had in consequence rejected their Messiah. The old law was now cancelled and a new dispensation had begun, in which the church will enjoy greater privileges and power than the Jews ever knew. The Jewish people and Judaism have no assured future, but even so, Jews may obtain forgiveness and then enter the church.

HIPPOLYTUS, circa. 230…In his “Adversus Judaeos” he claimed that the present and future sufferings of the Jews are due to their treatment of Christ,- “For the prophet says as in the person of God,-“Let their table become a snare and a retribution”. Of what retribution does he speak ? Manifestly of misery which has now got hold of thee.”   The whole of the Jewish people are guilty, and they have latterly corrupted the scriptures and contributed to a Christian heresy ,-i.e.- gnosticism. Their punishment will be eternal blindness and everlasting bondage to the Gentiles,- “their back do Thou bend down always-“ as slaves to other nations. The Jews as a people are cunning, proud, ungrateful and without fear. They are destined to serve the Antichrist, who will revive the Jewish kingdom amidst much suffering and persecution inflicted upon the Christian church. Even so, Jews may enter the church through conversion, faith and good works.

AUTHORS…ANCIENT AND MEDIEVAL,- A DIGEST.

 

UNCHARACTERISTICALLY   UNGRACIOUS.

IGNATIUS,  circa. 105 ..He thought that the men of faith in the O.T. were “Christians before their time,” and, as such, were not real Jews. He saw Judaism as a religion of the past , a dead, unusable leaven. “Put aside then the evil leaven, which has grown old and sour, and turn to the new leaven, which is Jesus Christ.” To live according to the principles of Judaism is to live without grace.

The Epistle of Barnabas, circa. 100…An anonymous work which warned Christians to resist the old, Judaistic interpretation of the O.T., which had been misunderstood by the Jews, who had given it a literal interpretation. Their understanding of the O.T. ceremonial laws was a device of an evil angel,who  had thus deceived the Jews. This writer thought that the stories and truths in the O.T. were valuable only as allegories pointing to Christ and  New Testament truths, which spiritual meanings the Jews had failed to see.

Marcion, circa. 140… a  heretic. He suggested that their are two Gods: –the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ , who is inherently good, and the “Demiurge”,- the creator God of the Old Testament. The latter chose the Jews and gave his law to them, but everything in their legacy is unworthy of Christianity. The Jews, who had rejected Christ are wicked.

Justin Martyr, writing around 135-161….In his “Dialogue with Trypho” he contended that the new covenant had replaced the old one, and that the external observance of the law was superseded because it was intended only as a spiritual law. Jesus is the Messiah predicted by the prophets, and the rituals of the O.T  foreshadow Him. He asserted that the Jews have been replaced as the people of God by Christians, who are now the “Israel of God”, the true Israelites and the heirs of Abraham. God has now rejected the Jewish sacrificial system by allowing the destruction of their temple.                            The continued existence of the Jewish people serves as a witness to the truth of Christianity and the scriptures. The Jews,although guilty of deicide,can know salvation, but at present they labour under the errors of their rabbis, and remain hardened, foolish, useless and unfruitful. In fact, they serve the devil and persecute Christians.

    Justin in his “Apologies”  asserted that he Jews continue to misunderstand and refuse to believe the gospel; they even attack Christ and accuse Him of using magical  arts.

 

TO BE CONTINUED….

THE CHURCH AND THE ISRAEL OF GOD…..Introduction…continued….

   Is there any need to rehearse these written censures, calumnies and diatribes directed against the Jews ? Yes,-because nearly all the general and detailed histories of Europe either delicately ignore them or maintain a total indifference towards this ancient antipathy. Written hostility often a release or expression in the ill-treatment inflicted upon the Jews throughout their sojournings in Europe, in the form of expulsions,confiscation of property, pogroms and massacres.

    One instance will suffice: several excellent and well-researched histories of the Crusades have been published recently. None allude to the massacres and pogroms launched upon the Jewish communities in Europe. During the first Crusade 7000 Jews were lynched in the Rhinelands and 400 were murdered while sheltering in the synagogue in Jerusalem. There were massacres in England during the third Crusade; other massacres took place during the abortive Crusades of 1236 and 1309. During the progress of the “ Shepherds’ Crusade “ of 1320  at least 140 Jewish communities were destroyed in the south of France and near the Spanish frontier with the loss of 30,000 lives . Before the Crusaders set out to engage in murder and mayhem their recruiting cry was “God wills it !”  The spoken word unsheathed a thousand swords; the written word ignited a Holocaust.

    If I may pre-empt some part of my conclusion, may I then affirm that it is now more apparent than ever in this “end-time” for Christians to heed an urgent call to respond in Israel’s favour through prayers of intercession, by practical encouragement  as they face hostile neighbours, and by proclaiming the offer of salvation by the grace of God through faith in their true Messiah Jesus.

     In our recent history God is receiving the glory by His unambiguous fulfilment of prophecy by restoring Israel to its ancient land, and thus “ preparing the way for the Lord” and by “ making straight in the desert a highway for our God”. The faithful remnant of Israel and the Church can then unite in the final prayer of the Bible,-“ Amen, come Lord Jesus.”  Only at His coming in glory will true peace and justice be established in Jerusalem and throughout the world.

    It is therefore imperative now for all Christians to offer prayer and support for Israel, and so hasten the day when  “all Israel shall be saved”(  Romans ch.11,v26), which event will be the climax of our history and “life from the dead” for all peoples on the earth.