A Convenient Hatred: The History of Antisemitism (8 page)

Other scholars disagree. They argue that the prayer has had many variations in wording over the centuries and it is unlikely that Jews recited it in exactly the same way in every synagogue in Palestine or anywhere else. Many also note that in some places, Christians continued to worship in both synagogues and churches well into the third century of the Common Era.

Nevertheless, gradually, slowly, what had begun as a debate among Jews was becoming a disagreement between members of two separate
religions. Both Christians and Jews began to define themselves and their religion by emphasizing the differences between the two groups. One of the first Christian writers to do so was Melito, a bishop in Sardis, a city in what is now Turkey.

In about 167
CE
, Melito gave a sermon entitled “Homily on the Passover.” He argued that by “crucifying Jesus,” “the Jews” had “murdered God,” and therefore the Jewish people as a whole were guilty of the crime. His homily is the first known use of the deicide charge (as the accusation was later known). His goal was not to incite violence against Jews but to strengthen the Christian identity of his parishioners by turning “us” against “them.” At the time, Christians in Sardis and other parts of the Roman Empire were an often-persecuted minority with virtually no power. Only in later centuries, when Christians actually had political power, would Melito’s words be used to justify discrimination, persecution, and murder.

At the end of the second century
CE
and the beginning of the third, Jews and Christians often lived side by side in the major cities of the Roman Empire. The Romans determined how each group was regarded, and attitudes toward both groups varied greatly. In the early years of the second century, the Roman historian Tacitus had described Jews as “vulgar” and “superstitious.” But by the beginning of the third century, another Roman historian, Dio Cassius, noted that although Jews had “frequently been persecuted,” they had prospered. He also wrote:

They succeeded in winning the right to observe their laws freely. They are distinguished from the rest of mankind in practically every detail of their way of life, and especially in that they honor none of the other gods, but show extreme reverence for one particular deity. They never had a statue of him even in Jerusalem itself, but believing him to be unnamable and invisible they worship him in the most extravagant way among humans. They built him a large and splendid temple… and dedicated to him the day called the day of Saturn [Saturday] on which, among many other most peculiar observances, they undertake no serious occupation.
¹

In 312
CE
, a battle for control of the Roman Empire had a profound impact on relationships among Christians, Jews, and Romans. As one version of the story goes, on the night before the soon-to-be-emperor Constantine planned to attack a rival for the throne, he saw a cross in the sky. Above
that cross were these words: “In this sign, conquer.” Constantine, who was not a Christian, interpreted the vision as a sign that the Christian God would bring him victory in his fight for control of the western part of the empire. The next day his troops won the battle and Constantine ordered his men to continue to fight under the sign of the cross.

Though some scholars think that the story of Constantine’s vision is more legend than fact, it is clear that the new emperor wanted to end Roman persecution of Christians. In 314
CE
, Constantine and Licinius Augustus (the two men ruled the empire jointly) proclaimed a new law. Known as the Edict of Milan, it states, in part:

When I, Constantine Augustus, as well as I, Licinius Augustus, had fortunately met near Mediolanurn (Milan), and were considering everything that pertained to the public welfare and security, we thought that, among other things which we saw would be for the good of many, those regulations pertaining to the reverence of the Divinity ought certainly to be made first, so that we might grant to the Christians and to all others full authority to observe that religion which each preferred…. [I]t has pleased us to remove all conditions whatsoever… concerning the Christians, and now any one of these who wishes to observe the Christian religion may do so freely and openly, without any disturbance or molestation. We thought it fit to commend these things most fully to your care that you may know that we have given to those Christians free and unrestricted opportunity of religious worship. When you see that this has been granted to them by us, [you] will know that we have also conceded to other religions the right of open and free observance of their worship for the sake of the peace of our times, that each one may have the free opportunity to worship as he pleases; this regulation is made that we may not seem to detract… from any dignity or any religion.
²

Constantine’s edict gave Christians the right to openly practice their faith. Until then, they had met in the homes of fellow believers. Within a year of the edict, Constantine ordered the building of churches throughout the empire. With new churches came a more formal organization.

Although some Christians worried about the future of the church if it became too closely identified with the empire, most Christians were pleased with Constantine’s edict. It meant an end to the persecutions they had suffered from time to time and new access to power and influence. Other groups saw reason to worry. The only people the edict mentioned
by name were the Christians, and the laws that came afterward radically limited the rights of Jews as citizens of the Roman Empire. For example, in the year 315, Constantine issued the following edict:

We wish to make it known to the Jews and their elders and their patriarchs that if, after the enactment of this law, any one of them dares to attack with stones or some other manifestation of anger another who has fled their dangerous sect and attached himself to the worship of God [Christianity], he must speedily be given to flames and burn—together with all his accomplices
.

Moreover, if any one of the population should join their abominable sect and attend their meetings, he will bear with them the deserved penalties.
³

This law had two purposes. One was to prevent Jews from interfering with relatives or friends who converted to Christianity. The other was to discourage Christians from converting to Judaism.

Constantine’s description of Judaism as “dangerous” and “abominable” is very different from the opinions expressed a century earlier by Dio Cassius, who seemed to regard Jews with respect, toleration, and curiosity. Edicts issued by later emperors reflected Constantine’s views. Increasingly, Jews were regarded with disrespect, intolerance, and disgust.

By 325
CE
, Constantine had absolute power in Rome; in ancient times this meant both political and religious power. That year he summoned 250 Christian bishops to a council in Nicaea, a city in present-day Turkey. The council began by adopting a creed—a statement of common beliefs. The Nicene Creed expresses a belief in God, in Jesus Christ as the son of God, and in the Holy Spirit. But the bishops of the church went beyond simply defining what Christians believe. At this and later councils, they also moved to distinguish Christianity from Judaism. For example, early Christians, like other Jews, had observed the Sabbath on the seventh day of the week and then celebrated Jesus’s resurrection with special gatherings and meals on the first day of the week (Saturday night or Sunday). Now the council insisted that Christians would observe only Sunday and not the traditional Jewish Sabbath. The bishops also separated Christian commemorations of Easter from Jewish observances of Passover (the Jewish festival during which Jesus was crucified).

Today it seems clear that Christians were creating a separation between the two faiths and that Jews were undoubtedly doing the same.
To Christians, Jews, and other groups in the fourth century, the significance of the separation was probably not so obvious.

In the 300s, the anti-Jewish laws issued by Constantine and his successors were rarely enforced. To confuse matters further, a number of later emperors granted Jews new privileges even as they issued laws that took away older privileges. Constantine himself gave rabbis and other Jewish religious leaders a status equal to that of Christian religious leaders.

Then, in 361
CE
, the unthinkable happened. A man who did not consider himself a Christian became emperor of Rome. Julian, who had studied both Christianity and Greek philosophy, declared an end to the Christian empire of Constantine and set out to restore Rome to its traditional gods. It was a move that appealed to many people in the empire. In the fourth century, Christians were by no means in the majority.

As part of his return to traditional ways, Julian tried to undermine the Christian claim that Christianity had replaced Judaism. One way to do this was to rebuild the Temple in Jerusalem. Julian opened Jerusalem to Jews again and allowed them to govern themselves. They had just begun work on the Temple when he died during an invasion of Persia in 363.

Valentian, the new emperor, was a Christian who quickly took away the rights and privileges Julian had granted Jews and restored those of Christians. Nevertheless, Julian’s reign had frightened many Christians. They worried that it might signal the beginning of a new anti-Christian era. As a result of these fears, they renewed their efforts to convert pagans and, at the same time, launched new attacks on Jews.

In 388, for example, a mob of Christians led by their bishop set fire to a synagogue in Callinicum, a town on the Euphrates River in what is now Iraq. When Theodosius (who was then emperor) learned of the incident, he ordered the bishop of Callinicum to rebuild the synagogue and to punish those who had participated in the incident. When Ambrose (later St. Ambrose), the powerful bishop of Milan, learned of the emperor’s stand, he sent a letter scolding Theodosius for favoring the synagogue, a “home of unbelief, a house of impiety, a receptacle of folly.” Laws that protected synagogues were wrong, he thundered, and should be annulled or disobeyed. Ambrose announced that he would not give the sacraments to Theodosius unless the emperor canceled his order. Reluctant to challenge the bishop, Theodosius did as Ambrose wished.

Historians sometimes use this incident to show how the status of Jews in the fourth century deteriorated. However, the truth is more complicated. Five years later, in 393, Theodosius issued a rescript—a legally binding command that corrects an earlier decision. In it, he said that
“the sect of the Jews is forbidden by no law.” Explaining this decision, he said that it was prompted by the efforts of some Christians in the east to “destroy and despoil the synagogues.” This new ruling not only affirmed the right of Jews to assemble and to build synagogues but also prescribed punishments for those who attacked synagogues.

The fourth century was a confusing time for other reasons as well. Not everyone participated in the mutual hostility between Jews and Christians. A number of Christians believed that a commitment to Christianity did not mean turning away from Jewish customs and traditions; they thought of such traditions as a connection to Jesus and his life. Among these people were both Jewish Christians—that is, Jews who believed in Jesus but continued to observe Jewish law—and Judaizing Christians, gentiles who adopted some Jewish practices.

Many leaders in the church, however, believed it was essential to widen the gap between followers of the two religions. They did not want Jewish Christians or Judaizing Christians to see value in Jewish customs and traditions. No Christian attacked the “Judaizing tendencies” within the church more vigorously than John Chrysostom (later St. John Chrysostom).

Chrysostom was born about 347
CE
and lived in Antioch, a city founded by the Greeks in Syria in 300
BCE
. He was considered the most persuasive preacher of his time; in fact, his title
Chrysostomos
is Greek for “golden-mouthed.” He is remembered by many Christians for his courage in criticizing the rich and powerful and his compassion for the poor. In many of his sermons, he challenged injustice and denounced the comfortable arrogance of the wealthy.

Chrysostom also used his skill as an orator to attack, with vigor, the openness of many Christians to Jewish practices and faith—an openness that in Chrysostom’s eyes meant a weakening of their specifically Christian identity. By the fourth century, Jews had been living in Antioch for more than 600 years and Christians for more than 200 years. Both groups were well established, with strong ties to one another. In fiery speeches, Chrysostom set out to cut those ties. He viciously attacked members of his own congregation—Christians who attended synagogues and observed Jewish festivals. He wanted to arouse in them a fear and disgust that would discourage any desire to Judaize.

How, Chrysostom asked, can Christians “have the slightest converse” with Jews, “the most miserable of all men”? He went on to describe Jews
as “inveterate murderers, destroyers, men possessed by the devil.” To him, the synagogue was “a place of shame and ridicule,” “the domicile of the devil.” Indeed, he told his congregation that Jews worshipped the devil with rites that are “criminal and impure” and that the synagogue was “an assembly of criminals,” “a den of thieves,” and “a cavern of devils.”