Part 24 (2/2)

It was in this century, when fanaticism and hatred of race prevailed, and when persecutions for witchcraft and the burning of heretics and sorcerers were of frequent occurrence, that it appeared opportune to bring against the Jews the same accusation which had been formerly brought against the ancestors of their accusers, viz., the using of Christian blood for the Pa.s.sover. The wealth of the Jews in several parts of Europe, as well as the high position to which they were raised in Spain by the rulers of the land, had aroused the jealousy of their adversaries. The unfounded nature of the accusation against them was so palpable that the heads of the Church deemed it necessary to defend and protect them. Thus Pope Innocent IV. published a Bull on the 5th of July 1247, addressed to the heads of the Church in France and Germany, officially refuting the demoniacal accusation (S.

Baronitas Annales eccles. ad annum 1247, No. 84). I give here a translation of it in order to afford the reader the opportunity of acquainting himself with the contents of that important doc.u.ment:--

”Lyons, _3rd July 1248_.

”Pope Innocent, the servant of the servants of G.o.d, sends his apostolic greeting and blessing to the right reverend Fathers, Bishops, and Archbishops in Germany.

”We have received from Germany the sad news that in your towns and dioceses there is a wish to despoil the Jews, in an illegal manner, of their property, and that, for this purpose, malicious counsels and different false accusations are brought against them. Without considering that they were, in a certain way, entrusted with the care of the Christian faith; that the command of Holy Scripture, 'Thou shalt not commit murder,' was given to them; and that, by their law, they are forbidden to touch corpses on the Pa.s.sover, they are accused of eating in company the heart of a murdered child, and if the dead body of any human being is found, they are believed to be the murderers, although such practices are in direct contradiction to their laws. By such false accusations they are oppressed, and deprived of all their goods, although they have never been brought before any judge and found guilty, in spite of the privileges graciously granted them by the Apostolic Chair. This is against all human and divine law, and brings these said Jews into a worse condition than that of their forefathers under the Pharaohs of Egypt, and forces them, in their misery, to leave the places where their fathers had been settled from time immemorial. In their fear of being exterminated entirely, they have sought the protection of the Apostolic Chair, and we hereby forbid every unjust oppression of the said Jews, whose conversion we trust to the mercy of G.o.d, according to the promise of the Prophet, that those of them who remain shall be saved; and we commend them to you, our brethren, through this Apostolic letter, that you may show favour to them, and help them to their right, when they have been unjustly imprisoned; and that you in no case permit them to be oppressed for the said or similar causes. Those who are guilty of molesting them in this way are to be punished by doing penance in the Church, without regard to their station.

”Given at Lyons, on the 3rd of July, in the fifth year of our Pontificate.”

In 1275 the Emperor Rudolf of Hapsburgh confirmed this Bull, in a decree, sealed with his great seal, which is still to be seen in the Archives of the Town of Cologne. The t.i.tle of this decree is, ”I, Rudolphus, Rex Rom., do hereby confirm the privileges granted to the Jews by Popes Gregory and Innocent, and declare to be untrue, that which some Christians say, that they do eat the heart of a dead child on the day of their Pa.s.sover.”

The contents of this decree are a literal translation of the Bull given above. Another Bull issued by Gregory, says, amongst other things:--

”Gregory, &c.... Following the example set us by our predecessors of blessed memory, Calixt, Cugen, Alexander, Colostin, Honorius, and Gregory, we agree to the prayer of the Jews, and will hold the s.h.i.+eld of our protection over them. We also strictly forbid, that any Christian force them, against their will, to be baptised, as only those can be considered as Christians who, from their own free will, accept baptism. Nor shall any Christian dare, without a judgment from us, to wound or to kill them, to deprive them of their money, or in any way to molest them in the privileges granted to them in the places where they live.”

The Emperor concludes his decree with the following words: ”We confirm and permit, in our Royal mercy, by this act to the said Jews, all and everything which was granted and given to them by the Roman Popes, so that they may live securely under the shadow of our protection, and that they shall not be condemned, in any case whatever, unless properly judged and found guilty by the righteous testimony of Jews and Christians.”

Considering that M. Achille Laurent has published a book, in which he presumes to give what he calls a ”Procedure complete dirigee en 1840 contre des Juifs de Damas,”--a book which is replete with outbursts of hatred against the Jews, and has, since its publication, unfortunately served almost as a text-book in the hands of their adversaries,--I think it desirable, in addition to the declaration of the Pope given above, to introduce to the reader the names of some eminent Christian scholars, who have but recently (since the accusations of Kohling and Geza roused the attention of the public) expressed their opinion in the works they have published; some of which were written by the special order of the Courts of Law in Austria, and the Universities of Amsterdam, Leyden, Utrecht, and Copenhagen.

The Right Rev. Bishop Dr Kopp, of Fulda; the Right. Rev. Dr J. H.

Reinkens, in Bonn; Professor Dr Franz Delitzsch; Professor Dr A.

Dillman; Professor Dr G. Ebers; Professor Dr H. L. Fleischer, in Leipzig; Professor Dr H. Kalkar, in Copenhagen; Professor Dr Paul de Lagarde, in Gottingen; Professor Dr Merx, in Heidelberg; Dr Alois Muller, in Vienna; Professor Dr Th. Noldecke, in Straszburg; Professor Dr Riehm, Professor Dr Carl Siegfried of Vienna, Professor Dr B. Stade of Gieszen, Professor Dr Sommer of Konigsberg, Professor Dr Strack of Berlin, and Dr August Wunsche of Dresden.

A book ent.i.tled, ”Christliche Zeugnisse gegen die Blutbeschuldigung der Juden,” published by Walther and Apolant, Berlin, 1882, gives a compilation of all the statements on the subject made by these authors, all proving the accusation to be a calumny.

To take possession of the wealth acc.u.mulated by the industrious and sober habits of the Jews, and to deprive them of the important positions which they had, by their uprightness and ability, obtained, was the object their adversaries had in view in raising this accusation in the thirteenth century, and the same object can be traced in the persecutions which, in the present century, in some parts of the world, continue to affect individuals, and sometimes even whole communities.

_July 7th._--We proceeded to the London Bridge Wharf, where we were met by the members of the Ecclesiastical Courts, both of the German and Portuguese congregations, and many others of our brethren. ”I should think,” Sir Moses observes in his diary, ”there were more than one hundred Jews waiting to see us set off, all giving us their blessing, and wis.h.i.+ng us health, success, and a safe return. May the Almighty hearken to their prayers, and grant their pet.i.tion.”

It was blowing very hard when we reached Gravesend, and we determined to land, which was not effected without some difficulty and inconvenience. Sir Moses and Lady Montefiore were much fatigued, having spent nearly the whole of the previous night in writing letters and arranging various important matters relative to the Mission.

_July 8th._--We went on board the _Arrow_ a little before eight, and reached the French coast before eleven o'clock. The weather being squally and the sea rough, we and several others remained on board till the vessel could enter the port. We came to anchor, and continued to roll about till half-past four, when we landed in safety.

_Thursday, July 9th._--Found our carriages, and servants all well at Boulogne, and ready to receive us. Having taken some refreshment, we proceeded to Abbeville, and travelled all night, arriving shortly after mid-day in Paris.

During our stay there we had frequent interviews with the members of the Rothschild family, who took a deep interest in our Mission. A meeting of the Consistoire de France on the subject was held at the house of Baron Anselm de Rothschild, which I attended together with Dr Loewe and Mr Wire. Monsieur Cremieux made a fervent appeal to all present, and the result was very satisfactory. We left Paris on the 13th July, together with Dr Madden, who had come from London to join us. Monsieur and Madame Cremieux joined our party at Avignon, and together we reached Ma.r.s.eilles on the 20th. The Grand Rabbin, with the princ.i.p.al members of the community, immediately came to welcome us; afterwards we went on board the _Minos_ to inspect our cabins.

_Tuesday, July 31st._--Repaired early in the morning to the Synagogue, and prayed for the safety and success of our Mission. At 4.30 P.M. we went on board the _Minos_; Messrs Palmer and Taylor, of the Imperial Continental Gas a.s.sociation, accompanied us. Mr Moore, the Queen's messenger, and Mr Doyle, of the _Chronicle_, were fellow pa.s.sengers.

The wind blew very fresh when first we started, but the evening was very fine.

CHAPTER XXVII.

1840.

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