Introduction
Not having their state, the Jews were forced to emigrate and live in various countries under the rule of different nations and religions. Everywhere they were perceived as strangers, they were subjected to additional taxes and legally infringed on their rights. However, the attitude toward Jews differed in various periods and cultures. The only thing that remained common was dissatisfaction with the Jews, their non-acceptance into society on an equal basis, and a sense of threat due to their economic activities and irreconcilable adherence to Judaism.
Medieval Relations Between Jews, Christians, and Muslims
Speaking about the relationship between Jews and Muslims, it can be noted that in ancient times and the Middle Ages, they were warmer than Christians and devoid of theological anti-Semitism. Before Islam and under the Prophet Muhammad, the Jewish clans had close ties with the Arabs, helping them economically during the struggle against external enemies. The Jews welcomed the Muslim conquerors because they respected the Torah and the Jews as “the People of the Book.” Muslims allowed Christians and Jews to practice their religion and did not impose severe restrictions on economic activity and life in society. For example, Sura 9:29 warns against forcibly converting Christians and Jews to Islam. People of the Book were given a special tax status and were allowed to practice their religion without significant restrictions (The Qur’an). That is why the Jews influenced the development of urbanization in the Muslim state and the flourishing of culture.
Relations between Christians and Jews were complicated by theological anti-Semitism. Christians insisted that the Jews committed the most terrible sin – they killed the son of God and savior and did not recognize Jesus Christ as the son of God. The situation was aggravated because the Jews were engaged in usury or other economic activities that did not require physical labor. Therefore, Christians saw the Jews as lazy people living in dishonest deeds. This aggression has led to the creation of specific mythology around Jewish beliefs, including myths about bloody Jewish rituals.
During the Middle Ages, hatred of Jews among Christians steadily increased. Constantly there were laws separating Jews from citizens, including physically; ghettos were created. By the 16th century, the hatred of the Jews became strong and widely spread. In On the Jews and Their Lies, Martin Luther calls for the burning of the synagogues, houses, and books of the Jews and expelling them from Christian countries (Luther). This situation continued to develop up to the Holocaust, after which repentance and reconciliation came.
Conclusion
Summarizing the above, we can say that the history of medieval relations between Jews, Christians, and Muslims fits into the concept of Mark Cohen. In Under Crescent and Cross, Cohen suggests that the position of Jews in Christian and Muslim societies differed for two main reasons. Firstly, Muslims did not have anti-Semitism based on religion and religious and historical claims against the Jews (Cohen, 1994). Secondly, the Muslims immediately included the Jews in the jurisdiction of the general legislation (Cohen, 1994). During medieval times, the Christians displaced the Jews as a minority subject to special laws explicitly created for them and not affecting Christians. Later, when the culture of contradiction began to grow, these two factors played a key role.
References
Cohen, M. R. (1994). Under Crescent and Cross: The Jews in the Middle Ages. Princeton University Press. Web.
Luther, M. The Jews and Their Lies. Wikisource, the free online library. (n.d.).
The Qur’an. Translated by M.A.S. Abdel Haleem, Oxford UP, 2005.