Chronicle of Le Mans
Jewish- Christian Relations
10.24.11
Evolving Tensions: The Effects of Heightened Animosity Between Jews and Christians
The Chronicle of Le Mans depicts events that took place in the French town of Le Mans toward the late 10th century. The document tells primarily of the evil acts of Sehok ben Esther Israeli, a former Jew who has converted to Christianity, and how he strove against the Jewish community in Le Mans. By examining this text, we can glimpse the beginnings of Jewish animosity toward converts; the events of the text purportedly took place in 992 CE, which, if true, situate the text in the beginning of Christian missionizing efforts and the glorification of martyrdom that Jews took on in place of converting. However, the text also shows reflections of 13th-century tensions between Jews and Christians. For example, the text alludes to how the Jewish were seen as having knowingly killed Christ, a Christian viewpoint that gained prevalence in the late medieval ages. The Chronicle of Le Mans therefore not only depicts the Jewish-Christian tensions of the 10th century, but also how tensions evolved and heightened into the 13th century. By examining The Chronicle of Le Mans, we can observe the path leading to the state of Jewish animosity toward converts in the 13th century.
Before examining how the document depicts converts to Christianity, we must first establish Sehok ben Esther Israeli’s status as a convert as well as the negative association that results from this status. In The Chronicle of Le Mans, Sehok’s conversion is made clear in the text when it states, “This Sehok left the Lord’s Torah and the law and statues which He had commanded His servant Moses. Instead he served the Gentiles’ god, the idols of the Christians, which neither see nor hear nor eat nor smell.” The text goes on to damn Sehok’s conversion, declaring, “He was more fully evil than anyone before him.”1 Clearly, the authors of the text looked down upon Sehok’s newfound
10.24.11
Evolving Tensions: The Effects of Heightened Animosity Between Jews and Christians
The Chronicle of Le Mans depicts events that took place in the French town of Le Mans toward the late 10th century. The document tells primarily of the evil acts of Sehok ben Esther Israeli, a former Jew who has converted to Christianity, and how he strove against the Jewish community in Le Mans. By examining this text, we can glimpse the beginnings of Jewish animosity toward converts; the events of the text purportedly took place in 992 CE, which, if true, situate the text in the beginning of Christian missionizing efforts and the glorification of martyrdom that Jews took on in place of converting. However, the text also shows reflections of 13th-century tensions between Jews and Christians. For example, the text alludes to how the Jewish were seen as having knowingly killed Christ, a Christian viewpoint that gained prevalence in the late medieval ages. The Chronicle of Le Mans therefore not only depicts the Jewish-Christian tensions of the 10th century, but also how tensions evolved and heightened into the 13th century. By examining The Chronicle of Le Mans, we can observe the path leading to the state of Jewish animosity toward converts in the 13th century.
Before examining how the document depicts converts to Christianity, we must first establish Sehok ben Esther Israeli’s status as a convert as well as the negative association that results from this status. In The Chronicle of Le Mans, Sehok’s conversion is made clear in the text when it states, “This Sehok left the Lord’s Torah and the law and statues which He had commanded His servant Moses. Instead he served the Gentiles’ god, the idols of the Christians, which neither see nor hear nor eat nor smell.” The text goes on to damn Sehok’s conversion, declaring, “He was more fully evil than anyone before him.”1 Clearly, the authors of the text looked down upon Sehok’s newfound
Cited: Cohen, Jeremy. Christ Killers: The Jews and the Passion from the Bible to the Big Screen. Oxford, 2007. Marcus, Jacob R. The Jew in the Medieval World: A Source Book 315-1791 with an Introduction and Updated Bibliographies by Marc Saperstein. New York: Hebrew Union College, 2000.