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Author Topic: St. Thomas Aquinas Was Not for Enslaving Jews  (Read 3689 times)

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Offline rum

St. Thomas Aquinas Was Not for Enslaving Jews
« on: October 05, 2018, 07:21:53 PM »
I've seen this quote floating around the internet, attributed to St. Aquinas:

"It would be licit, according to custom, to hold the Jews in perpetual servitude for their crime against Our Lord."

It appears this quote is a misquote inspired by De Regimine Judaeorum, where St. Aquinas writes:

"the Jews by reason of their fault are sentenced to perpetual servitude".

But St. Aquinas is not saying here that Jews should be subjected to chattel slavery, but that Jews who acquire wealth through usury should have their assets stripped from them by the state.

However, I read Wikipedia's Christianity and antisemitism page (and would appreciate a better source if anyone can help) that St. Augustine favored "enslavement of Jews to Catholics". And St. Chrysostom "went so far to say that because Jews rejected the Christian God in human flesh, Christ, they therefore deserved to be killed."

I'd like to think that this is true of St. Augustine and St. Chrysostom.
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Offline Banezian

Re: St. Thomas Aquinas Was Not for Enslaving Jews
« Reply #1 on: October 05, 2018, 09:21:58 PM »
I agree with you, but please do NOT call him “St. Aquinas.” That makes you sound silly. St. Thomas, St. Thomas Aquinas, Thomas, Aquinas. Those are all names one can call him. Not “St. Aquinas”
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Offline rum

Re: St. Thomas Aquinas Was Not for Enslaving Jews
« Reply #2 on: October 05, 2018, 11:48:49 PM »
Do you agree with me that it's a good thing if St. Augustine wanted Jews to be slaves of the Church and St. Chrysostom wanted them killed?
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Offline Cantarella

Re: St. Thomas Aquinas Was Not for Enslaving Jews
« Reply #3 on: October 06, 2018, 12:29:41 AM »
Quote
However, I read Wikipedia's Christianity and antisemitism page (and would appreciate a better source if anyone can help) that St. Augustine favored "enslavement of Jews to Catholics". And St. Chrysostom "went so far to say that because Jews rejected the Christian God in human flesh, Christ, they therefore deserved to be killed."


That Wikipedia article is quoting here the 2011 book "A History of Catholic Antisemitism" written by Robert Michael, an enemy of the Catholic religion, and most likely a Jew himself, so I would not believe his interpretation of St. Chrysostom' words.  He's on the Enemy's side.

As for St. Chrysostom's words themselves, I'm not sure where exactly they come from, but it seems the Father was referring to the Biblical passage of Luke 19,27. It would be good to read it in context to understand what he means.


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Offline Cantarella

Re: St. Thomas Aquinas Was Not for Enslaving Jews
« Reply #4 on: October 06, 2018, 12:35:00 AM »
Honestly, with these credentials, I would be reluctant to believe anything this author has to say on the matter. I would like to know where the original quote comes from, if it actually exists.

Editorial Review on "A History of Catholic Antisemitism, the Dark Side of the Church":
Quote
Review

"Michael's work is path-breaking, in that few before him have tackled both the historical and theological foundations of Catholic antisemitism and, at the same time, traced its path from biblical times all the way through to Auschwitz. In this, Michael is brave; but, as this outstanding work shows, his bravery is vindicated. His treatment of such topics as the Church’s age-old and ongoing dehumanization of the Jews, coupled with its failure to confront that supreme manifestation of evil that became manifest in the nαzιs, is an important contribution to an already massive literature on antisemitism and the h0Ɩ0cαųst."
--Paul R. Bartrop, Head, Department of History, Bialik College, Melbourne, Australia

About the Author

Robert Michael is Professor Emeritus of European History at the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth. Listed in Who's Who in America, Professor Michael was a 1997 recipient of the American Historical Association's James Harvey Robinson Prize for the "most outstanding contribution to the teaching and learning of history." A founder of the scholarly e-mail lists H-Antisemitism and H-W-Civ, Dr. Michael has published more than fifty articles and ten books on the history of antisemitism and the h0Ɩ0cαųst.
 


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