Christianity, Christians and "New Christians" in the sermons of Saul Levi Morteira
Saul Levi Morteira (ca. 1596-1660), rabbi of the Portuguese community of Amsterdam during the period of its consolidation and flourishing, left manuscript texts of some 550 different sermons in addition to his published volume, Giv'at Sha'ul. Many of these sermons speak explicitly about Ch...
| Published in: | Hebrew Union College annual / Jewish Institute of Religion |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Print Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
College
1999
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| In: |
Hebrew Union College annual / Jewish Institute of Religion
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| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Judaism
/ Christianity
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| IxTheo Classification: | BH Judaism CA Christianity |
| Further subjects: | B
Jewish theology
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| Summary: | Saul Levi Morteira (ca. 1596-1660), rabbi of the Portuguese community of Amsterdam during the period of its consolidation and flourishing, left manuscript texts of some 550 different sermons in addition to his published volume, Giv'at Sha'ul. Many of these sermons speak explicitly about Christianity, a topic of considerable resonance for a congregation composed almost entirely of listeners who had been educated as Christians, and their children. Morteira addresses the familiar theological issues with a strong polemical flair: the differences between Jewish and Christian concepts of God, Torah, and messianic redemption; the Christians' claim that the Law was impossible to observe and that they were the "New Israel"; the various ways in which Christian authorities have distorted the Hebrew Bible in their arguments. The main thrust of these polemical passages is against the Catholic Church and its teachings, not explicitly against Protestantism. Very little is said about Jesus. This is probably what enabled him to speak so strongly in an environment where blasphemy against Christianity would have violated the ground-rules of toleration. It also suggests that, at least in the first decades of his tenure, it was the Catholic past rather than the Protestant present that retained its hold on at least some of the listeners. When Morteira turns from religion to the Portuguese New Christians themselves, he employs a range of biblical models to explain why so many of them — including relatives and associates of his listeners — remain where they are rather than coming to join their people. Drawing on a Sephardic tradition going back to the fifteenth century, he insists that those who seek to deny their true identity will not escape divine wrath in the end of days. What is particularly striking about these passages is not so much the specific topics they address or the arguments used, but the artistic manner in which the preacher weaves his polemic into the fabric of his homiletical message, and the apparent need of his listeners for reassurance about the decision they had made to abandon the Iberian Christian world for a life as Jews. The evidence reviewed suggests that in Morteira's judgment, in order to help his congregants build up a new identity as Jews, he had to help tear down their former identity as Christians. Despite the risks of offending Dutch neighbors, this end is pursued as vigorously and as passionately as the other, more constructive goals of his preaching. |
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| ISSN: | 0360-9049 |
| Contains: | In: Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, Hebrew Union College annual / Jewish Institute of Religion
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