CHRISTIANS IN THE TALMUD
As in our languages Christians take their name from Christ, so in the language of the Talmud Christians are called Notsrim, from Jesus the Nazarene. But Christians are also called by the names used in the Talmud to designate all non-Jews: Abhodah Zarah, Akum, Obhde Elilim, Minim, Nokhrim, Edom, Amme Haarets, Goim, Apikorosim, Kuthrim.
1. Abhodah Zarah - Strange worship, idolatry. The Talmudic Tract on Idolatry is thus entitled: Obhde Abhodah Zarah - Idol Worshippers. That Abhodah Zarah really means the cult of idols is clear from the Talmud itself: "Let Nimrod come and testify that Abraham was not a server of Abhodah Zarah ." But in these days of Abraham there existed no strange cult either of the Turks or the Nazarenes, but only the worship of the true God and idolatry. In Schabbath (ibid. 82a), it says:
"Rabbi Akibah says: How do we know that Abhodah Zarah, like an unclean woman, contaminates those who subscribe to it? Because Isaiah says: Thou shalt cast them away like a menstruation cloth; and shalt say unto it, Get thee hence."
In the first part of this verse mention is made of idols made from gold and silver.
The learned Maimonides also clearly demonstrates that the Jews regarded Christians as Abhodah Zarah. In Perusch (78c) he says: "And be it known that Christian people who follow Jesus, although their teachings vary, are all worshippers of idols (Abhodah Zarah)."
2. Akum - This word is made up of the initial letters of the words Obhde Kokhabkim U Mazzaloth - worshippers of stars and planets. It was thus that the Jews formerly styled the Gentiles who lacked all knowledge of the true God. Now, however, the word Akum in Jewish books, especially in the Schulkhan Arukh, is applied to Christians. This is evident from numerous passages:
In the Orach Chaiim (113,8) those who use a cross are called Akum. In the Iore Dea (148, 5, 12), those who celebrate the feasts of Christmas and New Year, eight days afterwards, are called worshippers of the stars and planets:
"Thus if a gift is sent to the Akum, even in these times, on the eighth day after Christmas, which they call the New Year," etc.
3. Obhde Elilim - Servers of idols. This name has the same meaning as Akum. Non-Jews are frequently called by this name. In the Orach Chaiim, for example (215, 5), it says:
"A blessing should not be pronounced over incense which belongs to the servers of idols."
But at the same time when the Schulkhan Arukh was written there were no worshippers of the stars and planets (Akum); there were no 'servers of idols' among those who lived with the Jews. Thus, for example, the author of the Commentary on the Schulkhan Arukh (entitled Magen Abraham), Rabbi Calissensis who died in Poland in 1775, in note 8, on No. 244 of the Orach Chaiim (where it is allowed to finish a work on the Sabbath with the help of an Akum) says: "Here in our city the question is raised about the price of hiring worshippers of the stars and planets who sweep the public streets when they work on the Sabbath."
4. Minim - Heretics. In the Talmud those who possess books called the Gospels are heretics. Thus in Schabbath (116a) it says:
"Rabbi Meir calls the books of the Minim Aven Gilaion [iniquitous volumes] because they call them Gospels."
5. Edom - Edomites. Rabbi Aben Ezra, when he speaks about the Emperor Constantine who changed his religion and placed the image of him who was hanged on his banner, adds: "Rome therefore is called the Kingdom of the Edomites."
And Rabbi Bechai, in his Kad Hakkemach (fol. 20a, on Isaiah, ch. LXVI, 17) writes:
"They are called Edomites who move their fingers 'here and there'" (who make the sign of the cross).
Likewise Rabbi Bechai, commenting on the words of Isaiah (loc. cit.), "those who eat the flesh of swine" adds: "These are the Edomites." Rabbi Kimchi, however, calls them "Christians." And Rabbi Abarbinel, in his work Maschima Ieschua (36d) says: "The Nazarenes are Romans, the sons of Edom."
6. Goi - Race, or people. The Jews also call a man a Goi - a gentile; they call a gentile woman a Goiah. Sometimes, but very rarely, Israelites are called by this name. It is mostly applied to non-Jews, or idolators. In Jewish books which treat of Idolatry, worshippers of idols are often called by this single word Goi. For this reason, in more recent editions of the Talmud the use of the word Goi is purposely avoided and other words for non-Jews are substituted.
It is well known that in the Jewish language, the Jews call Christians among whom they live, Goim. Nor do the Jews deny this. Sometimes in their popular magazines they say that this word means nothing harmful or evil. But the contrary can be seen in their books written in the Hebrew language. For instance, in Choschen Hammischpat (34, 22), the name Goi is used in a depraved sense:
"Traitors and Epicureans and Apostates are worse than Goim"
7. Nokhtrim - strangers, foreigners. This name is used for all who are not Jews, and therefor for Christians.
8. Amme Haarets - People of the earth, idiots. There are some who say that people of other races are not meant by this, but only crude and uneducated people. There are passages, however, which leave no doubt about the matter. In the Holy Scripture, Book of Esra, ch. X, 2, we read: We have sinned against our God, and have taken strange wives [nokhrioth] of the people of the earth. That people of the earth denotes idolators is clear from Zohar, I, 25a: "The People of the earth - Obhde Abhodah Zarah, idolaters.
9. Basar Vedam - Flesh and blood; carnal men who are destined to perdition and who can have no communion with God. That Christians are flesh and blood, is proved from the prayer book:
"Whoever meets a wise and educated Christian can say: Blessed art thou O Lord, King of the Universe, who dispenseth of thy wisdom to Flesh and Blood," etc.
Likewise in another prayer, in which they ask God soon to restore the kingdom of David and to send Elias and the Messia, etc., they aak him to take away their poverty so that they will have no need to accept gifts from "flesh and blood," nor to trade with them, nor to seek wages from them.
10. Apikorosim - Epicureans. All are called by this name who do not observe God's precepts, as well as all those, even Jews themselves, who express private judgments in matters of faith. How much more, therefore, Christians!
11. Kuthim - Samaritans. But since there are no longer any Samaritans, and since there are many references in recent Jewish books to Samaritans, who can doubt that this does not mean the Christians?
Furthermore, in this matter of naming those who are not Jews, it is to be particularly noted that Jewish writings apply these names indiscriminately and promiscuously when they speak of the same thing, and almost in the same words. For instance, in the Tract Abhodah Zarah (25b) the word Goi is employed, but in the Schulkhan Arukh (Iore Dea 153, 2) Akum is used. Kerithuth (6b) uses Goim; Jebhammoth (61a) uses Akum; Abhodah Zar. (2a) uses Obhde Elilim; Thoseph uses Goim and Obhde Ab., Choschen Ham (Venetian ed.) uses Kuthi; (Slav. ed.) Akum. And many more instances could be quoted.
Maimonides in his book on Idolatry indiscriminately calls all the following idolators: Goim, Akum, Obhde Kokhabhim, Obhde Elilim, etc.
Article II. - What the Talmud Teaches About Christians
In the preceding chapter we saw what the Jews think of the Founder of the Christian religion, and how much they despise his name. This being so, it would not be expected that they would have any better opinion about those who follow Jesus the Nazarene. In fact, nothing more abominable can be imagined than what they have to say about Christians. They say that they are idolaters, the worst kind of people, much worse than the Turks, murderers, fornicators, impure animals, like dirt, unworthy to be called men, beasts in human form, worthy of the name of beasts, cows, asses, pigs, dogs, worse than dogs; that they propagate after the manner of beasts, that they have diabolic origin, that their souls come from the devil and return to the devil in hell after death; and that even the body of a dead Christian is nothing different from that of an animal.
1. IDOLATERS
Since Christians follow the teachings of that man, whom the Jews regard as a Seducer and an Idolater, and since they worship him as God, it clearly follows that they merit the name of idolater, in no way different from those among whom the Jews lived before the birth of Christ, and whom they taught should be exterminated by every possible means.
This is best demonstrated by the names they give Christians, and by the unmistakable words of Maimonides which prove that all who bear the name of Christian are idolaters. And anyone who examines Jewish books which speak of the "Worshippers of the Stars and Planets," "Epicureans," "Samaritans," etc., cannot but conclude that these idolaters are none other than Christians. The Turks are always called "Ismaelites," never idolaters.
2. CHRISTIANS WORSE THAN THE TURKS
Maimonides in Hilkoth Maakhaloth (ch. IX) says:
"It is not permitted to drink the wine of a stranger who becomes a convert, that is, one who accepts the seven precepts of Noah, but is permitted to gain some benefit from it. It is allowed to leave wine alone with him, but not to place it before him. The same is permitted in the case of all gentiles who are not idolaters, such as the Turks [Ismaelites]. A Jew, however, is not permitted to drink their wine, although he may use it to his own advantage."
3. MURDERERS
In Abhodah Zarah (22a) it says:
"A Jew must not associate himself with gentiles because they are given to the shedding of blood."
Likewise in Iore Dea (153, 2):
"An Israelite must not associate himself with the Akum [Christians] because they are given to the shedding of blood."
In the Abhodah Zarah (25b) it says:
"The Rabbis taught: If a Goi joins an Israelite on the road, he [the Jew] should walk on his right side. Rabbi Ismael, the son of Rabbi Jochanan the nephew of Beruka, says: if he carries a sword, let the Jew walk on his right side. If the Goi carries a stick, the Jew should walk on his left side. If he is climbing a hill or descending a steep incline, the Jew must not go in front with the Goi behind, but the Jew must go behind and the Goi in front, nor must he stoop down in front of him for fear the Goi might crack his skull. And if he should ask the Jew how far he is going, he should pretend he is going a long way, as Jacob our Father said to the impious Esau: until I come to my Lord in Seir (Gen. XXXIII, 14-17), but it adds: Jacob set out for Sukoth."
In Orach Chaiim (20, 2) it says:
"Do not sell your overcoat (Talith) with the fringes to an Akum, lest he should join up with a Jew on the road and kill him. It is also forbidden to exchange or lend your overcoat with a Gentile, except for a short time and when there is nothing to be feared from him."
4. FORNICATORS
In the Abhodah Zarah (15b) it says:
"Animals of the masculine sex must not be left in the barns of the Gentiles with their men, nor animals of the feminine sex with their women; much less must animals of the feminine sex be left with their men and of the masculine sex with their women. Nor must sheep be left to the care of their shepherds; nor must any intercourse be had with them; nor must children be given into their care to learn to read or to learn a trade."
In the same tract a little farther on (22a) it is explained why animals must not be allowed in the barns of Gentiles, and why Jews are not permitted to have sexual intercourse with them:
"Animals must not be allowed to go near the Goim, because they are suspected of having intercourse with them. Nor must women cohabit with them because they are over-sexed."
In fol. 22b of the same book the reason is given why animals especially of the feminine sex must be kept away from their women: "...because when Gentile men come to their neighbors' houses to commit adultery with their wives and do not find them at home, they fornicate with the sheep in the barns instead. And sometimes even when their neighbors' wives are at home, they prefer to fornicate with the animals; for they love the sheep of the Israelites more than their own women."
It is for the same reason that animals are not to be entrusted to Goi shepherds, nor children to their educators.
5. UNCLEAN
The Talmud gives two reasons why the Goim are unclean: because they eat unclean things, and because they themselves have not been cleansed (from original sin) on Mount Sinai. In Schabbath, (145b) it says:
"Why are the Goim unclean? Because they eat abominable things and animals that crawl on their belly."
Likewise in Abhodah Zarah, 22b:
"Why are the Goim unclean? Because they were not present at Mount Sinai. For when the serpent entered into Eve he infused her with uncleanness. But the Jews were cleansed from this when they stood on Mount Sinai; the Goim, however, who were not on Mount Sinaim were not cleansed."
6. COMPARED TO DUNG
"When ten persons are praying together in one place and they say Kaddisch, or Kedoschah, anyone, even though he does not belong there, may respond Amen. There are some, however, who say that no dung or Akum must be present."
In Iore Dea (198, 48) Hagah, it says:
"When Jewish women come out of a bath they must take care to meet a friend first, and not something unclean or a Chrsitian. For if so, a woman, if she wants to keep holy, should go back and bathe again."
It is worthy of note that the following list of unclean things is a given in Biur Hetib, a commentary on the Schulchan Arukh:
"A woman must wash herself again if she sees any unclean things, such as a dog, an ass, or People of the Earth; a Christian (Akum), a camel, a pig, a horse, and a leper.
7. NOT LIKE MEN, BUT BEASTS
In Kerithuth (6b p. 78) it says:
"The teaching of the Rabbis is: He who pours oil over a Goi, and over dead bodies is freed from punishment. This is true for an animal because it is not a man. But how can it be said that by pouring oil over a Goi one is freed from punishment, since a Goi is also a man? But this is not true, for it is written: Ye are my flock, the flock of my pasture are men (Ezechiel, XXXIV, 31). You are thus called men, but the Goim are not called men."
In the Tract Makkoth (7b) he is said to be guilty of killing "except when, if intending to kill an animal he kills a man by mistake, or intending to kill a Goi, he kills an Israelite."
In Orach Chaiim (225, 10) it says:
"He who sees beautiful creatures, even though it be an Akum or an animal, let him say 'Blessed art thou Our Lord God, King of the Universe, who has placed such things on the earth!'"
8. THEY DIFFER ONLY IN FORM FROM BEASTS
In Midrasch Talpioth (fol. 225d) it says:
"God created them in the form of men for the glory of Israel. But Akum were created for the sole end of ministering unto them [the Jews] day and night. Nor can they ever be relieved from this service. It is becoming to the son of a king [an Israelite] that animals in their natural form, and animals in the form of human beings should minister unto him."
We can quote here also what is said in Orach Chaiim, 57, 6a:
"If pigs are to be pitied when they suffer from disease, because their intestines are similar to ours, how much more should the Akum be pitied when thus affected."
9. ANIMALS
In Zohar, II, (64b) it says:
"...People who worship idols, and who are called cow and ass, as it is written: I have a cow and an ass..."
Rabbi Bechai, in his book Kad Hakkemach, ch. I, beginning with the word Geulah - redemption - referring to Psalm 80, v.13:
The boar out of the wood doth waste it, says:
"The letter ain is dropped [suspended] the same as these worshippers are followers of him who was suspended."
Buxtorf (Lex.) says:
"By wild pig the author here means the Christians who eat pork and, like pigs, have destroyed the vineyard of Israel, the City of Jerusalem, and who believe in the 'suspended' Christ. Else the letter ain is dropped in this word because they, as worshippers of Christ who was hanged, are also dropped."
Rabbi Edels, in commenting on Kethuboth (110b) says:
"The Psalmist compares the Akum to the unclean beast in the woods."
10. WORSE THAN ANIMALS
Rabbi Schelomo Iarchi (Raschi), famous Jewish commentator, explaining the law of Moses (Deuter. XIV, 21) forbidding the eating of meat of wounded animals, but which must be given to the 'stranger in thy gates,' or which, according to Exodus (XXII, 30) is to be thrown to the dogs, has this to say:
"...for he is like a dog. Are we to take to word 'dog' here literally? By no means. For the text in speaking of dead bodies says, Or thou mayest sell it to an alien. This applies much more to the meat of wounded animals, for which it is permitted to accept payment. Why therefore does the Scripture say it may be thrown to 'dogs?' In order to teach you that a dog is to be more respected than the Nokhri."
11. THEY PROPAGATE LIKE BEASTS
In the Sanhedrin (74b) Tosephoth, it says:
"The sexual intercourse of a Goi is like that of a beast."
And in Kethuboth (3b) it says:
"The seed of a Goi is worth the same as that of a beast."
Hence it is to be inferred that Christian marriage is not true marriage.
In Kidduschim (68a), it says:
"...How do we know this? Rabbi Huna says: You can read: Remain here with the ass, that is, with a people like an ass. Hence it appears that they are not capable of contracting marriage."
And in Eben Haezer (44, 8):
"If a Jew enters into marriage with an Akum (Christian), or with his servant, the marriage is null. For they are not capable of entering into matrimony. Likewise if an Akum or a servant enter into matrimony with a Jew, the marriage is null."
In Zohar (II, 64b) it says:
"Rabbi Abba says: If only idolaters alone had sexual intercourse, the world would not continue to exist. Hence we are taught that a Jew should not give way to those infamous robbers. For if these propagate in greater numbers, it will be impossible for us to continue to exist because of them. For they give birth to sucklings the same as dogs."
12. CHILDREN OF THE DEVIL
In Zohar (I, 28b) we read:
"Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field, etc. (Genes. III, 1.) 'More subtle' that is towards evil; 'than all beasts' that is, the idolatrous people of the earth. For they are the children of the ancient serpent which seduced Eve."
The best argument used by the Jews to prove that Christians are of the race of the devil is the fact that they are uncircumcized. The foreskin on non-Jews prevents them from being called the children of the Most High God. For by circumcision the name of God - Schaddai - is complete in the flesh of a circumcized Jew. The form of the letter Isch is in his nostrils, the letter Daleth in his (bent) arm, and ain appears in his sexual organ by circumcision. In non-circumcized gentiles, therefore, such as Christians, there are only two letters, Isch and Daleth, which make the word Sched, which means devil. They are, therefore, children of the Sched, the devil.
13. THE SOULS OF CHRISTIANS ARE EVIL AND UNCLEAN
The teaching of the Jews is that God created two natures, one good and the other evil, or one nature with two sides, one clean and the other unclean. From the unclean side, called Keliphah - rind, or scabby crust - the souls of Christians are said to have come.
In Zohar (I, 131a) it says:
"idolatrous people, however, since they exist, befoul the world, because their souls come out of the unclean side."
And in Emek Hammelech (23d) it says:
"The souls of the impious come from Keliphah, which is death and the shadows of death."
Zohar (I, 46b, 47a) goes to show that this unclean side is the left side, from which the souls of the Christians come:
"And he created every living thing, that is, the Israelites, because they are the children of the Most High God, and their holy souls come out from Him. But where do the souls of the idolatrous gentiles come from? Rabbi Eliezer says: from the left side, which makes their souls unclean. They are therefore all unclean and they pollute all who come in contact with them."
14. AFTER DEATH THEY GO DOWN TO HELL
The Elders teach that Abraham sits at the gate of Gehenna and prevents any circumcized person from entering there; but that all the uncircumcized go down to hell.
In Rosch Haschanach (17a) it says:
"Heretics and Epicureans and Traitors go down into hell."
15. THE FATE OF DEAD CHRISTIANS
The bodies of Christians after death are called by the odious name of Pegarim, which is the word used in Holy Scripture for the dead bodies of the damned and of animals, but never for the pious dead who are called Metim. Thus the Schulchan Arukh orders that a dead Christian must be spoken of in the same way as a dead animal.
In Iore Dea (377, 1) it says:
"Condolences must not be offered to anyone on account of the death of his servants or handmaids. All that may be said is 'May God restore your lost one, the same as we say to a man who has lost a cow or an ass.'"
Nor must Christians be avoided for seven days after they have buried someone, as the law of Moses commands, since they are not men; for the burial of an animal does not pollute one.
In Iebhammoth (61a) it says:
"The Nokhrim are not rendered unclean by a burial. For it is said: Ye are my sheep, the sheep of my pasture; ye are men. You are thus called men, but not the Nokhrim."
Article III. - About Christian Rites and Worship
Since Christians are regarded by the Jews as idolators, all their forms of worship are idolatrous. Their priests are called priests of Baal; their temples are called houses of lies and idolatry, and everything they contain, such as chalices, statues and books, are regarded as made for the serving of idols; their prayers, both private and public, are sinful and offensive to God; and their festivals are called days of evil.
1. PRIESTS
The Talmud speaks of priests, the ministers of Christian worship, as idolatrous and belonging to the god Baal. They are also called Komarim - Soothsayers; and also Galachim, the shaved, because they shave their heads, particularly the monks.
In Abhodah Zarah (14b) Toseph, it says:
"It is forbidden to sell books of the prophets to the soothsayers, since they may use them for their evil worship in their idolatrous temples. Those who do so sin against the law which forbids us to place an obstacle in the way of a blind person. It is also forbidden to sell them to a Christian who is not shaved, for he is sure to give or sell them to one of them who is shaved."
2. CHRISTIAN CHURCHES
A place of Christian worship is called (1) Beth Tilfah, a house of vanity and foolishness, in place of Beth Tefilah, a house of prayer; (2) Beth Abhodha Zarah, a House of Idolatry; (3) Beth Hatturapi Schel Letsim, a house of Evil Laughter.
In Abhodah Zarah (78) the Perusch of Maimonides, it says:
"Be it known to you that it is beyond a doubt forbidden by law to pass through a Christian city in which there is a house of vanity, that is, a house of idolatry; much more to live therein. But we today, as punishment for our sins, are subject to them, and are forced to live in their countries, as it was foretold in Deuteronomy (IV, 28): And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men's hands, of wood and stone...Thus if it is allowed as predicted to pass around a Christian city, much more so must we pass around an idolatrous temple; nor is it allowed us even to look inside and above all to enter in."
A Jew is forbidden not only to enter a Christian church, but even to go near it, except under certain circumstances.
In Iore Dea (142, 10) it says:
"It is forbidden to stand in the shadow of a house of idolatry, whether from the inside or the outside, for a distance of four cubits from the front door. It is not forbidden, however, to stand under the shadows of the back of a church. Nor is the shadow forbidden us if the church stands in a place where formerly there was public road, which was taken from the community and the house of idolatry built upon it. For the road is still there. But if the house of idolatry existed before the road, it is not permitted to pass before it. There are some who say that it is forbidden to pass there in any case."
Neither is a Jew allowed to listen to, or admire the beautiful music of the churches. In Iore Dea (142, 15) it says:
"It is forbidden to listen to the music if idolatrous worship, and to examine the statues of their idols; for even by looking at them one can be influenced by the evil of idolatry. But one can look who does not intend to be so affected."
Likewise a Jew is not allowed to have a house near a church; nor is he allowed to rebuild a house which has been destroyed in such a place. In Iore Dea (143, 1) it says:
"If a house near an idolatrous temple belonging to the Akum falls down, it must not be rebuilt. A Jew must remove it a certain distance away if he wishes to rebuild it. But he must fill up the vacant space between his house and the church with bushes and rubbish so that the space will not be used to extend the idolatrous temple."
Here may be added what a certain Rabbi Kelomimus said about a Christian church (in the book Nizzachon) to the Emperor Henry III, who gave him permission to speak his opinion freely about the Basilica which he had recently built at Spires:
"After the Emperor Henry III, a very wicked man, had completed the building of that "Abyss," he sent for Rabbi Kelominus and said to him: "I want to ask you, how does this Basilica which I have built compare with the magnificence of Solomon's Temple, about which so many volumes have been written?" He replied: 'My Lord, if you will permit me that you will let me go unharmed, I will tell you the truth about it.' The Emperor answered: 'I give you my word as a lover of the truth and as an Emperor, that no harm shall come to you.' Then the Jew said: 'If you gathered together all you have spent so far, and added to it all the silver and gold in your treasury, it would not suffice even to pay the workmen and craftsmen that Solomon employed; for it is written (Chron. II, ch 2): And Solomon told out threescore and ten thousand men to bear burdens, and fourscore thousand to hew in the mountains, and three thousand and six hundred to oversee them. Eight years were spent in the building of the Temple, much more than you spent in building this Tehon [Abyss]. And when Solomon had finished his Temple, see what the Scripture says about it: The priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud; for the glory of God had filled the House of the Lord (Chron. II, Ch. 5, 14). But if someone loaded an ass with putrid garbage and led it into this abyss of yours, no one would notice the difference!' The Emperor Henry then replied: 'Were it not that I have sworn to let you go unharmed, I would order your head cut off.'"
3. CHALICES
Chalises used in the Sacrifice of the mass are spoken of as vessels in which filth is offered up to the idol. Moses Kozzensis, in Hilkoth Abhodah Zarah (10b) says:
"A Jew who buys Chalises of the Goi, which are broken and thrown away, it is not permitted to sell them again to them, because their priest of Baal will use them in the worship of the idol."
4. BOOKS
The Talmud calls the books of the Christians Minim - heretical books - Siphre Debeth Abidan - Books of the House of Perdition. The Talmud in particular speaks of the books of the Gospels. Thus in Schabbath (116a) Toseph:
"Rabbi Meir calls heretical books Aaven Gilaion (volumes of iniquity) because the call them Gospels."
And Rabbi Jochanan calls these books Aavon Gilaion, evil books. The Schulchan Arukh, Crakow edition, gives this name as Aven Niktabh al Haggilaion - iniquity written in a book.
Buxtorf says: "In the Arukh there is a note Scheker Niktabh al Gilaion, which means, a lie written in a book."
All the Talmudists agree that the books of the Christians should be destroyed. They differ only as to what should be done with the names of God contained in them. In Schabbath (116a) it says:
"The Glossaries of our own books and the books of the heretics are not to be saved from the flames, if they should catch fire on the Sabbath day. Rabbi Jose, however, says: 'On festival days the divine names should be torn out of the books of the Christians and hidden away; what remains must be given to the flames.' But Rabbi Tarphon says: 'In order that I may be remembered by my children, if those books should ever fall into my hands I would burn them together with the divine names contained therein. For if one is chased by an assassin, or by a serpent, it would be better to take refuge in a pagan temple than in one of theirs; because the Christians knowingly resist the truth, whereas the pagans do so unknowingly."
5. PRAYERS
Christian prayers are called, not Tefillah, but Tiflah. They change the point and insert Iod, which makes it read to mean sin, foolishness and transgression.
6. CHRISTIAN FESTIVALS
Christian festivals, especially Sunday, are called Ion Ed - day of destruction, perdition, misfortune or calamity. They are also simply called Iom Notsri - Christian Days. The word Ed rightly interpreted means misfortune or calamity, as appears from the Gemarah and the Glossaries of Maimonides in Abhodah Zarah (2a):
"The word Edehem means the festivals of the Christians, since it is written (in Deuter. XXXII, 35): the day of their calamity."
Maimonides also says in Abhodah Zarah (78c):
"The words Edehem means the foolishness of their festivlas. It is the name for their despicable feast days which do not merit the name of Moedim, for they are really vain and evil."
Baretenora also writes:
"The word Edehem is the name for their ignominious festivals and solemnities."
The marginal notes of Tosephtoth also give this name to Christian festivals. Thus in Abhodah Zarah (6a):
"The Day of Evil, that is the Christian Day, is forbidden to us as well as all their other feast days."
Some Christian festivals are mentioned by name, such as the feast of Christmas and Easter. Moses Mikkozzi, referring to the above text of Abhodah Zarah , says:
"Rabbi Sammuel declares, in the name of Solomon Iarchi, that in particular the festivals of Christmas and Easter, which are their principal evil days and the foundation of their religion, are forbidden to us."
Maimonides, in hilkoth Akum (ch. IX) has the same:
"Sammuel repeats the words of Rabbi Sal. Iarchi which forbid us particularly to celebrate the feasts of Christmas and Easter, which are celebrated on account of him who was hanged."
Furthermore, indications of the impiety of the Jews are to be found in the names which they give to these Christian festivals: For in place of using Tav in the word Nithal, they often write Tet and call it Nital for the Latin word Natalis, the Feast of the Nativity. They make it appear as if this word were from the root Natal which connotes extermination or destruction. Likewise they refuse to use the word Paschal (Pesach) for the Christian feast of Easter. The substitute Koph for Phe and insert the letter iod and call it Ketsach or Kesach. Both pronunciations have an evil meaning. Ketsach is from the root Katsah, meaning to amputate or cut off from, and Kesach is from the root Kesa, meaning to wood or a gallows. This is done because the feast of Easter is celebrated by Christians in memory of Christ - the one who was hanged - who was put to death and who rose again from the dead.
As in our languages Christians take their name from Christ, so in the language of the Talmud Christians are called Notsrim, from Jesus the Nazarene. But Christians are also called by the names used in the Talmud to designate all non-Jews: Abhodah Zarah, Akum, Obhde Elilim, Minim, Nokhrim, Edom, Amme Haarets, Goim, Apikorosim, Kuthrim.
1. Abhodah Zarah - Strange worship, idolatry. The Talmudic Tract on Idolatry is thus entitled: Obhde Abhodah Zarah - Idol Worshippers. That Abhodah Zarah really means the cult of idols is clear from the Talmud itself: "Let Nimrod come and testify that Abraham was not a server of Abhodah Zarah ." But in these days of Abraham there existed no strange cult either of the Turks or the Nazarenes, but only the worship of the true God and idolatry. In Schabbath (ibid. 82a), it says:
"Rabbi Akibah says: How do we know that Abhodah Zarah, like an unclean woman, contaminates those who subscribe to it? Because Isaiah says: Thou shalt cast them away like a menstruation cloth; and shalt say unto it, Get thee hence."
In the first part of this verse mention is made of idols made from gold and silver.
The learned Maimonides also clearly demonstrates that the Jews regarded Christians as Abhodah Zarah. In Perusch (78c) he says: "And be it known that Christian people who follow Jesus, although their teachings vary, are all worshippers of idols (Abhodah Zarah)."
2. Akum - This word is made up of the initial letters of the words Obhde Kokhabkim U Mazzaloth - worshippers of stars and planets. It was thus that the Jews formerly styled the Gentiles who lacked all knowledge of the true God. Now, however, the word Akum in Jewish books, especially in the Schulkhan Arukh, is applied to Christians. This is evident from numerous passages:
In the Orach Chaiim (113,8) those who use a cross are called Akum. In the Iore Dea (148, 5, 12), those who celebrate the feasts of Christmas and New Year, eight days afterwards, are called worshippers of the stars and planets:
"Thus if a gift is sent to the Akum, even in these times, on the eighth day after Christmas, which they call the New Year," etc.
3. Obhde Elilim - Servers of idols. This name has the same meaning as Akum. Non-Jews are frequently called by this name. In the Orach Chaiim, for example (215, 5), it says:
"A blessing should not be pronounced over incense which belongs to the servers of idols."
But at the same time when the Schulkhan Arukh was written there were no worshippers of the stars and planets (Akum); there were no 'servers of idols' among those who lived with the Jews. Thus, for example, the author of the Commentary on the Schulkhan Arukh (entitled Magen Abraham), Rabbi Calissensis who died in Poland in 1775, in note 8, on No. 244 of the Orach Chaiim (where it is allowed to finish a work on the Sabbath with the help of an Akum) says: "Here in our city the question is raised about the price of hiring worshippers of the stars and planets who sweep the public streets when they work on the Sabbath."
4. Minim - Heretics. In the Talmud those who possess books called the Gospels are heretics. Thus in Schabbath (116a) it says:
"Rabbi Meir calls the books of the Minim Aven Gilaion [iniquitous volumes] because they call them Gospels."
5. Edom - Edomites. Rabbi Aben Ezra, when he speaks about the Emperor Constantine who changed his religion and placed the image of him who was hanged on his banner, adds: "Rome therefore is called the Kingdom of the Edomites."
And Rabbi Bechai, in his Kad Hakkemach (fol. 20a, on Isaiah, ch. LXVI, 17) writes:
"They are called Edomites who move their fingers 'here and there'" (who make the sign of the cross).
Likewise Rabbi Bechai, commenting on the words of Isaiah (loc. cit.), "those who eat the flesh of swine" adds: "These are the Edomites." Rabbi Kimchi, however, calls them "Christians." And Rabbi Abarbinel, in his work Maschima Ieschua (36d) says: "The Nazarenes are Romans, the sons of Edom."
6. Goi - Race, or people. The Jews also call a man a Goi - a gentile; they call a gentile woman a Goiah. Sometimes, but very rarely, Israelites are called by this name. It is mostly applied to non-Jews, or idolators. In Jewish books which treat of Idolatry, worshippers of idols are often called by this single word Goi. For this reason, in more recent editions of the Talmud the use of the word Goi is purposely avoided and other words for non-Jews are substituted.
It is well known that in the Jewish language, the Jews call Christians among whom they live, Goim. Nor do the Jews deny this. Sometimes in their popular magazines they say that this word means nothing harmful or evil. But the contrary can be seen in their books written in the Hebrew language. For instance, in Choschen Hammischpat (34, 22), the name Goi is used in a depraved sense:
"Traitors and Epicureans and Apostates are worse than Goim"
7. Nokhtrim - strangers, foreigners. This name is used for all who are not Jews, and therefor for Christians.
8. Amme Haarets - People of the earth, idiots. There are some who say that people of other races are not meant by this, but only crude and uneducated people. There are passages, however, which leave no doubt about the matter. In the Holy Scripture, Book of Esra, ch. X, 2, we read: We have sinned against our God, and have taken strange wives [nokhrioth] of the people of the earth. That people of the earth denotes idolators is clear from Zohar, I, 25a: "The People of the earth - Obhde Abhodah Zarah, idolaters.
9. Basar Vedam - Flesh and blood; carnal men who are destined to perdition and who can have no communion with God. That Christians are flesh and blood, is proved from the prayer book:
"Whoever meets a wise and educated Christian can say: Blessed art thou O Lord, King of the Universe, who dispenseth of thy wisdom to Flesh and Blood," etc.
Likewise in another prayer, in which they ask God soon to restore the kingdom of David and to send Elias and the Messia, etc., they aak him to take away their poverty so that they will have no need to accept gifts from "flesh and blood," nor to trade with them, nor to seek wages from them.
10. Apikorosim - Epicureans. All are called by this name who do not observe God's precepts, as well as all those, even Jews themselves, who express private judgments in matters of faith. How much more, therefore, Christians!
11. Kuthim - Samaritans. But since there are no longer any Samaritans, and since there are many references in recent Jewish books to Samaritans, who can doubt that this does not mean the Christians?
Furthermore, in this matter of naming those who are not Jews, it is to be particularly noted that Jewish writings apply these names indiscriminately and promiscuously when they speak of the same thing, and almost in the same words. For instance, in the Tract Abhodah Zarah (25b) the word Goi is employed, but in the Schulkhan Arukh (Iore Dea 153, 2) Akum is used. Kerithuth (6b) uses Goim; Jebhammoth (61a) uses Akum; Abhodah Zar. (2a) uses Obhde Elilim; Thoseph uses Goim and Obhde Ab., Choschen Ham (Venetian ed.) uses Kuthi; (Slav. ed.) Akum. And many more instances could be quoted.
Maimonides in his book on Idolatry indiscriminately calls all the following idolators: Goim, Akum, Obhde Kokhabhim, Obhde Elilim, etc.
Article II. - What the Talmud Teaches About Christians
In the preceding chapter we saw what the Jews think of the Founder of the Christian religion, and how much they despise his name. This being so, it would not be expected that they would have any better opinion about those who follow Jesus the Nazarene. In fact, nothing more abominable can be imagined than what they have to say about Christians. They say that they are idolaters, the worst kind of people, much worse than the Turks, murderers, fornicators, impure animals, like dirt, unworthy to be called men, beasts in human form, worthy of the name of beasts, cows, asses, pigs, dogs, worse than dogs; that they propagate after the manner of beasts, that they have diabolic origin, that their souls come from the devil and return to the devil in hell after death; and that even the body of a dead Christian is nothing different from that of an animal.
1. IDOLATERS
Since Christians follow the teachings of that man, whom the Jews regard as a Seducer and an Idolater, and since they worship him as God, it clearly follows that they merit the name of idolater, in no way different from those among whom the Jews lived before the birth of Christ, and whom they taught should be exterminated by every possible means.
This is best demonstrated by the names they give Christians, and by the unmistakable words of Maimonides which prove that all who bear the name of Christian are idolaters. And anyone who examines Jewish books which speak of the "Worshippers of the Stars and Planets," "Epicureans," "Samaritans," etc., cannot but conclude that these idolaters are none other than Christians. The Turks are always called "Ismaelites," never idolaters.
2. CHRISTIANS WORSE THAN THE TURKS
Maimonides in Hilkoth Maakhaloth (ch. IX) says:
"It is not permitted to drink the wine of a stranger who becomes a convert, that is, one who accepts the seven precepts of Noah, but is permitted to gain some benefit from it. It is allowed to leave wine alone with him, but not to place it before him. The same is permitted in the case of all gentiles who are not idolaters, such as the Turks [Ismaelites]. A Jew, however, is not permitted to drink their wine, although he may use it to his own advantage."
3. MURDERERS
In Abhodah Zarah (22a) it says:
"A Jew must not associate himself with gentiles because they are given to the shedding of blood."
Likewise in Iore Dea (153, 2):
"An Israelite must not associate himself with the Akum [Christians] because they are given to the shedding of blood."
In the Abhodah Zarah (25b) it says:
"The Rabbis taught: If a Goi joins an Israelite on the road, he [the Jew] should walk on his right side. Rabbi Ismael, the son of Rabbi Jochanan the nephew of Beruka, says: if he carries a sword, let the Jew walk on his right side. If the Goi carries a stick, the Jew should walk on his left side. If he is climbing a hill or descending a steep incline, the Jew must not go in front with the Goi behind, but the Jew must go behind and the Goi in front, nor must he stoop down in front of him for fear the Goi might crack his skull. And if he should ask the Jew how far he is going, he should pretend he is going a long way, as Jacob our Father said to the impious Esau: until I come to my Lord in Seir (Gen. XXXIII, 14-17), but it adds: Jacob set out for Sukoth."
In Orach Chaiim (20, 2) it says:
"Do not sell your overcoat (Talith) with the fringes to an Akum, lest he should join up with a Jew on the road and kill him. It is also forbidden to exchange or lend your overcoat with a Gentile, except for a short time and when there is nothing to be feared from him."
4. FORNICATORS
In the Abhodah Zarah (15b) it says:
"Animals of the masculine sex must not be left in the barns of the Gentiles with their men, nor animals of the feminine sex with their women; much less must animals of the feminine sex be left with their men and of the masculine sex with their women. Nor must sheep be left to the care of their shepherds; nor must any intercourse be had with them; nor must children be given into their care to learn to read or to learn a trade."
In the same tract a little farther on (22a) it is explained why animals must not be allowed in the barns of Gentiles, and why Jews are not permitted to have sexual intercourse with them:
"Animals must not be allowed to go near the Goim, because they are suspected of having intercourse with them. Nor must women cohabit with them because they are over-sexed."
In fol. 22b of the same book the reason is given why animals especially of the feminine sex must be kept away from their women: "...because when Gentile men come to their neighbors' houses to commit adultery with their wives and do not find them at home, they fornicate with the sheep in the barns instead. And sometimes even when their neighbors' wives are at home, they prefer to fornicate with the animals; for they love the sheep of the Israelites more than their own women."
It is for the same reason that animals are not to be entrusted to Goi shepherds, nor children to their educators.
5. UNCLEAN
The Talmud gives two reasons why the Goim are unclean: because they eat unclean things, and because they themselves have not been cleansed (from original sin) on Mount Sinai. In Schabbath, (145b) it says:
"Why are the Goim unclean? Because they eat abominable things and animals that crawl on their belly."
Likewise in Abhodah Zarah, 22b:
"Why are the Goim unclean? Because they were not present at Mount Sinai. For when the serpent entered into Eve he infused her with uncleanness. But the Jews were cleansed from this when they stood on Mount Sinai; the Goim, however, who were not on Mount Sinaim were not cleansed."
6. COMPARED TO DUNG
"When ten persons are praying together in one place and they say Kaddisch, or Kedoschah, anyone, even though he does not belong there, may respond Amen. There are some, however, who say that no dung or Akum must be present."
In Iore Dea (198, 48) Hagah, it says:
"When Jewish women come out of a bath they must take care to meet a friend first, and not something unclean or a Chrsitian. For if so, a woman, if she wants to keep holy, should go back and bathe again."
It is worthy of note that the following list of unclean things is a given in Biur Hetib, a commentary on the Schulchan Arukh:
"A woman must wash herself again if she sees any unclean things, such as a dog, an ass, or People of the Earth; a Christian (Akum), a camel, a pig, a horse, and a leper.
7. NOT LIKE MEN, BUT BEASTS
In Kerithuth (6b p. 78) it says:
"The teaching of the Rabbis is: He who pours oil over a Goi, and over dead bodies is freed from punishment. This is true for an animal because it is not a man. But how can it be said that by pouring oil over a Goi one is freed from punishment, since a Goi is also a man? But this is not true, for it is written: Ye are my flock, the flock of my pasture are men (Ezechiel, XXXIV, 31). You are thus called men, but the Goim are not called men."
In the Tract Makkoth (7b) he is said to be guilty of killing "except when, if intending to kill an animal he kills a man by mistake, or intending to kill a Goi, he kills an Israelite."
In Orach Chaiim (225, 10) it says:
"He who sees beautiful creatures, even though it be an Akum or an animal, let him say 'Blessed art thou Our Lord God, King of the Universe, who has placed such things on the earth!'"
8. THEY DIFFER ONLY IN FORM FROM BEASTS
In Midrasch Talpioth (fol. 225d) it says:
"God created them in the form of men for the glory of Israel. But Akum were created for the sole end of ministering unto them [the Jews] day and night. Nor can they ever be relieved from this service. It is becoming to the son of a king [an Israelite] that animals in their natural form, and animals in the form of human beings should minister unto him."
We can quote here also what is said in Orach Chaiim, 57, 6a:
"If pigs are to be pitied when they suffer from disease, because their intestines are similar to ours, how much more should the Akum be pitied when thus affected."
9. ANIMALS
In Zohar, II, (64b) it says:
"...People who worship idols, and who are called cow and ass, as it is written: I have a cow and an ass..."
Rabbi Bechai, in his book Kad Hakkemach, ch. I, beginning with the word Geulah - redemption - referring to Psalm 80, v.13:
The boar out of the wood doth waste it, says:
"The letter ain is dropped [suspended] the same as these worshippers are followers of him who was suspended."
Buxtorf (Lex.) says:
"By wild pig the author here means the Christians who eat pork and, like pigs, have destroyed the vineyard of Israel, the City of Jerusalem, and who believe in the 'suspended' Christ. Else the letter ain is dropped in this word because they, as worshippers of Christ who was hanged, are also dropped."
Rabbi Edels, in commenting on Kethuboth (110b) says:
"The Psalmist compares the Akum to the unclean beast in the woods."
10. WORSE THAN ANIMALS
Rabbi Schelomo Iarchi (Raschi), famous Jewish commentator, explaining the law of Moses (Deuter. XIV, 21) forbidding the eating of meat of wounded animals, but which must be given to the 'stranger in thy gates,' or which, according to Exodus (XXII, 30) is to be thrown to the dogs, has this to say:
"...for he is like a dog. Are we to take to word 'dog' here literally? By no means. For the text in speaking of dead bodies says, Or thou mayest sell it to an alien. This applies much more to the meat of wounded animals, for which it is permitted to accept payment. Why therefore does the Scripture say it may be thrown to 'dogs?' In order to teach you that a dog is to be more respected than the Nokhri."
11. THEY PROPAGATE LIKE BEASTS
In the Sanhedrin (74b) Tosephoth, it says:
"The sexual intercourse of a Goi is like that of a beast."
And in Kethuboth (3b) it says:
"The seed of a Goi is worth the same as that of a beast."
Hence it is to be inferred that Christian marriage is not true marriage.
In Kidduschim (68a), it says:
"...How do we know this? Rabbi Huna says: You can read: Remain here with the ass, that is, with a people like an ass. Hence it appears that they are not capable of contracting marriage."
And in Eben Haezer (44, 8):
"If a Jew enters into marriage with an Akum (Christian), or with his servant, the marriage is null. For they are not capable of entering into matrimony. Likewise if an Akum or a servant enter into matrimony with a Jew, the marriage is null."
In Zohar (II, 64b) it says:
"Rabbi Abba says: If only idolaters alone had sexual intercourse, the world would not continue to exist. Hence we are taught that a Jew should not give way to those infamous robbers. For if these propagate in greater numbers, it will be impossible for us to continue to exist because of them. For they give birth to sucklings the same as dogs."
12. CHILDREN OF THE DEVIL
In Zohar (I, 28b) we read:
"Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field, etc. (Genes. III, 1.) 'More subtle' that is towards evil; 'than all beasts' that is, the idolatrous people of the earth. For they are the children of the ancient serpent which seduced Eve."
The best argument used by the Jews to prove that Christians are of the race of the devil is the fact that they are uncircumcized. The foreskin on non-Jews prevents them from being called the children of the Most High God. For by circumcision the name of God - Schaddai - is complete in the flesh of a circumcized Jew. The form of the letter Isch is in his nostrils, the letter Daleth in his (bent) arm, and ain appears in his sexual organ by circumcision. In non-circumcized gentiles, therefore, such as Christians, there are only two letters, Isch and Daleth, which make the word Sched, which means devil. They are, therefore, children of the Sched, the devil.
13. THE SOULS OF CHRISTIANS ARE EVIL AND UNCLEAN
The teaching of the Jews is that God created two natures, one good and the other evil, or one nature with two sides, one clean and the other unclean. From the unclean side, called Keliphah - rind, or scabby crust - the souls of Christians are said to have come.
In Zohar (I, 131a) it says:
"idolatrous people, however, since they exist, befoul the world, because their souls come out of the unclean side."
And in Emek Hammelech (23d) it says:
"The souls of the impious come from Keliphah, which is death and the shadows of death."
Zohar (I, 46b, 47a) goes to show that this unclean side is the left side, from which the souls of the Christians come:
"And he created every living thing, that is, the Israelites, because they are the children of the Most High God, and their holy souls come out from Him. But where do the souls of the idolatrous gentiles come from? Rabbi Eliezer says: from the left side, which makes their souls unclean. They are therefore all unclean and they pollute all who come in contact with them."
14. AFTER DEATH THEY GO DOWN TO HELL
The Elders teach that Abraham sits at the gate of Gehenna and prevents any circumcized person from entering there; but that all the uncircumcized go down to hell.
In Rosch Haschanach (17a) it says:
"Heretics and Epicureans and Traitors go down into hell."
15. THE FATE OF DEAD CHRISTIANS
The bodies of Christians after death are called by the odious name of Pegarim, which is the word used in Holy Scripture for the dead bodies of the damned and of animals, but never for the pious dead who are called Metim. Thus the Schulchan Arukh orders that a dead Christian must be spoken of in the same way as a dead animal.
In Iore Dea (377, 1) it says:
"Condolences must not be offered to anyone on account of the death of his servants or handmaids. All that may be said is 'May God restore your lost one, the same as we say to a man who has lost a cow or an ass.'"
Nor must Christians be avoided for seven days after they have buried someone, as the law of Moses commands, since they are not men; for the burial of an animal does not pollute one.
In Iebhammoth (61a) it says:
"The Nokhrim are not rendered unclean by a burial. For it is said: Ye are my sheep, the sheep of my pasture; ye are men. You are thus called men, but not the Nokhrim."
Article III. - About Christian Rites and Worship
Since Christians are regarded by the Jews as idolators, all their forms of worship are idolatrous. Their priests are called priests of Baal; their temples are called houses of lies and idolatry, and everything they contain, such as chalices, statues and books, are regarded as made for the serving of idols; their prayers, both private and public, are sinful and offensive to God; and their festivals are called days of evil.
1. PRIESTS
The Talmud speaks of priests, the ministers of Christian worship, as idolatrous and belonging to the god Baal. They are also called Komarim - Soothsayers; and also Galachim, the shaved, because they shave their heads, particularly the monks.
In Abhodah Zarah (14b) Toseph, it says:
"It is forbidden to sell books of the prophets to the soothsayers, since they may use them for their evil worship in their idolatrous temples. Those who do so sin against the law which forbids us to place an obstacle in the way of a blind person. It is also forbidden to sell them to a Christian who is not shaved, for he is sure to give or sell them to one of them who is shaved."
2. CHRISTIAN CHURCHES
A place of Christian worship is called (1) Beth Tilfah, a house of vanity and foolishness, in place of Beth Tefilah, a house of prayer; (2) Beth Abhodha Zarah, a House of Idolatry; (3) Beth Hatturapi Schel Letsim, a house of Evil Laughter.
In Abhodah Zarah (78) the Perusch of Maimonides, it says:
"Be it known to you that it is beyond a doubt forbidden by law to pass through a Christian city in which there is a house of vanity, that is, a house of idolatry; much more to live therein. But we today, as punishment for our sins, are subject to them, and are forced to live in their countries, as it was foretold in Deuteronomy (IV, 28): And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men's hands, of wood and stone...Thus if it is allowed as predicted to pass around a Christian city, much more so must we pass around an idolatrous temple; nor is it allowed us even to look inside and above all to enter in."
A Jew is forbidden not only to enter a Christian church, but even to go near it, except under certain circumstances.
In Iore Dea (142, 10) it says:
"It is forbidden to stand in the shadow of a house of idolatry, whether from the inside or the outside, for a distance of four cubits from the front door. It is not forbidden, however, to stand under the shadows of the back of a church. Nor is the shadow forbidden us if the church stands in a place where formerly there was public road, which was taken from the community and the house of idolatry built upon it. For the road is still there. But if the house of idolatry existed before the road, it is not permitted to pass before it. There are some who say that it is forbidden to pass there in any case."
Neither is a Jew allowed to listen to, or admire the beautiful music of the churches. In Iore Dea (142, 15) it says:
"It is forbidden to listen to the music if idolatrous worship, and to examine the statues of their idols; for even by looking at them one can be influenced by the evil of idolatry. But one can look who does not intend to be so affected."
Likewise a Jew is not allowed to have a house near a church; nor is he allowed to rebuild a house which has been destroyed in such a place. In Iore Dea (143, 1) it says:
"If a house near an idolatrous temple belonging to the Akum falls down, it must not be rebuilt. A Jew must remove it a certain distance away if he wishes to rebuild it. But he must fill up the vacant space between his house and the church with bushes and rubbish so that the space will not be used to extend the idolatrous temple."
Here may be added what a certain Rabbi Kelomimus said about a Christian church (in the book Nizzachon) to the Emperor Henry III, who gave him permission to speak his opinion freely about the Basilica which he had recently built at Spires:
"After the Emperor Henry III, a very wicked man, had completed the building of that "Abyss," he sent for Rabbi Kelominus and said to him: "I want to ask you, how does this Basilica which I have built compare with the magnificence of Solomon's Temple, about which so many volumes have been written?" He replied: 'My Lord, if you will permit me that you will let me go unharmed, I will tell you the truth about it.' The Emperor answered: 'I give you my word as a lover of the truth and as an Emperor, that no harm shall come to you.' Then the Jew said: 'If you gathered together all you have spent so far, and added to it all the silver and gold in your treasury, it would not suffice even to pay the workmen and craftsmen that Solomon employed; for it is written (Chron. II, ch 2): And Solomon told out threescore and ten thousand men to bear burdens, and fourscore thousand to hew in the mountains, and three thousand and six hundred to oversee them. Eight years were spent in the building of the Temple, much more than you spent in building this Tehon [Abyss]. And when Solomon had finished his Temple, see what the Scripture says about it: The priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud; for the glory of God had filled the House of the Lord (Chron. II, Ch. 5, 14). But if someone loaded an ass with putrid garbage and led it into this abyss of yours, no one would notice the difference!' The Emperor Henry then replied: 'Were it not that I have sworn to let you go unharmed, I would order your head cut off.'"
3. CHALICES
Chalises used in the Sacrifice of the mass are spoken of as vessels in which filth is offered up to the idol. Moses Kozzensis, in Hilkoth Abhodah Zarah (10b) says:
"A Jew who buys Chalises of the Goi, which are broken and thrown away, it is not permitted to sell them again to them, because their priest of Baal will use them in the worship of the idol."
4. BOOKS
The Talmud calls the books of the Christians Minim - heretical books - Siphre Debeth Abidan - Books of the House of Perdition. The Talmud in particular speaks of the books of the Gospels. Thus in Schabbath (116a) Toseph:
"Rabbi Meir calls heretical books Aaven Gilaion (volumes of iniquity) because the call them Gospels."
And Rabbi Jochanan calls these books Aavon Gilaion, evil books. The Schulchan Arukh, Crakow edition, gives this name as Aven Niktabh al Haggilaion - iniquity written in a book.
Buxtorf says: "In the Arukh there is a note Scheker Niktabh al Gilaion, which means, a lie written in a book."
All the Talmudists agree that the books of the Christians should be destroyed. They differ only as to what should be done with the names of God contained in them. In Schabbath (116a) it says:
"The Glossaries of our own books and the books of the heretics are not to be saved from the flames, if they should catch fire on the Sabbath day. Rabbi Jose, however, says: 'On festival days the divine names should be torn out of the books of the Christians and hidden away; what remains must be given to the flames.' But Rabbi Tarphon says: 'In order that I may be remembered by my children, if those books should ever fall into my hands I would burn them together with the divine names contained therein. For if one is chased by an assassin, or by a serpent, it would be better to take refuge in a pagan temple than in one of theirs; because the Christians knowingly resist the truth, whereas the pagans do so unknowingly."
5. PRAYERS
Christian prayers are called, not Tefillah, but Tiflah. They change the point and insert Iod, which makes it read to mean sin, foolishness and transgression.
6. CHRISTIAN FESTIVALS
Christian festivals, especially Sunday, are called Ion Ed - day of destruction, perdition, misfortune or calamity. They are also simply called Iom Notsri - Christian Days. The word Ed rightly interpreted means misfortune or calamity, as appears from the Gemarah and the Glossaries of Maimonides in Abhodah Zarah (2a):
"The word Edehem means the festivals of the Christians, since it is written (in Deuter. XXXII, 35): the day of their calamity."
Maimonides also says in Abhodah Zarah (78c):
"The words Edehem means the foolishness of their festivlas. It is the name for their despicable feast days which do not merit the name of Moedim, for they are really vain and evil."
Baretenora also writes:
"The word Edehem is the name for their ignominious festivals and solemnities."
The marginal notes of Tosephtoth also give this name to Christian festivals. Thus in Abhodah Zarah (6a):
"The Day of Evil, that is the Christian Day, is forbidden to us as well as all their other feast days."
Some Christian festivals are mentioned by name, such as the feast of Christmas and Easter. Moses Mikkozzi, referring to the above text of Abhodah Zarah , says:
"Rabbi Sammuel declares, in the name of Solomon Iarchi, that in particular the festivals of Christmas and Easter, which are their principal evil days and the foundation of their religion, are forbidden to us."
Maimonides, in hilkoth Akum (ch. IX) has the same:
"Sammuel repeats the words of Rabbi Sal. Iarchi which forbid us particularly to celebrate the feasts of Christmas and Easter, which are celebrated on account of him who was hanged."
Furthermore, indications of the impiety of the Jews are to be found in the names which they give to these Christian festivals: For in place of using Tav in the word Nithal, they often write Tet and call it Nital for the Latin word Natalis, the Feast of the Nativity. They make it appear as if this word were from the root Natal which connotes extermination or destruction. Likewise they refuse to use the word Paschal (Pesach) for the Christian feast of Easter. The substitute Koph for Phe and insert the letter iod and call it Ketsach or Kesach. Both pronunciations have an evil meaning. Ketsach is from the root Katsah, meaning to amputate or cut off from, and Kesach is from the root Kesa, meaning to wood or a gallows. This is done because the feast of Easter is celebrated by Christians in memory of Christ - the one who was hanged - who was put to death and who rose again from the dead.
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