Down1
3rd December 2016, 05:07 PM
Indeed Barbero summarizes the scale of jewish influence at Charlemagne's court as follows:
'Jewish merchants prospered under Charlemagne and even more under Louis the Pious, by supplying the court with wine, spices, and textiles, and they enjoyed wide-ranging privileges. These included the right to be tried only in accordance with their own law, to have Christian employees, and to practice their religion even within the Imperial palace.' (17)
In other words Charlemagne, and his son Louis the Pious, allowed themselves to be bribed by jewish merchants with luxury goods such as wine, spices and textiles in order to grant the later special rights and privileges (just as had occurred in the Roman Empire of Julius Caesar and Augustus).
These included effective legal immunity from prosecution (as they would be tried based on halakhah [jewish religious law] which takes an extremely dim view of gentiles [for example non-jewish witnesses don't count for much in it]) (18) not by secular or Church law as well as endangering the faith of the Christian flock by putting jews in positions of direct authority over them where they could force/lure them into Judaising (an old and persistent worry of the Christian clergy). (19) This was in addition to allowing the practice of a religion that regards Jesus Christ as, well, whore-scum in his own palace. (20)
Not only did Charlemagne allow the jews free reign over his kingdom and people, but he actively worked to increase jewish influence and wealth. Barbero describes Charlemagne's behaviour in this regard as follows:
http://semiticcontroversies.blogspot.com/2015/12/charlemagne-defender-of-west-or-servant.html
http://semiticcontroversies.blogspot.com/2015/12/charlemagne-defender-of-west-or-servant.html
'Jewish merchants prospered under Charlemagne and even more under Louis the Pious, by supplying the court with wine, spices, and textiles, and they enjoyed wide-ranging privileges. These included the right to be tried only in accordance with their own law, to have Christian employees, and to practice their religion even within the Imperial palace.' (17)
In other words Charlemagne, and his son Louis the Pious, allowed themselves to be bribed by jewish merchants with luxury goods such as wine, spices and textiles in order to grant the later special rights and privileges (just as had occurred in the Roman Empire of Julius Caesar and Augustus).
These included effective legal immunity from prosecution (as they would be tried based on halakhah [jewish religious law] which takes an extremely dim view of gentiles [for example non-jewish witnesses don't count for much in it]) (18) not by secular or Church law as well as endangering the faith of the Christian flock by putting jews in positions of direct authority over them where they could force/lure them into Judaising (an old and persistent worry of the Christian clergy). (19) This was in addition to allowing the practice of a religion that regards Jesus Christ as, well, whore-scum in his own palace. (20)
Not only did Charlemagne allow the jews free reign over his kingdom and people, but he actively worked to increase jewish influence and wealth. Barbero describes Charlemagne's behaviour in this regard as follows:
http://semiticcontroversies.blogspot.com/2015/12/charlemagne-defender-of-west-or-servant.html
http://semiticcontroversies.blogspot.com/2015/12/charlemagne-defender-of-west-or-servant.html