NEIGHBORS, PARTNERS, ENEMIES: JEWS AND THE MONASTERIES OF GERMANY IN THE HIGH MIDDLE AGES A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Notre Dame in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy by John D. Young __________________________________ John Van Engen, Director Graduate Program in Medieval Studies Notre Dame, Indiana September 2011 © Copyright by John D. Young 2011 All rights reserved NEIGHBORS, PARTNERS, ENEMIES: JEWS AND THE MONASTERIES OF GERMANY IN THE HIGH MIDDLE AGES Abstract by John D. Young German-speaking lands in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries were home to the largest Jewish communities north of the Alps and Pyrenees and thus constituted key locations for Christian-Jewish interaction. This dissertation examines the monasteries of Germany—the primary centers of intellectual and cultural production in the high medieval Empire—as loci for that interaction. It explores both the social/economic and the cultural aspect of contact between monks and Jews. In the process, it challenges traditional interpretations of Christian-Jewish relations and helps to fill in the picture of the lives and activities of monks in this period. The study proceeds in three parts. Part one, comprising the first three chapters, examines the political context wherein Jews and monks interacted before investigating evidence of contact between Jews and monks in the social and economic spheres. This evidence demonstrates that Jewish communities and monasteries occupied similar John D. Young political positions in this society—due to their mutual reliance on the institution of privilege—and that they engaged frequently in business dealings with each other. Part two (chapters 4-6) turns its attention to the intellectual and cultural realm, examining ideas about Jews that circulated in the monasteries. While monks obtained many of these ideas from patristic works and other earlier sources, they actively developed and modified these ideas in ways that spoke to contemporary concerns. The last part, consisting of the final chapter, examines the issue of Jewish conversion to Christianity. This issue, perhaps better than any other, forced monks to deal with both real Jews and cultural constructions of Jews. This dissertation contends that the definitive attribute of monastic-Jewish interaction in this period was ambivalence. Real interactions were quite normal, even friendly, yet the ideas about Jews that monks developed were largely, though with some important exceptions, hostile. Such a characterization calls into question prevalent explanations of Jewish-Christian interaction, which tend to emphasize escalating hostility and uniformity ideas across regions and institutions. For Alicia ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS . v ABBREVIATIONS . ix INTRODUCTION . 1 Framing the Question . 1 Historiography . 6 Scope and Boundaries . 23 CHAPTER 1—REAL INTERACTIONS, PART 1: PRIVILEGED NEIGHBORS . 33 1.1 Privilege in High Medieval Society . 33 1.2 Monastic Privilege . 46 1.3 Jewish Privilege . 54 1.4 Church Policy and the Jews of the Empire . 89 1.5 Thirteenth-Century Papal Jewry Policy . 96 1.6 Conclusion . 103 CHAPTER 2—REAL INTERACTIONS, PART 2: PRIVILEGE PUT TO THE TEST . 107 2.1 The Success of Jewish Privilege . 107 2.2 Jewish Privilege During the Second and Third Crusades . 109 2.3 Murder Accusations and Jewish Privilege . 116 2.4 Privilege (or Lack Thereof) Elsewhere . 126 2.5 The Breakdown of Privilege . 130 2.6 Conclusion . 134 CHAPTER 3—REAL INTERACTIONS, PART 3: BUSINESS PARTNERS . 136 3.1 Introduction . 136 3.2 Proximity . 137 3.3 The Real Estate Market . 142 3.4 The Realm of Finance . 159 3.5 Taxes and Rents . 179 3.6 Neighborly Relations . 183 3.7 Conclusion . 192 CHAPTER 4—THE JEW OF THE MONASTIC TEXT, PART 1: SOURCES, INTERPRETIVE STRATEGIES, AND TROPES . 193 4.1 Introduction . 193 iii 4.2 Jews in Choir and Scriptorium: Monastic Sources . 197 4.3 Exegetical Methods and the Jews in Monastic Sources . 211 4.4 Tropes in Monastic Sources . 222 4.5 The Apostate Jew in the Received Tradition . 225 4.6 Conclusion . 240 CHAPTER 5—THE JEW OF THE MONASTIC TEXT, PART 2: ABSORPTION AND INNOVATION . 244 5.1 Introduction . 244 5.2 Jew as Christ-Killer and Enemy of Christianity . 250 5.3 Eschatology and Prophesied Jewish Conversion . 276 5.4 Conclusion . 292 CHAPTER 6—THE JEW OF THE MONASTIC TEXT, PART 3: THE ADMONT SERMON CORPUS . 296 6.1 Introduction . 296 6.2 Stock Images of Jews in the Admont Sermons . 304 6.3 Dalila the Jewish Temptress . 321 6.4 The Exodus Narrative and the Salvation History of the Jews . 329 6.5 Conclusion . 348 CHAPTER 7—THE TWO JEWS CONVERGE . 349 7.1 Jewish Converts and the Monasteries . 349 7.2 The Atmosphere of Mistrust . 354 7.3 Rupert of Deutz and the Struggle with Ambivalence . 373 7.4 Hermann of Scheda and the Importance of Christian Example . 381 7.5 The Patient Stance, or Waiting for God’s Miracles . 394 7.6 Caesarius of Heisterbach and Thirteenth-century Attitudes . 411 7.7 Later Attitudes . 424 7.8 Conclusion . 428 CONCLUSION . 430 BIBLIOGRAPHY . 443 iv ACKNOWLEDGMENTS My journey through higher education, and particularly the writing of this dissertation, would have been impossible without the support and generosity of a large number of individuals and institutions. The Medieval Institute at the University of Notre Dame, under its directors Thomas F.X. Noble and Olivia Remie Constable and with the invaluable administrative assistance of Margaret Cinninger and Roberta Baranowski, has furnished invaluable financial support and an unsurpassed intellectual environment in which to learn. The Neal A. Maxwell Institute also provided generous grants that aided me immensely. The dedicated library staffs at Notre Dame, Flagler College, Brigham Young University, Brigham Young University-Idaho, and the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in Munich have facilitated my research over the years. The interlibrary loan departments at these institutions must be singled out for their indefatigable efforts on my behalf. I also owe substantial debts to the liberal studies department at Flagler College and to the history departments at Brigham Young University-Idaho and Brigham Young University for offering employment and teaching experience so I could support my growing family while working on this project. My co-advisors, John Van Engen and Michael Signer, deserve tremendous thanks, not only for advising me through the dissertation but also for fostering in me the skills and perspectives necessary to do this work. John’s balance of patient encouragement and high expectations made this work far better than it would have been otherwise. John has v driven me to become the scholar I never thought I could be, and I am grateful that he cared enough to push me the way he did. Before his untimely passing, Michael was for me the very definition of a mentor. His methodology, perspective, and pedagogy, as well as his warmth and kindness, will remain with me forever. His death hushed one of this era’s most important voices of toleration and interreligious dialogue. I only hope that his students, myself included, and others who benefited from his personality and commitment can keep his legacy alive. I have also benefited greatly from the patience and generosity of the other members of my dissertation committee: Remie Constable, Michael Driscoll, and Ann Astell. Remie’s and Michael’s classes helped to lay a base for my dissertation research, and their advice has remained essential throughout this process. Ann’s willingness to step in to the breach after Michael Signer’s death is especially appreciated. I cannot thank enough my many teachers at Notre Dame, Oxford, BYU, and Ricks College. Eugene Thompson and David Peck fostered my passion for history and set me on my career path. Paul Kerry, Craig Harline, and Paul Pixton nurtured that passion and showed me what it means to be a scholar. Alison Salveson provided my initial exposure to exegesis. Thomas Prügl helped me get oriented during my research in Munich. Johannes Heil, Constantin Fasolt, Stephen Jaeger, and Rachel Fulton Brown all furnished valuable insight and friendly advice during their visits to Notre Dame. Gert Melville welcomed me graciously to the Forschungsstelle für Vergleichende Ordensgeschichte at the University of Dresden,.