The Pharisee” to “The Zionist Menace”: Myths, Stereotypes and Constructions of the Jew in English Catholic Discourse (1896-1929)

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The Pharisee” to “The Zionist Menace”: Myths, Stereotypes and Constructions of the Jew in English Catholic Discourse (1896-1929) From “the Pharisee” to “the Zionist Menace”: Myths, Stereotypes and Constructions of the Jew in English Catholic Discourse (1896-1929) A thesis submitted to The University of Manchester for the degree of PhD in the Faculty of Humanities 2012 Simon D. Mayers School of Arts, Histories and Cultures Contents Abstract ........................................................................................................................... 4 Declaration ...................................................................................................................... 5 Copyright Statement ....................................................................................................... 6 Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................... 7 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................. 8 Existing Historiography ........................................................................................ 14 Methodology ......................................................................................................... 28 Sources .............................................................................................................. 28 Types of Representation ................................................................................... 33 Thesis Structure .................................................................................................... 42 2. The Jew in Traditional Myths ................................................................................... 44 The Pharisee and the Christ-Killer ....................................................................... 47 The Ritual Murderer and the Jewish Sorcerer ...................................................... 60 The Jewish Antichrist ........................................................................................... 73 Conclusion ............................................................................................................ 82 3. The Jew in Contemporary Stereotypes ..................................................................... 86 The Greedy Jew .................................................................................................... 89 The Unpatriotic Jew and the Jewish Coward ..................................................... 100 The Secretive Jew ............................................................................................... 104 Conclusion .......................................................................................................... 107 4. Constructions of the Freemason and the Masonic-Jewish Camarilla ..................... 112 The Myth of “Palladian” Freemasonry ............................................................... 115 The Dreyfus Affair and its Aftermath ................................................................ 123 The Catholic Federation ..................................................................................... 133 The Protocols of the Elders of Zion .................................................................... 136 Conclusion .......................................................................................................... 138 5. Constructions of the Zionist Menace (1917-1922) ................................................. 140 2 The Balfour Declaration (1917-1921) ................................................................ 140 The British Mandate (1922) ................................................................................ 152 Conclusion .......................................................................................................... 159 6. Solutions to “the Jewish Problem” ......................................................................... 162 Conversion .......................................................................................................... 162 Zionism ............................................................................................................... 169 “Recognition” ..................................................................................................... 171 Conclusion .......................................................................................................... 176 7. Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 179 Archival and Museum Sources ................................................................................... 190 Bibliography ............................................................................................................... 192 Word Count: 82,870 3 Abstract From “the Pharisee” to “the Zionist Menace”: Myths, Stereotypes and Constructions of the Jew in English Catholic Discourse (1896-1929) University: The University of Manchester Candidate: Simon D. Mayers Degree Title: PhD Year: 2012 This thesis is the result of an investigation into the representations of the Jew that existed in the English Catholic discourse during the final years of the nineteenth- and the early decades of the twentieth-century (1896-1929). As very little has been written about English Catholic representations of the Jew during this timeframe, the primary aim of this project has been to excavate a layer of discourse which, with the exception of the published works of a few prominent individuals, has hitherto remained largely unexamined. In order to increase our understanding of the English Catholic discourse as much as possible, a wide range of sources have been examined, including the published works of prominent, obscure and anonymous authors, the pastoral letters and sermons of cardinals, bishops and priests, articles and editorials in English Catholic newspapers and periodicals, pamphlets, personal correspondence, letters to the editors of newspapers, unpublished documents and a small number of oral testimonies. Three main types of representation of the Jew have been uncovered in this project: the roles assigned to the Jew in traditional Christian myths, contemporary stereotypes of the Jew, and composite constructions which combine themes drawn from myths and stereotypes. Representations of the Jew which originated in traditional Christian myths include the Jew as Pharisee, Christ-Killer, fanatical murderer, diabolic sorcerer and Antichrist. Contemporary stereotypes portray the Jew as usurious, cowardly, unpatriotic and secretive. Composite constructions combining themes from traditional myths and contemporary stereotypes include the Jew-Freemason conspirator and the Zionist Menace. The material examined reveals that representations of the Jew in the late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century were not always modern in character. In the case of the English Catholic discourse, they were often pre-modern or anti-modern. Many existing studies of English antisemitism argue that by the late nineteenth century, constructions of the Jew based on traditional Christian myths had largely, though not entirely, been replaced by modern socio- political and racial forms of antisemitism. This study however demonstrates that traditional religious myths about the Jews continued to thrive and function in the English Catholic discourse. Their continued existence was not confined to a handful of narrative artefacts from a bygone era. English Catholic constructions of the Jew combined these persistent Christian myths with other more contemporary social stereotypes, though surprisingly, the one element that was usually absent from these constructions was “race.” Jews were rarely denigrated as racially inferior in the English Catholic discourse and there were few references to biology or pseudo- scientific “race” theories. They were however portrayed as greedy, cowardly, disloyal and secretive villains and diabolized as Pharisees, Christ-Killers, fanatical murderers, sorcerers and Antichrists. In some cases the language used to describe the Jew, the Pharisee, the Zionist and the Jew-Freemason, drew upon a vocabulary which suggested an apocalyptic conflict between the forces of good and evil. 4 Declaration No portion of the work referred to in the thesis has been submitted in support of an application for another degree or qualification of this or any other university or other institute of learning. 5 Copyright Statement i. The author of this thesis (including any appendices and/or schedules to this thesis) owns certain copyright or related rights in it (the “Copyright”) and he has given The University of Manchester certain rights to use such Copyright, including for administrative purposes. ii. Copies of this thesis, either in full or in extracts and whether in hard or electronic copy, may be made only in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (as amended) and regulations issued under it or, where appropriate, in accordance with licensing agreements which the University has from time to time. This page must form part of any such copies made. iii. The ownership of certain Copyright, patents, designs, trade marks and other intellectual property (the “Intellectual Property”) and any reproductions of copyright works in the thesis, for example graphs and tables (“Reproductions”), which may be described in this thesis, may not be owned by the author and may be owned by third parties. Such Intellectual Property and Reproductions cannot and must not be made available for use without the prior written permission
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