Chapter VII: Appendix: To Lecture III

A.

בשנת דתתק״נ בהיות ריקרדו מלך חדש בעיר לונדריש שבאינגלטירה נהדג בקידוש ה׳ רבינו יעקב מאורליינש ויהודים רבים אחרים עמו׃

The same Rabbi Gedaliah, author of the _Shalsheleth Hakabalah_, makes mention of Rabbi Jacob of Orleans, in another part of the same book, viz., when speaking of the age of the celebrated Maimonides, Jarchi, &c., he names our Rabbi Jacob, as “a distinguished sage,” and also tells us that he was one and the same with Rabbi Tam, grandson of the famous Rabbi Solomon Jarchi, who was one of the authors of the _Tosephoth_. The following are Rabbi ♦Gedaliah’s own words:――

♦ “Gedeliah’s” replaced with “Gedaliah’s”

רבינו יעקב מאורליאינש שבגליל אינגלטירה היה בדור הזה חכם מופלג ינהרג שנת דתתק״נ והוא נקרא בתוספות ר׳ת כאשר קוראים רבינו יעקב בן בתו דרשי׃

_Shalsheleth Hakabalah_, fol. 50, col. 2:――

B.

משומד _M’shoomad_ literally signifies destroyed one; but it is used by the Jews to denote a brother Jew who embraced the religion of Jesus. It is rather curious that the first time the word is made use of, according to the Jews’ own showing, appears to have been by Jesus, against those Jews who disbelieved him. The following passage――reproaching the Jews for their infidelity and blasphemy――occurs in the הולדות ישו _Toledoth Jeshu_――a most blasphemous production, purporting to give a narrative of Jesus Christ:――

מי הם אותם המשומדים שאומרים עלי שאני ממזר ופסול הם ממזרים ופסולים

Indeed, whenever a converted Jew gets an opportunity of comparing notes with an unconverted one, it always appears most palpably that the epithet משומד _M’shoomad_ is more applicable to the latter than to the former; for the former generally can prove to demonstration, that he is a faithful follower of Moses and the Prophets, whilst the latter can do no such thing.

C.

Henry de Knyghton, in his “De Eventibus Angliæ,” gives us the following piece of information:――“One John, a most bold Christian, flying from Stanford with many spoyls of the Jews, to Northampton, was there secretly slain by his host, to get his money, and thrown without the city in the night, the murderer flying thereupon. After which, through the dreams of old women, and fallacious signs, the simple people, attributing to him the merits of a martyr, honoured his sepulchre with solemn vigils and gifts. This was derided by the wise men, yet it was acceptable to the Clerks there living, by reason of the gains.”¹ Strange, however, Englishmen will attribute avarice and love of money to the poor Jews, rather than to their own ancestors, who possessed by far the greater share of both.

¹ See Prynne’s Demurrer, Part i., p. 13.