Las Siete Partidas: Laws on Jews, 1265 Essay

Las Siete Partidas was a work commissioned by King Alfonso X in 1265. It introduced law codes which only took effect in Castile a century later. These law codes, which were establish on earlier feudal, civil, and canon laws, were opposing to Jews. The conditions ordaind on Muslim Moors, however, were scour more severe than those placed on the Jews (Muslims, for instance, were prohibit from having mosques. ) The focus of this essay depart be on excerpts taken from Las Siete Partidas which visual sense primarily with the Judaic people. The Laws on Jews were an travail to manage the costs and benefits of living with a Judaic minority.Laws which served to control the spread of the Jewish minority forbid miscege body politic Jews who lodge with Christian womenshall be put to d dischargeh. Jews were likewise forbidden from proselytizing More over, a Jew should be actually careful to block preaching to, or converting any Christian. Socializing with Jews was prohibited we fo rbid any Christianto need a Jew or Jewishto eat or drink together. Jews were prohibited from owning slaves or oppressing Christians. around laws were based on false allegations which claimed that Jews were engaging in charitable sacrifice (blood libel).Blaming Jews for Christs suffering (deicide) led to further anti-Semitism. Some of the laws were designed to protect Jews. Jews were protected on Saturday (Sabbath) as well as in their place of worship (synagogue. ) Jews were prohibited from leaving their homes on Good Friday (days on which Christians were strange towards Jews. ) Some laws served non only to protect Jews, merely were degrading as well. For instance, Jews had to wear a Jewish badge to distinguish them in public in order to avoid the offenses and evilsall Jewsshall bear some distinguishing brandmark. A law which requires Jews to identify themselves with a badge implies that Jews and Christians were non so disparate racially, but separate peoples in basis of their history, culture, and language. The Christian lodge in Castile, in order to maintain violence over their population, introduced laws which would ensure that the Jewish minority would not grow. These laws were at times degrading and hostile towards Jews. However, there were attempts to protect and appease Christian hostility towards Jews.It would prove to be a challenge to maintain a eternal sleep between denigrating the Jewish community in an attempt to check its increase and making use of its influence and power (King Alfonso made use of Jewish doctors and bankers. ) It would not be unfair to ask whether the remote relationship between Christians and Jews was due to the feature that the Jews were in fact a nation within a Christian nation. Moreover, if the Christian community in Castile recognized the Jewish people to be a nation, thus they may have felt jeopardise by the possibility of the reestablishment of a Jewish state.