Love Your Enemies?
The True Israel and the Return of the King
Today’s Verse and Thought
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I [Jesus] say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.”(Matthew 5:43-45)
From yesterday - Israel’s enemies continued to hunt them throughout the world. Why? They no longer seemed to be a threat to anyone. They didn’t even have a country. What would be the motive then to continue hunting them?
St. Gregory of Nyssa - “Gregory of Nyssa St. Gregory of Nyssa (c. 330-c. 395) was a younger sibling in a family that gave the [Catholic] church many years of service and at least five saints.”(source)
Love Your Enemies?
“So they will know that I am the Lord when I scatter them among the nations and spread them among the countries.”(Ezekiel 12:15 622-571 BC)
After the Bar Kokhba Revolt (132–136 AD), Jews were scattered across the Roman Empire. Jewish communities settled in Babylonia (Iraq), North Africa, Asia Minor (Turkey), Greece, Rome, and Europe.
Even though Hadrian expelled the Jews from Jerusalem, a very small number of them continued to live in the nearby regions (under great restrictions), some even lived in hiding. Jews were only allowed to come back into the city for Tisha B’Av when they mourned the loss of their Temples.
Under the Byzantine Empire (the eastern part of the Roman Empire 300-600 AD), and the fall of Western Rome in the 5th century, the authorities in Jerusalem continued to restrain a Jewish presence in the city.
For the two centuries following the appearance of “John,” the last of the four canonical gospels the Church Fathers, following the lead of scripture, engaged in a continuing polemic against Jews and Judaism, the adversus judeaos, “Against the Jews.” Among these were some of the most famous early church theologians, Jerome, Irenaeus and Eusebius. And, in the late fourth century, John Chrysostum and Augustine of Hippo (source).
In the fourth century, Catholicism became the “official” state religion of the Roman Empire. By this time, the city had become predominantly Catholic, especially following the reign of Emperor Constantine. The Jews continually faced restrictions of their political rights and their practice of Judaism because Catholics believed the Jews were heretics and were cursed.
“And all the people answered and said, ‘His blood be on us and on our children.’ “ (Matthew 27:25)
The attitude of prominent Catholic writers such as John Chrysostom, a revered Church Father and Archbishop of Constantinople (347–407 AD), became an enduring foundation of bias towards Jews that influenced Catholic attitudes throughout the centuries.
“Matthew 27:25 is described as the eternal curse providing for centuries of anti-Jewish persecution and rationale for the Holocaust itself. And Augustine, while not anticipating “punishment” extending to exterminating all Jews everywhere, repeatedly agrees that for the crime of deicide [killing of a god.], “the Jews” warrant punishment by God and Christians.”(source).
In the 7th century, when the Sassanid Persians conquered Jerusalem (614 AD), they allowed the Jews to return to the city in greater numbers, but this reprieve was short-lived due to the Muslims conquering Jerusalem (638-1099 AD).
During these years the Jews lived restricted and marginalized lives. The Roman and Byzantine emperors viewed Judaism as a rival to Catholicism, particularly after Constantine who tore down the pagan temples of Rome and the synagogues of the Jews.
Not only did the Jews face religious persecution, they were also forced to convert to Catholicism. They weren’t allowed a political voice and they faced economic hardship due to the bias’ of both the Church and the Crown.
“In four incidents of Jewish conversion, the threat of violence or of some kind of negative consequence (e.g., economic pressure) constituted if not forced conversions then certainly pressure to convert. Jews, however, were only one group, and a relatively small one, targeted for forcible Christian conversion. Throughout the medieval period, thousands of pagans were brought into the Christian fold by forcible means—from Charlemagne’s eighth-century campaign against the Saxons to the Sword Brothers’ thirteenth-century campaigns against the Lithuanians and Estonians.”(source).
Catholics Killing Jews
“God is a just judge, And God is angry with the wicked every day.”(Psalm 7:11)
The Crusades (1096-1270) were launched by the Holy Roman Empire in order to reclaim the “Holy Land” (Jerusalem) from Muslim control. The Crusaders were driven by a religious spirit - much like the Jewish Zealots of Jesus’ day. They were considered the fighting arm of the Pope.
The Crusaders saw it as a righteous calling to defend Catholicism by any means. Pope Urban II, during the First Crusade in 1095, called his Crusade “a holy war” in order to paint it as a moral right of the Catholic church to reclaim the Holy Land away from the Muslims.
“Hear the word of the Lord, You who tremble at His word: “Your brethren who hated you, Who cast you out for My name’s sake, said, ‘Let the Lord be glorified, That we may see your joy.’ But they shall be ashamed.”(Isaiah 66:5)
Jews were seen as obstacles to the spread of Catholicism. In their zeal, the Crusaders considered killing as justified and righteous. Large numbers of Jews were massacred as the Crusaders went through Europe toward the Holy Land. Similar persecutions occurred throughout all the Crusades, especially in the Rhineland (western Germany), where Jewish communities were destroyed.
“One city whose Jews were hard hit was Worms [Germany]. Jews in the city heard that those in Speyer were being attacked, so they asked the Christian bishop of Worms for protection. Many even gave him their savings for safekeeping. But as the Crusaders descended on the city in May 1096, they began murdering Jewish men, women, and children.
Led by a German named Emicho from the city of Leiningen, they plundered (robbed) the homes of Jews, seizing whatever wealth they could find. Many Crusaders used stolen Jewish wealth to finance their journey to the Holy Land. They destroyed the Jewish cemetery just outside the walls of the city. They looted the city's magnificent Byzantine-style synagogue. They tried to force Jews to be baptized as Christians. Those who refused were either killed or committed suicide. In many instances, Jewish men killed their wives and children rather than allow them to be brutalized by the Crusaders. In all, about eight hundred people died”(Source).
During the Crusade years, some vocal leaders incited hatred against Jews, calling them “infidels” repeating the curse of Matthew 27 taught by the Catholic Fathers since the 400s.
They held Jews responsible for the death of Christ and as obstacles to the spread of Catholicism. These beliefs were promoted to the masses through sermons and pamphlets.
Thousands of Jews were killed during the Crusades, and some Jewish communities were forced to convert to Catholicism. Many Jews were expelled from their homes in Western Europe, further dispersing them into the nations.
“‘For I am with you,’ declares the Lord, ‘to save you; For I will destroy completely all the nations where I have scattered you, Only I will not destroy you completely. But I will chasten you justly And will by no means leave you unpunished.’(“Jeremiah 30:11)
The Spanish Inquisition (1478-1834)
During the reign of Ferdinand and Isabella who sought to root out heresy, gave thousands of Jews a choice: become a Catholic, or face persecution. Jews who converted were called “conversos."
When Ferdinand and Isabella issued the “Alhambra Decree” in 1492, many Jews fled to North Africa, the Ottoman Empire, and other parts of Europe. This mass expulsion and forced conversions severely impacted Jewish communities, and the fear of secret persecution continued for centuries.
“Pogroms, individual acts of violence against Jews and anti-Semitic laws had been features of Catholic Spain for over a century before the Alhambra Order, causing deaths and conversions that greatly reduced Spain’s Jewish population. Having already forced much of Spain’s Jewish population to convert, the Church now set about rooting out those who suspected of practicing Judaism in secret, oftentimes by extremely violent methods. Tomas de Torquemada, the Grand Inquisitor, is said to have petitioned the monarchs to expel all Jews for years before they finally issued the order on March 31, 1492.”(source)
From the time of the Roman Emperor Constantine (306 to 337), to the Spanish Inquisition that began in 1478, the Catholic Church remained consistent in its pursuit of heresy and forced conversion.
Would there ever be an end to the curse of Matthew 27? Did God sanction the Catholic Church to act as judge, jury, and executioner on His behalf? Or was this more like the days of Saul (Paul) before he converted to Christianity and erroneously pursued Christians in the name of God?
Was this how the Church was supposed to show “love” to their enemies?
To be continued…
Today’s Question
Verses to Explore
“Open your mouth, judge righteously, And plead the cause of the poor and needy”.(Psalms 31:9)
“The Lord shall judge the peoples; Judge me, O Lord, according to my righteousness, And according to my integrity within me.”(Psalms 7:8)
“And that He would cast their seed among the nations And scatter them in the lands.”(Psalm 106:27)
“Who build up Zion with bloodshed And Jerusalem with iniquity: Her heads judge for a bribe, Her priests teach for pay, And her prophets divine for money. Yet they lean on the Lord, and say, “Is not the Lord among us? No harm can come upon us.” Therefore because of you Zion shall be plowed like a field, Jerusalem shall become heaps of ruins, And the mountain of the temple Like the bare hills of the forest.”(Micah 3:10-12)
Today’s Prayer
Father I fear that we have strayed from the truth of your Word. We are quick to act as the judge of others, yet slow to see our own sins and repent in true sorrow. How can we be so blind by our own hearts so that we convince ourselves that our self-righteous acts against others is somehow sanctioned by you?
How can we, your children, be so blind by the teachings of our own priests and ministers that are clearly against all that Jesus taught? We are all guilty of this. We all have been arrogant in our own ways. Forgive us Father.
We are to uphold righteousness by our own lives, not enforcing it on others who are unwilling to believe in you. Show us how to properly stand for our moral convictions in a manner that is in line with your teaching, not out of the corruption we hide in our own hearts.
Help us to never give in to approving any sin out of misguided “unity,” yet keep us from condemning others. We are not the judge; You are. We are to judge between right and wrong and live our own lives accordingly.
Give us a true heart of love with the foundation of truth. Give us a broken heart for those dying without you. I pray today for all your people to seek proper love in your Church. Help us to love with great conviction, but never compromise. Forgive us for failing in this. We have all failed to love in the way that you command. I pray today for a sincere heart of love and compassion as your Word guides us. May all of this bring glory and honor to you. Amen.❤️