Jews in Medieval Christendom

Book excerpt: In Jews in Medieval Christendom: Slay Them Not, an international group of scholars from numerous disciplines examines the manifold ways that medieval Christians coped with the presence of Jews in their midst. The collection’s touchstone comes from St. Augustine’s interpretation of Psalm 59:11: “Slay them not, lest my people forget: scatter them by thy power; and bring them down,” as it applied to Jews in Christendom, an interpretation that deeply affected medieval Christian strategies for dealing with Jews in Europe. This collection analyzes how medieval writers and artists, often explicitly invoking Augustine, employed his teachings on these strangers within Christian Europe. Contributors include: Nancy Bishop, Kate McGrath, Irven Resnick, Ephraim Shoham-Steiner, K.M. Kletter, Robert Stacey, Jennifer Hart Weed, Jay Ruud, Kristine T. Utterback, Merrall LLewelyn Price, Eveline Brugger, Birgit Wiedl, Carlee A. Bradbury, Judy Schaaf, Barbara Stevenson, Miriamne Ara Krummel, Albrecht Classen.