A QUO PRIMUM (On Jews and Christians
Living in the Same Place)
Pope
Benedict XIV
Encyclical of
Pope Benedict XIV promulgated on 14 June 1751.
To the Primate, Archbishops and Bishops, of the
Kingdom of Poland.
Venerable Brothers, We give you Greeting and
Our Apostolic Blessing.
God in his goodness allowed Catholicism to take
root in Poland
at the end of the tenth century during the reign of Our predecessor Leo VIII.
At the time, the efforts of King Mieszko and his
Christian consort Dobrava (Dlugosz,
Annalium vestrorum
Scriptorum, 2, 94) encouraged the spread of
Christianity. Since then pious and devout Poles have continued the faithful
practice of their new religion. During this time various sects have attempted
to establish themselves in Poland
and to spread the seeds of their errors, heresies, and evil opinions. But the
faithful Polish people have strongly withstood their efforts.
We esteem the glorious memory of Polish
martyrs, confessors, virgins and holy men; their exemplary lives are recorded
in the holy annals of the Church. We also recall the many successful councils
and synods which gloriously defeated the Lutherans who tried tenaciously, using
a variety of methods, to establish a foothold and welcome in this kingdom. At
that time indeed the great council of Piotrkow met
under Our great predecessor and fellow citizen Gregory XIII, with prelate Lippomano, bishop of Verona
and Apostolic nuncio, as its president. To the great glory of God it prohibited
the principle of freedom of conscience; adherents of this principle were
seeking to introduce and establish it in Poland. Another threat to
Christians has been the influence of Jewish faithlessness; this influence was
strong because Christians and Jews were living in the same cities and towns.
However their influence was minimized because the Polish bishops did all they
could to aid the Poles in their resistance to the Jews. What the bishops did is
recorded in the large tome which contains the constitutions of the synods of
the province of Gniezno. These facts establish most
clearly and plainly the great glory which the Polish nation has won for its
zeal in preserving the holy religion embraced by its ancestors so many ages
before.
2. In regard to the matter of the Jews We must
express our concern, which causes Us to cry aloud: "the best color has
been changed." Our credible experts in Polish affairs and the citizens of Poland itself
who communicated with Us have informed Us that the number of Jews in that
country has greatly increased. In fact, some cities and towns which had been
predominantly Christian are now practically devoid of Christians.
The Jews have so replaced the Christians that
some parishes are about to lose their ministers because their revenue has
dwindled so drastically. Because the Jews control businesses selling liquor and
even wine, they are therefore allowed to supervise the collection of public
revenues. They have also gained control of inns, bankrupt estates, villages and
public land by means of which they have subjugated poor Christian farmers. The
Jews are cruel taskmasters, not only working the farmers harshly and forcing
them to carry excessive loads, but also whipping them for punishment. So it has
come about that those poor farmers are the subjects of the Jews, submissive to
their will and power. Furthermore, although the power to punish lies with the
Christian official, he must comply with the commands of the Jews and inflict
the punishments they desire. If he doesn't, he would lose his post. Therefore
the tyrannical orders of the Jews have to be carried out.
3. In addition to the harm done to Christians
in these regards, other unreasonable matters can result in even greater loss
and danger. The most serious is that some households of the great have employed
a Jew as "Superintendent-of-the-Household"; in this capacity, they
not only administer domestic and economic matters, but they also ceaselessly
exhibit and flaunt authority over the Christians they are living with. It is
now even commonplace for Christians and Jews to intermingle anywhere. But what
is even less comprehensible is that Jews fearlessly keep Christians of both
sexes in their houses as their domestics, bound to their service. Furthermore,
by means of their particular practice of commerce, they amass a great store of
money and then by an exorbitant rate of interest utterly destroy the wealth and
inheritance of Christians. Even if they borrow money from Christians at heavy
and undue interest with their synagogues as surety, it is obvious to anyone who
thinks about it that they do so to employ the money borrowed from Christians in
their commercial dealings; this enables them to make enough profit to pay the
agreed interest and simultaneously increase their own store. At the same time,
they gain as many defenders of their synagogues and themselves as they have
creditors.
4. The famous monk, Radulph,
inspired long ago by an excess of zeal, was so inflamed against the Jews that
he traversed Germany and France in the
twelfth century and, by preaching against the Jews as the enemies of our holy
religion, incited Christians to destroy them. This resulted in the deaths of a
very large number of Jews. What must we think his deeds or thoughts would be if
he were now alive and saw what was happening in Poland? But the great St. Bernard
opposed this immoderate and maddened zeal of Radulph,
and wrote to the clergy and people of eastern France: "The Jews are not to
be persecuted: they are not to be slaughtered: they are not even to be driven
out. Examine the divine writings concerning them. We read in the psalm a new
kind of prophecy concerning the Jews: God has shown me, says the Church, on the
subject of my enemies, not to slay them in case they should ever forget my
people. Alive, however, they are eminent reminders for us of the Lord's
suffering. On this account they are scattered through all lands in order that
they may be witnesses to Our redemption while they pay the just penalties for
so great a crime" (epistle 363). And he writes this to Henry, Archbishop
of Mainz: "Doesn't the Church every day triumph more fully over the Jews
in convicting or converting them than if once and for all she destroyed them
with the edge of the sword: Surely it is not in vain that the Church has established
the universal prayer which is offered up for the faithless Jews from the rising
of the sun to its setting, that the Lord God may remove the veil from their
hearts, that they may be rescued from their darkness into the light of truth.
For unless it hoped that those who do not believe would believe, it would
obviously be futile and empty to pray for them." (epistle
365).
5. Peter, abbot of Cluny,
likewise wrote against Radulph to King Louis of France, and
urged him not to allow the destruction of the Jews. But at the same time he
encouraged him to punish their excesses and to strip them of the property they
had taken from Christians or had acquired by usury; he should then devote the
value of this to the use and benefit of holy religion, as may be seen in the
Annals of Venerable Cardinal Baronius (1146). In this
matter, as in all others, We adopt the same norm of action as did the Roman
Pontiffs who were Our venerable predecessors. Alexander III forbade Christians
under heavy penalties to accept permanent domestic service under Jews.
"Let them not continually devote themselves to the service of Jews for a
wage." He sets out the reason for this in the decretal
Ad haec, de Judaeis.
"Because Jewish ways do not harmonize in any way with ours and they could
easily turn the minds of the simple to their own superstitions and
faithlessness through continual intercourse and unceasing acquaintance."
Innocent III, after saying that Jews were being received by Christians into
their cities, warns that the method and condition of this reception should
guard against their repaying the benefit with evildoing. "They on being
admitted to our acquaintance in a spirit of mercy,
repay us, the popular proverb says, as the mouse in the wallet, the snake in
the lap and fire in the bosom usually repay their host." The same Pope
stated that it was fitting for Jews to serve Christians rather than vice versa
and added: "Let not the sons of the free woman be servants of the sons of
the handmaid; but as servants rejected by their lord for whose death they
evilly conspired, let them realize that the result of this deed is to make them
servants of those whom Christ's death made free," as we read in his decretal Etsi Judaeos. Likewise in the decretal
Cum sit nimis under the same heading de Judaeis, et Saracenis, he
forbids the promotion of Jews to public office: "forbidding Jews to be
promoted to public offices since in such circumstances they may be very
dangerous to Christians." Innocent IV, also, in writing to St. Louis, King
of France, who intended to drive the Jews beyond the boundaries of his kingdom,
approves of this plan since the Jews gave very little heed to the regulations
made by the Apostolic See in their regard: "Since We strive with all Our
heart for the salvation of souls, We grant you full power by the authority of
this letter to expel the Jews, particularly since We have learned that they do
not obey the said statutes issued by this See against them" (Raynaldus, Annals, A.D. 1253, no. 34).
6. But if it is asked what matters the Apostolic
See forbids to Jews living in the same cities as Christians, We will say that
all those activities which are now allowed in Poland are forbidden; these We
recounted above. There is no need of much reading to understand that this is
the clear truth of the matter. It is enough to peruse decretals
with the heading de Judaeis, et Saracenis; the constitutions of Our predecessors, the
Roman Pontiffs Nicholas IV, Paul IV, St. Pius V, Gregory XIII and Clement VIII
are readily available in the Roman Bullarium. To
understand these matters most clearly, Venerable Brothers, you do not even need
to read those. You will recall the statutes and prescripts of the synods of
your predecessors; they always entered in their constitutions every measure
concerning the Jews which was sanctioned and ordained by the Roman Pontiffs.
7. The essence of the difficulty, however, is
that either the sanctions of the synods are forgotten or they are not put into
effect. To you then, Venerable Brothers, passes the
task of renewing those sanctions. The nature of your office requires that you
carefully encourage their implementation. In this matter begin with the clergy,
as is fair and reasonable. These will have to show others the right way to act,
and light the way for the rest by their example. For in God's mercy, We hope
that the good example of the clergy will lead the straying laity back to the
straight path. You will be able to give these orders and commands easily and
confidently, in that neither your property nor your privileges are hired to
Jews; furthermore you do no business with them and you neither lend them money
nor borrow from them. Thus, you will be free from and unaffected by all
dealings with them.
8. The sacred canons, prescribe that in the
most important cases, such as the present, censures should be imposed upon the
recalcitrant; and that those cases which bode danger and ruin to religion
should be reckoned as reserved cases in which only the bishop can give
absolution. The Council of Trent considered your jurisdiction when it affirmed
your right to reserve cases. It did not restrict such cases to public crimes
only, but extended them to include more notorious and serious cases, provided
they were not purely internal. But we have often said that some cases should be
considered more notorious and serious. These are cases, to which men are more
prone, which are a danger both to ecclesiastical discipline and to the
salvation of the souls which have been entrusted to your episcopal
care. We have discussed these at length in Our treatise On the diocesan
synod, Book 5, 5.
9. In this matter We will help as much as
possible. If you have to proceed against ecclesiastics exempt from your
jurisdiction, you will doubtless encounter additional difficulties. Therefore
We are giving Our Venerable Brother Archbishop Nicaenus,
Our Nuncio there, a mandate appropriate for this business, in order that he may
supply for you the necessary means from the powers entrusted to him. At the
same time We promise you that when the situation
arises, We will cooperate energetically and effectively with those whose
combined authority and power are appropriate to remove this stain of shame from
Poland.
But first Venerable Brothers, ask aid from God, the source of all things. From
Him beg help for Us and this Apostolic See. And while We embrace you in the
fullness of charity, We lovingly impart to you, Our brothers, and to the flocks
entrusted to your care, Our Apostolic Blessing.
Given at Castelgandolfo
on the 14th of June 1751 in the eleventh year of Our Pontificate.