NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Blood libel against Jews

Blood libels are the accusations that Jews use human blood in certain aspects of their religious rituals.

Although the first known instance of blood libel is found in the writings of Apion, an early 1st century pagan Greco-Egyptian who claimed that the Jews sacrificed Greek victims in the Temple, no further incidents are recorded until the 12th century, when blood libels began to proliferate in Christian Europe. Blood libel accusations have often asserted that the blood of Christian children is especially coveted, and historically blood libel claims have often been made to account for otherwise unexplained deaths of children. In some cases, the alleged victim of human sacrifice, child or adult, has become venerated as a martyr, a holy figure around whom a martyr cult might arise. A few of these have been even canonized as saints. Blood libels are unfounded allegations that a particular group eats people as a form of human sacrifice, often accompanied by the claim of using the blood of their victims in various rituals. ... Apion, 20s BC - c. ... The 1st century was that century that lasted from 1 to 100 according the Gregorian calendar. ... Pagan and heathen redirect here. ... For other uses, see Greek (disambiguation). ... The Temple in Jerusalem or Holy Temple (Hebrew: ×‘×™×ª ×”×ž×§×“×©, transliterated Bet HaMikdash and meaning literally The Holy House) was located on the Temple Mount (Har HaBayit) in the old city of Jerusalem. ... (11th century - 12th century - 13th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 12th century was that century which lasted from 1101 to 1200. ... Topics in Christianity Movements Â· Denominations Â· Other religions Ecumenism Â· Preaching Â· Prayer Music Â· Liturgy Â· Calendar Symbols Â· Art Â· Criticism Important figures Apostle Paul Â· Church Fathers Constantine Â· Athanasius Â· Augustine Anselm Â· Aquinas Â· Palamas Â· Luther Calvin Â· Wesley Arius Â· Marcion of Sinope Archbishop of Canterbury Â· Catholic Pope Coptic Pope Â· Ecumenical Patriarch Christianity Portal This box: Christianity is... For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ... Martyrdom is a form of religious persecution. ... Icon of St. ... In traditional Christian iconography, Saints are often depicted as having halos. ...

Although broadly discredited, these libels have persisted among some segments of Christians to the present time, and recently Muslims as well. In Jewish lore, blood libels were the impetus for the creation of the golem of Prague by Rabbi Judah Lowe ben Bezalel, the Maharal. In Jewish folklore, a golem (×’×•×œ×, sometimes, as in Yiddish, pronounced goilem) is an animated being created entirely from inanimate matter. ... Judah Low ben Bezalel (1525 — 1609) was a Jewish scholar and rabbi, most of his life in Prague. ...

Descriptions of alleged ritual murder

In general, the libel alleged something like this: a child, normally a boy who had not yet reached puberty, was kidnapped or sometimes bought and taken to a hidden place (the house of a prominent member of the Jewish community, a synagogue, a cellar, etc.) where he would be kept hidden until the time of his death. Preparations for the sacrifice included the gathering of attendees from near and far and constructing or readying the instruments of torture and execution.^{[citation needed]} Download high resolution version (1438x1352, 49 KB)Legend of the Jew calling the Devil from a Vessel of Blood. ... Download high resolution version (1438x1352, 49 KB)Legend of the Jew calling the Devil from a Vessel of Blood. ... Four horsemen of the Apocalypse by Albrecht DÃ¼rer Ukiyo-e woodcut, Ishiyama Moon by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (1889) Woodcut is a relief printing artistic technique in printmaking in which an image is carved into the surface of a block of wood, with the printing parts remaining level with the surface... French Renaissance literature is, for the purpose of this article, literature written in French (Middle French) from the French invasion of Italy in 1494 to 1600, or roughly the period from the reign of Charles VIII of France to the ascension of Henri IV of France to the throne. ... Puberty refers to the process of physical changes by which a childs body becomes an adult body capable of reproduction. ... For other uses, see Torture (disambiguation). ...

At the time of the sacrifice (usually night), the crowd would gather at the place of execution (in some accounts the synagogue itself) and engage in a mock tribunal to try the child. The boy would be presented to the tribunal naked and tied (sometimes gagged) at the judge's order. He would eventually be condemned to death. Many forms of torture would be inflicted during the boy's "trial", including some of those used by the Inquisition on suspects of heresy. Some of the alleged tortures were mutilation (including circumcision), piercing with needles, punching, slapping, strangulation, strappado and whipping, while being insulted and mocked throughout. This article is about the Inquisition by the Roman Catholic Church. ... Look up Heresy in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... This article is about male circumcision. ... The strappado is a form of torture in which a victim is suspended in the air by means of a rope attached to his hands which are tied behind his back. ...

In the end, the half-dead boy would be crowned with thorns and tied or nailed to a wooden cross. The cross would be raised and the blood dripping from the boy's wounds, particularly those on his hands, feet, and genitals, would be caught in bowls or glasses. For other uses, see Crucifixion (disambiguation). ...

Finally, the boy would be killed with a thrust through the heart from a spear, sword, or dagger. His dead body would be removed from the cross and concealed or disposed of, but in some instances rituals of black magic would be performed on it. This method, with some variations, can be found in all the descriptions of alleged ritual murder by Jews.

The earlier stories describe only the torture and agony of the victim and suggest that the child's death was the sole purpose of the ritual. Over time and as the libel proliferated, the focus shifted to the supposed need to collect the victim's blood for mystical purposes.

The story of William of Norwich (d. 1144) is the first known case of alleged ritual murder, which was made by a Christian monk. It does not mention the collection of William's blood for any purpose. The story of Little Saint Hugh of Lincoln (d. 1255) said that after the boy was dead, his body was removed from the cross and laid on a table. His belly was cut open and his entrails removed for some occult purpose, such as a divination ritual. The story of Simon of Trent (d. 1475) highly stressed how the boy was held on a large bowl so all his blood could be collected. William of Norwich (1132? - March 1144) was an English boy who was supposedly ritually murdered by Jews. ... Hugh of Lincoln (1247 - August, 1255) was an English boy, whose disappearance prompted a blood libel with ramifications that reach until today. ... The bronze sheeps liver of Piacenza, with Etruscan inscriptions In Roman practice inherited from the Etruscans, a haruspex (plural haruspices) was a man trained to practice a form of divination called haruspicy, hepatoscopy or hepatomancy. ... Simon of Trent (? - approx. ...

According to Walter Laqueur, Walter Laqueur (born 1921) is an American historian and political commentator. ...

Actual Jewish practices regarding blood and sacrifice

The descriptions of torture and human sacrifice in the antisemitic blood libels run contrary to many of the teachings of Judaism. The Eternal Jew: 1937 German poster Anti-Semitism (alternatively spelled antisemitism) is hostility towards or prejudice against Jews (not, in common usage, Semites in general — see the Scope section below). ...

Most obviously, the Ten Commandments in the Torah forbid murder. In addition, the use of blood (human or otherwise) in cooking is prohibited by the Kosher dietary laws. Blood from slaughtered animals may not be consumed, and must be drained out of the animal and covered with dirt. (Lev 17:12-13) According to the book of Leviticus, blood from sacrificed animals may only be placed on the altar of the Great Temple in Jerusalem (which no longer existed at the time of the Christian blood libels). Furthermore, man is not considered a Kosher animal. This article is about a list of ten religious commandments. ... The Torah () is the most important document in Judaism, revered as the inspired word of G-d (the vocal is never spelled), traditionally said to have been revealed to Moses. ... Look up kosher in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The Temple in Jerusalem or Holy Temple (Hebrew: ×‘×™×ª ×”×ž×§×“×©, transliterated Bet HaMikdash and meaning literally The Holy House) was located on the Temple Mount (Har HaBayit) in the old city of Jerusalem. ...

While animal sacrifice was part of the practice of ancient Judaism, the Tanakh (Old Testament) and Jewish teaching portray human sacrifice as one of the evils that separated the pagans of Canaan from the Hebrews.(Deut 12:31, 2 Kings 16:3) Jews were prohibited from engaging in these rituals and were punished for doing so (Ex 34:15, Lev 20:2, Deut 18:12, Jer 7:31). In fact, ritual cleanliness for priests prohibited even being in the same room as a human corpse (Lev 21:11). For the musical collective, see Tanakh (band). ... Halakha (Hebrew: ×”×œ×›×”; also transliterated as Halakhah, Halacha, Halakhot and Halachah with pronunciation emphasis on the third syllable, kha), is the collective corpus of Jewish religious law, including biblical law (the 613 mitzvot) and later talmudic and rabbinic law as well as customs and traditions. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... // [[Image:]] Map of Canaan For other uses, see Canaan (disambiguation). ...

Proponents of the blood libel, such as British fascist Arnold Leese ("Jewish Ritual Murder" 1938) and sympathetic contemporaries, claim that proof of ritual murder is contained within scripture. The neo-Nazi site www.JRBooksOnline.com lists Psalm 137 as proof that Jews engaged in ritual child murder, citing the line "Happy will be he who takes your little ones and dashes them against the stones" (www.jrbooksonline.com/leese). However, in the context of the rest of Psalm 137, this verse expresses a desire for vengeance following Babylonian massacres of the Jews. In context, then: "O daughter of Babylon who is [to be] destroyed, happy will be he who repays you as you have done to us; happy will be he who takes your little ones and dashes them against the stones." (Psalms 137:8) Fascism (in Italian, fascismo), capitalized, was the authoritarian political movement which ruled Italy from 1922 to 1943 under the leadership of Benito Mussolini. ... Doctor Arnold Spencer-Leese (1877-1956) was a noted veterinarian, anti-Semite and fascist politician, born in 1877 in Lytham, Lancashire, England. ... The terms Neo-Nazism and Neo-Fascism refer to any social or political movement to revive Nazism or Fascism, respectively, and postdates the Second World War. ... Psalm 137 is one of the best known of the Biblical psalms. ...

Professor Israel Jacob Yuval of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem published an article in 1993 that argues that the blood libel myth may have originated in the 12th century from Christian views of Jewish behavior during the First Crusade. Some Jews committed suicide and killed their own children rather than be subjected to forced conversions. Yuval investigated Christian reports of these events and found that they were greatly distorted with claims that if Jews could kill their own children they could also kill Christian children. Yuval rejects the blood libel story as a Christian fantasy that was impossible due to the precarious nature of the Jewish minority's existence in Christian Europe.^[2]^[3] The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (האוניברסיטה העברית בירושלים) is one of Israels biggest and most important institutes of higher learning and research. ... Combatants Christendom, Catholicism West European Christians, Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia Seljuks, Arabs and other Muslims The First Crusade was launched in 1095 by Pope Urban II with the dual goals of liberating the sacred city of Jerusalem and the Holy Land from Muslims and freeing the Eastern Christians from Muslim...

Notable instances

There have been many blood libel accusations and trials of Jews beginning in the first century and continuing through modern times. A few of them are discussed here.

Alexandria, first century AD

The first recorded blood libel against Jews was by the classical Greek author Apion, who claimed that Jews sacrificed Greek victims in their temple. This blood libel from ancient Greek times pre-dates Christianity and is usually thought of as an act of anti-semitism. ^[4] Apion, 20s BC - c. ... A stone (2. ...

Constantinople, 415

Socrates Scholasticus reported that Jews bound a child on a cross and scourged him until he died.^[5] Socrates Scholasticus was a Greek Christian church historian; born at Constantinople c. ...

Norwich, East Anglia, 1144

March 20 (Passover), the first blood libel in Europe against Jews. Jews of Norwich were accused of both ritual murder and blood libel after a boy (William of Norwich) was found dead with stab wounds. The legend was turned into a cult, with William acquiring the status of martyr and crowds of pilgrims bringing wealth to the local church. In 1189, the Jewish deputation attending the coronation of Richard the Lionheart was attacked by the crowd. Pogroms in London followed and spread around England. On Feb 6 1190, all the Norwich Jews were found slaughtered in their houses, except a few who found refuge in the castle. Jews would later be expelled from all of England in 1290 and not allowed to return until 1655. William of Norwich (1132? - March 1144) was an English boy who was supposedly ritually murdered by Jews. ... Norwich (IPA: //) is a city in East Anglia, in Eastern England. ... Ritual murder is murder performed in a ritualistic fashion or on a basis of rituals. ... Blood libels are unfounded allegations that a particular group eats people as a form of human sacrifice, often accompanied by the claim of using the blood of their victims in various rituals. ... Events January 21 - Philip II of France and Richard I of England begin to assemble troops to wage the Third Crusade September 3- Richard I of England is crowned as king of England. ... Richard I (8 September 1157 â€“ 6 April 1199) was King of England from 6 July 1189 to 6 April 1199. ... Pogrom (from Russian: ; from Ð³Ñ€Ð¾Ð¼Ð¸Ñ‚ÑŒ IPA: - to wreak havoc, to demolish violently) is a form of riot directed against a particular group, whether ethnic, religious or other, and characterized by destruction of their homes, businesses and religious centres. ... Events March 16 - Massacre and mass-suicide of the Jews of York, England prompted by Crusaders and Richard Malebys kill 150-500 Jews in Cliffords Tower June 10 - Third Crusade: Frederick I Barbarossa drowned in the Saleph River while leading an army to Jerusalem. ... // March 1 - The University of Coimbra is founded in Lisbon, Portugal by King Denis of Portugal; it moves to Coimbra in 1308. ... Events March 25 - Saturns largest moon, Titan, is discovered by Christian Huygens. ...

County of Blois 1171

In 1171, Blois was the site of a blood libel accusation against its Jewish community that led to 31 Jews (by some accounts 40) being burned to death .^[6] Events Saladin abolishes the Fatimid caliphate, restoring Sunni rule in Egypt. ... Blois is a city in France, the prÃ©fecture (capital) city of the Loir-et-Cher dÃ©partement, situated on the banks of the lower river Loire between OrlÃ©ans and Tours. ... Blood libels are unfounded allegations that a particular group eats people as a form of human sacrifice, often accompanied by the claim of using the blood of their victims in various rituals. ...

County of Flanders, c. 1250

An early blood libel against Jews appears in Bonum Universale de Apibus ii. 29, § 23, by Thomas of Cantimpré (a monastery near Cambray). Thomas wrote "It is quite certain that the Jews of every province annually decide by lot which congregation or city is to send Christian blood to the other congregations." Thomas of CantimprÃ© was a Roman Catholic Medieval writer, preacher, and theologian Thomas was born of noble parentage at Sint-Pieters Leeuw near Brussels, in the Duchy of Brabant, 1201; died 15 May, 1272. ...

Thomas also believed that since the time when the Jews called out to Pontius Pilate, "His blood be on us, and on our children" (Matt. 27:25), they have been afflicted with hemorrhages: Ecce Homo (Behold the Man!), Antonio Ciseris depiction of Pontius Pilate presenting a scourged Jesus to the people of Jerusalem. ...

"A very learned Jew, who in our day has been converted to the (Christian) faith, informs us that one enjoying the reputation of a prophet among them, toward the close of his life, made the following prediction: 'Be assured that relief from this secret ailment, to which you are exposed, can only be obtained through Christian blood ("solo sanguine Christiano").' This suggestion was followed by the ever-blind and impious Jews, who instituted the custom of annually shedding Christian blood in every province, in order that they might recover from their malady."

Thomas added that the Jews had misunderstood the words of their prophet, who by his expression "solo sanguine Christiano" had meant not the blood of any Christian, but that of Jesus—the only true remedy for all physical and spiritual suffering.

Thomas did not mention the name of the "very learned" proselyte, but it may have been Nicholas Donin of La Rochelle, who in 1240 had a disputation on the Talmud with Yechiel of Paris, and who in 1242 caused the burning of numerous Talmudic manuscripts in Paris. It is known that Thomas was personally acquainted with this Nicholas. Nicholas Donin (Nicolas Donin) of La Rochelle, a Jewish convert to Christianity in early thirteenth-century Paris, is known for his role in the 1240 Disputation of Paris, which resulted in a decree to publicly burn all available manuscripts of the Talmud. ... La Rochelle is a city and commune of western France, and a seaport on the Atlantic Ocean (population 78,000 in 2004). ... The Talmud (Hebrew: ×ªÖ·Ö¼×œÖ°×ž×•Ö¼×“) is a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, customs and history. ... Yechiel ben Joseph of Paris (Jehiel of Paris) was a major Talmudic scholar and Tosafist from northern France. ...

Lincolnshire, 1255

The case of Little Saint Hugh of Lincoln is mentioned by Chaucer, and thus has become well known. A child of eight years, named Hugh, son of a woman named Beatrice, disappeared at Lincoln on the 31st of July. His body was discovered on the 29th of August, covered with filth, in a pit or well belonging to a Jewish man named Copin or Koppin. Hugh of Lincoln (1247 - August, 1255) was an English boy, whose disappearance prompted a blood libel with ramifications that reach until today. ... Chaucer: Illustration from Cassells History of England, circa 1902 Chanticleer the rooster from an outdoor production of Chanticleer and the Fox at Ashby_de_la_Zouch castle Geoffrey Chaucer (ca. ...

On being promised by John of Lexington, a judge, who happened to be present, that his life should be spared, Copin is said to have confessed that the boy had been crucified by the Jews, who had assembled at Lincoln for that purpose. King Henry III, on reaching Lincoln some five weeks afterward, at the beginning of October, refused to carry out the promise of John of Lexington, and had Copin executed and ninety-one of the Jews of Lincoln seized and sent up to London, where eighteen of them were executed. The rest were pardoned at the intercession of the Franciscans (Jacobs, "Jewish Ideals," pp. 192-224). Henry III (1 October 1207 â€“ 16 November 1272) was the son and successor of John Lackland as King of England, reigning for fifty-six years from 1216 to his death. ...

Margraviate of Baden, 1267

At Pforzheim, Baden, the corpse of a seven-year-old girl was found in the river by fishermen. The Jews were suspected, and when they were led to the corpse, blood allegedly began to flow from the wounds; led to it a second time, the face of the child became flushed, and both arms were raised. In addition to these miracles, there was the testimony of the daughter of the wicked woman who had sold the child to the Jews. Pforzheim is a town of 119,000 inhabitants in the state of Baden-WÃ¼rttemberg, south-west Germany at the gate to the Black Forest. ...

A regular judicial examination did not take place; it is probable that the above-mentioned "wicked woman" was the murderess. That a judicial murder was then and there committed against the Jews in consequence of the accusation is evident from the manner in which the Nuremberg "Memorbuch" and the synagogal poems refer to the incident (Siegmund Salfeld, Das Martyrologium des Nürnberger Memorbuches (1898), pp. 15, 128-130). â€œNÃ¼rnbergâ€ redirects here. ... Siegmund Salfeld (born at Stadthagen, Schaumburg-Lippe, March 24, 1843, died May 1926 in Mainz) was a German rabbi and writer. ...

Alsace, 1270

At Weissenburg, a miracle alone decided the charge against the Jews. According to the accusation, the Jews had suspended a child (whose body was found in the Lauter river) by the feet, and had opened every artery in its body in order to obtain all the blood. Again, supernatural claims were made: the child's wounds were said to have bled for five days afterward, despite its treatment.

Oberwesel, Lorraine, 1286

At Oberwesel, "miracles" again constituted the only evidence against the Jews. The corpse of the eleven-year-old Werner is said to have floated up the Rhine (against the current) as far as Bacharach, emitting radiance, and being invested with healing powers. In consequence, the Jews of Oberwesel and many other adjacent localities were severely persecuted during the years 1286-89. Emperor Rudolph I., to whom the Jews had appealed for protection, issued a public proclamation to the effect that great wrong had been done to the Jews, and that the corpse of Werner was to be burned and the ashes scattered to the winds.

Switzerland, early 1400s

The statement was made, in the "Chronicle" of Konrad Justinger of 1423, that at Bern in 1294 the Jews had tortured and murdered a boy called Rudolph. The historical impossibility of this widely credited story was demonstrated by Jakob Stammler, pastor of Bern, in 1888 (see "Katholische Schweizer-Blätter," Lucerne, 1888). The original, possibly illustrated, 1423 chronicle of Berne by Konrad Justinger was lost, but a copy of the text survives in Jena. ... Events July 31 - Hundred Years War: Battle of Cravant - The French army is defeated at Cravant on the banks of the river Yonne. ... For broader historical context, see 1290s and 13th century. ... For the toll-free telephone number see Toll-free telephone number Year 1888 (MDCCCLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Sunday (click on link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a leap year starting on Friday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ...

Tyrol, Austria 1462

At Rinn, near Innsbruck, a boy named Andreas Oxner (also known as Anderl von Rinn) was said to have been bought by Jewish merchants and cruelly murdered by them in a forest near the city, his blood being carefully collected in vessels. The accusation of drawing off the blood (without murder) was not made until the beginning of the seventeenth century, when the cult was founded. The older inscription in the church of Rinn, dating from 1575, is distorted by fabulous embellishments; as, for example, that the money which had been paid for the boy to his godfather was found to have turned into leaves, and that a lily blossomed upon his grave. The cult continued until it was officially prohibited in 1994 by the Bishop of Innsbruck. (source [2]). Year 1994 (MCMXCIV) The year 1994 was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by the United Nations. ...

Trentino, 1475

Simon of Trent, aged two, disappeared, and his father alleged that he had been kidnapped and murdered by the local Jewish community. Fifteen local Jews were sentenced to death and burned. Simon was regarded as a saint, and was canonized by Pope Sixtus V in 1588. His status as a saint was removed in 1965 by Pope Paul VI, though his murder is still promoted as a fact by a handful of extremists. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (842x1280, 422 KB) Das Bild stammt aus Hartmann Schedels Weltchronik von 1493 Ãœbersetzung von der Schwabacher Schrift ins moderne Alphabet: Symon das sellig kindlein zu Trient ist am xxi. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (842x1280, 422 KB) Das Bild stammt aus Hartmann Schedels Weltchronik von 1493 Ãœbersetzung von der Schwabacher Schrift ins moderne Alphabet: Symon das sellig kindlein zu Trient ist am xxi. ... Simon of Trent (? - approx. ... Simon of Trent (? - approx. ... Pope Sixtus V (December 13, 1521 â€“ August 27, 1590), born Felice Peretti, was Pope from 1585 to 1590. ... 1588 was a leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar or a leap year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. ... Year 1965 (MCMLXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1965 Gregorian calendar. ... This article cites very few or no references or sources. ...

Castile, 1491

Christopher of Toledo, also known as Christopher of La Guardia or "the Holy Child of La Guardia," was a four-year-old Christian boy supposedly murdered by two Jews and three Conversos (converts to Christianity). In total, eight men were executed. It is now believed^[7] that this case was constructed by the Spanish Inquisition to facilitate the expulsion of Jews from Spain. He was canonized by Pope Pius VII in 1805. Christopher has since been removed from the canon, though once again, a handful of individuals still claim the validity of this case. El Santo NiÃ±o de La Guardia or the Holy Infant of La Guardia was the alleged victim of a ritual murder by Jews in the central Spanish province of Toledo (Castilla-La Mancha) in 1491. ... Converso (Spanish and Portuguese for a convert, from Latin conversus, converted, turned around) and its feminine form conversa referred to Jews or Muslims or the descendants of Jews or Muslims who had converted to Catholicism in Spain and Portugal, particularly during the 1300s and 1400s. ... This article is about one of the historical Inquisitions. ... â€¹ The template below (Expand) is being considered for deletion. ... Pope Pius VII, OSB (August 14, 1740â€”August 20, 1823), born Barnaba NiccolÃ² Maria Luigi Chiaramonti, was Bishop of Rome and Pope of the Catholic Church from March 14, 1800 to August 20, 1823. ...

Hungary, 1494

In a case at Tyrnau (Nagyszombat, today Trnava, Slovakia), the absurdity, even the impossibility, of the statements forced by torture from women and children shows that the accused preferred death as a means of escape from the torture, and admitted everything that was asked of them. They even said that Jewish men menstruated, and that the latter therefore practiced the drinking of Christian blood as a remedy. Trnava (Hungarian: Nagyszombat, German: Tyrnau) is a town in western Slovakia, 45 kilometers to the north-east of Bratislava, on the Trnávka river, and at the main Bratislava-Žilina railway and Bratislava-Žilina limited-access highway. ...

Hungary, 1529

At Bösing (Bazin, today Pezinok, Slovakia), it was charged that a nine-year-old boy had been bled to death, suffering cruel torture; thirty Jews confessed to the crime and were publicly burned. The true facts of the case were disclosed later, when the child was found alive in Vienna. He had been stolen by the accuser, Count Wolf of Bazin, as an easy but fiendish means of ridding himself of his Jewish creditors at Bazin. Pezinok (Hungarian: Bazin, German: BÃ¶sing) is a city in southwestern Slovakia. ...

Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, 1690

The only child-saint in the Russian Orthodox Church is the six-year-old boy Gavriil Belostoksky from the village Zverki. According to the legend supported by the church, the boy was kidnapped from his home during the holiday of Passover while his parents were away. Shutko, a Jew from Białystok, was accused in bringing the boy to Białystok, poking him with sharp objects and draining his blood for nine days, then bringing the body back to Zverki and dumping at a local field. A cult developed, and the boy was canonized in 1820. His relics are still the object of pilgrimage. On All Saints Day, July 27, 1997, the Belorussian state TV showed a film alleging the story is true.^[8] The revival of the cult in Belarus was cited as a dangerous expression of antisemitism in international reports on human rights and religious freedoms^[9]^[10]^[11]^[12]^[13] and were passed to the UNHCR.^[14] Gavriil Belostoksky (alternatively Gavrila or Gabriel, Russian: ) (April 2 O.S. 1684-April 20? O.S. 1690) is the only canonized child saint in the Russian Orthodox Church. ... The Russian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate (Russian: ), also known as the Orthodox Christian Church of Russia, is a body of Christians who are united under the Patriarch of Moscow, who in turn is in communion with the other patriarchs and primates of the Eastern Orthodox Church. ... Pasch redirects here. ... Coordinates: , Country Poland Voivodeship Podlachian Powiat city county Gmina BiaÅ‚ystok Established 14th century City Rights 1692 Government - Mayor Tadeusz Truskolaski Area - City 102 kmÂ² (39. ... This article is about the Christian holiday. ... Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) (established December 14, 1950) protects and supports refugees at the request of a government or the United Nations and assists in their return or resettlement. ...

Syria, 1840

In February, at Damascus, a Catholic monk named Father Thomas and his servant were murdered. In this instance, also, confessions were obtained only after the infliction of torture. The Damascus affair was an accusation of ritual murder and a blood libel against Jews in Damascus in 1840. ...

Rhodes, 1840

The Jews of Rhodes, then in the Ottoman Empire, were accused of murdering a Greek Christian boy. The libel was supported by the local governor and the European consuls posted to Rhodes. Several Jews were arrested and tortured, and the entire Jewish quarter was blockaded for twelve days. An investigation carried out by the central Ottoman government found the Jews to be innocent. The Rhodes blood libel was an instance of blood libel against Jews in which the Jews on the Ottoman Empire island of Rhodes were accused of the ritual murder of a Christian boy in February 1840. ... Rhodes (Greek: Î¡ÏŒÎ´Î¿Ï‚ RhÃ³dhos; Italian Rodi; [[Ladino language| ) is the largest of the Dodecanese islands in terms of both land area and population, situated in eastern Aegean Sea. ... Ottoman redirects here. ...

Hungary, 1882

The Jews of the village Tiszaeszlár were accused with the ritual murder of a fourteen-year-old Christian girl, Eszter Solymosi. The case was one of the main causes of the rise of anti-Semitism in the country. The accused persons were eventually acquitted. The TiszaeszlÃ¡r blood libel, also known as the TiszaeszlÃ¡r Affair, was a blood libel and trial that set off anti-semitic agitation in Hungary in 1882 - 1883. ... Location of Szabolcs-Szatmar-Bereg county in Hungary TiszaeszlÃ¡r (Old form: Tisza-EszlÃ¡r) is a village in the Szabolcs-SzatmÃ¡r-Bereg megye, Hungary. ...

Bohemia, 1899

Leopold Hilsner, a Jewish vagabond, was accused of murdering a nineteen-year-old Christian woman, Anežka Hrůzová, with a slash to the throat. Despite the absurdity of the charge and the relatively progressive nature of society in Austria-Hungary, Hilsner was convicted and sentenced to death. He was later convicted of an additional unsolved murder, also involving a Christian woman. In 1901, the sentence was commuted to life imprisonment. Tomáš Masaryk, a prominent Austro-Czech philosophy professor and future president of Czechoslovakia, spearheaded Hilsner's defense. He was later blamed by Czech media because of this. In March 1918, Hilsner was pardoned by Austrian emperor Charles I. He was never exonerated, and the true guilty parties were never found. The Hilsner Affair (also known as the Hilsner Trial, Hilsner Case or PolnÃ¡ Affair) was a series of anti-semitic trials following an accusation of blood libel against a Jew called Leopold Hilsner in Bohemia in 1899 and 1900. ... Austria-Hungary, also known as the Dual monarchy (or: the k. ... TomÃ¡Å¡ Garrigue Masaryk, portrait by Josef JindÅ™ich Å echtl, 1918 TomÃ¡Å¡ Garrigue Masaryk (IPA: ), sometimes called Thomas Masaryk in English, (March 7, 1850 - September 14, 1937) was an advocate of Czechoslovak independence during WW I and became the first President of Czechoslovakia. ... Karl I, a. ...

Shiraz, 1910

The Jews of Shiraz, Iran, were falsely accused of murdering a Muslim girl. The entire Jewish quarter was pillaged; the pogrom left 12 Jews dead and about 50 injured. The Shiraz blood libel was a pogrom of the Jewish quarter in Shiraz, Iran, on October 30, 1910, sparked by false rumors that the Jews had ritually killed a Muslim girl. ... For other uses, see Shiraz (disambiguation). ...

Kiev, Ukraine, Russia 1911

In Kiev, a Jewish factory manager, Mendel Beilis, was accused of murdering a Christian child and using his blood in matzos. He was acquitted by an all-Christian jury after a sensational trial in 1913. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Tract may be a reference to: tract (anatomy), a bundle of nerve fibers following a path through the brain, or a collection of related anatomic structures (e. ... Map of Ukraine with Kiev highlighted Coordinates: , Country Ukraine Oblast Kiev City Municipality Raion Municipality Government - Mayor Leonid Chernovetskyi Elevation 179 m (587 ft) Population (2006) - City 4,450,968 - Density 3,299/kmÂ² (8,544. ... Menahem Mendel Beilis (Russian: ; 1874-1934) was a Ukrainian Jew accused of blood libel and ritual murder in a notorious 1913 trial, known as the Beilis trial or Beilis affair. The process sparked international criticism of the anti-Semitic policies of the Russian Empire. ... Map of Ukraine with Kiev highlighted Coordinates: , Country Ukraine Oblast Kiev City Municipality Raion Municipality Government - Mayor Leonid Chernovetskyi Elevation 179 m (587 ft) Population (2006) - City 4,450,968 - Density 3,299/kmÂ² (8,544. ... Machine-made shmura matzo Matzo (also Matzoh, Matzah, Matza, Hebrew ×žÖ·×¦Ö¸Ö¼×” maÄ) is a Jewish food item made of plain flour and water, which is not allowed to ferment or rise before it is baked. ...

Kielce, Poland 1946

The Kielce pogrom against Holocaust survivors in Poland was sparked by an accusation of blood libel. Kielce pogrom refers to the events on July 4, 1946, in the Polish town of Kielce, when forty Polish Jews were massacred and eighty wounded out of about two hundred Holocaust survivors who returned home after World War II. Among victims were also two Gentile Poles. ...

Contemporary blood libels

In Arab and Muslim nations

Blood libel stories have appeared a number of times in the state-sponsored media of a number of Arab and Muslim nations, their television shows and websites. Books alleging occurrences of Jewish blood libel are not uncommon. Arabs are anti-semitic people. ... See anti-Semitism for etymology and semantics of the term. ...

Some Arab writers have condemned these blood libels. The Egyptian newspaper Al-Ahram published a series of articles by Osam Al-Baz, a senior advisor to Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. Amongst other things, Osam Al-Baz explained the origins of the anti-Jewish blood libel. He said that Arabs and Muslims have never been anti-Semitic, as a group, but accepted that a few Arab writers and media figures attack Jews "on the basis of the racist fallacies and myths that originated in Europe". He urged people not to succumb to "myths" such as the blood libel. ^[24] Faisal ibn Abdelaziz Al Saud, King of Saudi Arabia (1324-1395 AH) (1903 or 1906â€”March 25, 1975) (Arabic: ÙÙŠØµÙ„ Ø¨Ù† Ø¹Ø¨Ø¯Ø§Ù„Ø¹Ø²ÙŠØ² Ø¢Ù„ Ø³Ø¹ÙˆØ¯) was King of Saudi Arabia from 1964 to 1975. ... Three homentashn A hamantash (also spelled hamentasch, homentash, homentasch, (h)umentash, pluralized with -en or -n; Yiddish ×”×ž×ŸÖ¾×˜×Ö·×©) is a cookie in Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine recognizable for its three-cornered shape. ... Purim (Hebrew: ×¤×•×¨×™× PÃ»rÃ®m lots, from Akkadian pÅ«ru) is a Jewish holiday that commemorates the deliverance from Hamans plot to annihilate all the Jews of the Persian Empire, who had survived the Babylonian captivity, after Persia had conquered Babylonia who in turn had destroyed the First Temple... Megillah redirects here. ... For other uses of this term see: Persia (disambiguation) The Persian Empire is the name used to refer to a number of historic dynasties that have ruled the country of Persia (Iran). ... The term Palestinian has other usages, for which see definitions of Palestinian. ... Muhammad Hosni Said Mubarak (Arabic: Ù…ØÙ…Ø¯ ØØ³Ù†Ù‰ Ø³ÙŠØ¯ Ù…Ø¨Ø§Ø±Ùƒ Muá¸¥ammad á¸¤usnÄ« MubÄrak), commonly known as Hosni Mubarak (Arabic: ØØ³Ù†Ù‰ Ù…Ø¨Ø§Ø±Ùƒ á¸¤usnÄ« MubÄrak), has been the President of Egypt since 14 October 1981. ...

In Russia

The vast territories of the Russian Empire at one time hosted the largest Jewish population in the world. ... 2005 : January - February - March - April - May - June - July - August - September - October - November - December- → Deaths in January • 29 Ephraim Kishon • 25 Philip Johnson • 23 Johnny Carson • 22 Parveen Babi • 20 Jan Nowak-Jeziorański • 17 Virginia Mayo • 17 Zhao Ziyang • 15... For other uses, see State Duma (disambiguation). ... Leader of the party The Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (Ð›Ð¸Ð±ÐµÑ€Ð°Ð»ÑŒÐ½Ð¾-Ð”ÐµÐ¼Ð¾ÐºÑ€Ð°Ñ‚Ð¸Ñ‡ÐµÑÐºÐ°Ñ ÐŸÐ°Ñ€Ñ‚Ð¸Ñ Ð Ð¾ÑÑÐ¸Ð¸, Liberalno-DemokratiÄeskaja Partija Rossii) is a far right political party in Russia. ... Communist Party supporters attend a May Day rally in Moscow The Communist Party of the Russian Federation (Russian: ÐšÐ¾Ð¼Ð¼ÑƒÐ½Ð¸ÑÑ‚Ð¸Ñ‡ÐµÑÐºÐ°Ñ Ð¿Ð°Ñ€Ñ‚Ð¸Ñ Ð Ð¾ÑÑÐ¸Ð¹ÑÐºÐ¾Ð¹ Ð¤ÐµÐ´ÐµÑ€Ð°Ñ†Ð¸Ð¸ = ÐšÐŸÐ Ð¤; translit. ... Rodina or Motherland-National Patriotic Union (Rodina - Narodno-PatriotiÄeskij Sojuz, ÐŸÐ°Ñ€Ñ‚Ð¸Ñ Ð ÐžÐ”Ð˜ÐÐ) is one of the four parties that control seats in the Russian legislature. ... Krasnoyarsk (Russian: ) is the administrative center of Krasnoyarsk Krai of Russia, and the third largest city in Siberia. ... This article is about the Hasidic movement originating in Poland and Russia. ... Machine-made shmura matzo Matzo (also Matzoh, Matzah, Matza, Hebrew ×žÖ·×¦Ö¸Ö¼×” maÄ) is a Jewish food item made of plain flour and water, which is not allowed to ferment or rise before it is baked. ...

Views of the Catholic Church

The Church's attitude towards these accusations and the cults venerating children supposedly killed by Jews varied. The church sometimes opposed them, but it generally did little to stop them, and in some cases gave its clear approval. Pope Benedict XIV permitted the continuation of the cult of Anderl von Rinn as a local cult, but refused to canonize him as a saint. On the other hand, Pope Gregory X issued a letter rejecting the blood libel accusations.^[32] Benedict XIV, born Prospero Lorenzo Lambertini (Bologna, March 31, 1675 â€“ May 3, 1758 in Rome), was Pope from 17 August 1740 to 3 May 1758. ... In traditional Christian iconography, Saints are often depicted as having halos. ... Gregory X, nÃ© Theobald Visconti (Piacenza, ca. ...

References

^ Walter Laqueur (2006): The Changing Face of Antisemitism: From Ancient Times to the Present Day, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-530429-2. p.56
^ Lily Galili (February 18, 2007). And if it's not good for the Jews?. Ha'aretz. Retrieved on 2007-02-18.
^ Two Nations in Your Womb: Perceptions of Jews and Christians in Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages by Israel J. Yuval; translated by Barbara Harshav and Jonathan Chipman, University of California Press, 2006)
^ Jewish Encyclopedia - BLOOD ACCUSATION, By Richard Gottheil, Hermann L. Strack, Joseph Jacobs
^ Blood libel in Syria
^ The Martyrs of Blois
^ Reston, James: "Dogs of God: Columbus, the Inquisition, and the defeat of the Moors", page 207. Doubleday, 2005. ISBN 0-385-50848-4
^ Is the New in the Post-Soviet Space Only the Forgotten Old? by Leonid Stonov, International Director of Bureau for the Human Rights and Law-Observance in the Former Soviet Union, the President of the American Association of Jews from the former USSR)
^ Belarus. International Religious Freedom Report 2003 Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor
^ Belarus. International Religious Freedom Report 2004 Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
^ Belarus. International Religious Freedom Report 2005 Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
^ Belarus. International Religious Freedom Report 2006 Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
^ Annual Report on International Religious Freedom 2004
^ http://www.unhcr.org/home/RSDCOI/450fb0b128.html
^ Frankel, Jonathan. The Damascus Affair: "Ritual Murder," Politics, and the Jews in 1840, pp. 418, 421. Cambridge University Press, 1997. ISBN 978-0-521-48396-4
^ U.S. Department of State Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2004 - Syria February 2005
^ L'antisémitisme dans la région du Proche-Orient et de l'Afrique du Nord (US Embassy in Morrocco)
^ Written statement submitted by the Association for World Education, a non-governmental organization on the Roster RACISM, RACIAL DISCRIMINATION, XENOPHOBIA AND ALL FORMS OF DISCRIMINATION. QUESTION OF VIOLATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS IN ANY PART OF THE WORLD. PROMOTION AND PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS. UN COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS. 60th session. E/CN.4/2004/NGO/5. 10 February 2004
^ Iranian TV Blood Libel
^ Steven Stalinsky. "Passover and the Blood Libel", The New York Sun, The New York Sun, One SL, LLC, 2006-04-12, p. Foreign, page 6. Retrieved on 2007-01-14.
^ Gerber, Gane S. (1986). "Anti-Semitism and the Muslim World", in David Berger ed.: History and hate: the dimensions of anti-Semitism. Philadelphia, PA: Jewish Publication Society, pg. 88. LCCN 86-2995. ISBN 0827602677. OCLC 13327957.
^ Saudi Government Daily: Jews Use Teenagers' Blood for 'Purim' Pastries (Saudi Government Daily) March 13, 2002 (Translated my MEM-RI. Special Dispatch No. 354)
^ Israel Is 'Stealing Palestinian Children's Eyes,' Iranian TV Series Says by Susan Jones (CNSNews) December 23, 2004
^ Al-Ahram Weekly Online, January 2-8, 2003 (Issue No. 619)
^ http://xeno.sova-center.ru/45A29F2/5295297?pub_copy=on
^ [1]
^ [http://regnum.ru/news/872810.html The investigation of five schoolboys death in Krasnoyarsk was extended again (Regnum, August 20, 2007)]
^ "Jewish people were accused with murder of children in Krasnoyarsk" ("Regnum", May 12, 2005)
^ Russian nationalistic publishers "Russian Idea", the article about the antisemitic movement "Living Without the Fear of the Jews.", June 2007: "...the murder of five children in Krasnoyarsk, which bodies were bloodless. Our layer V.A.Solomatov sais that there is undoubtedly a ritual murder..."
^ Hasids were accused in Krasnoyarsk children murder, the Beilis Affair was reanimated (Regnum, May 16, 2005)
^ KavkazCenter (September 21, 2006): "Are the burnt children the Hasid's victims?"
^ Pope Gregory X. Medieval Sourcebook: Gregory X: Letter on Jews, (1271-76) - Against the Blood Libel. Retrieved on 2007-05-07.

Walter Laqueur (born 1921) is an American historian and political commentator. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 49th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 14th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... This article refers to the largest city of Pennsylvania. ... The Jewish Publication Society of America was founded in Philadelphia in 1888 to provide the children of Jewish immigrants to America with books about their heritage in the language of the New World. ... The Library of Congress Control Number or LCCN is a serially based system of numbering books in the Library of Congress in the United States. ... The Online Computer Library Center (OCLC) was founded in 1967 and originally named the Ohio College Library Center. ... Menahem Mendel Beilis (Russian: ; 1874-1934) was a Ukrainian Jew accused of blood libel and ritual murder in a notorious 1913 trial, known as the Beilis trial or Beilis affair. The process sparked international criticism of the anti-Semitic policies of the Russian Empire. ... Gregory X, nÃ© Theobald Visconti (Piacenza, ca. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ... is the 127th day of the year (128th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

Contents