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The history of Christian thought has included concepts of both inclusivity and exclusivity from its beginnings, that have been understood and applied differently in different ages, and have led to practices of both persecution and toleration. Early Christian thought established Christian identity, defined heresy, separated itself from polytheism and Judaism and developed the theological conviction called supersessionism. In the centuries after Christianity became the official religion of Rome, some scholars say Christianity became a persecuting religion. Others say the change to Christian leadership did not cause a persecution of pagans, and that what little violence occurred was primarily directed at non-orthodox Christians.^[1][2][3]

After the fall of the Roman Empire, Christian thought focused more on preservation than origination. This era of thought is exemplified by Gregory the Great, Saint Benedict, Visigothic Spain, illustrated manuscripts, and progress in medical care through monks. Although the roots of supersessionism and deicide can be traced to some second century Christian thought, Jews of the Middle Ages lived mostly peacefully alongside their Christian neighbors because of Augustine of Hippo's teaching that they should be left alone. In the Early Middle Ages, Christian thought on the military and involvement in war shifted to accommodate the crusades by inventing chivalry and new monastic orders dedicated to it. There was no single thread of Christian thought throughout most of the Middle Ages as the church was largely democratic and each order had its own doctrine.

The High Middle Ages were pivotal in both European culture and Christian thought. Feudal kings began to lay the foundation of what would become their modern nations by centralizing power.^[4]: ix They gained power through multiple means including persecution. Christian thought played a supportive role, as did the literati, a group of ambitious intellectuals who had contempt for those they thought beneath them, by verbally legitimizing those attitudes and actions.^{[4]: 131, 146} This contributed to a turning point in Judeo-Christian relations in the 1200s. Heresy became a religious, political, and social issue which led to civil disorder and the Medieval Inquisitions. The Albigensian Crusade is seen by many as evidence of Christianity's propensity for intolerance and persecution, while other scholars say it was conducted by the secular powers for their own ends.

The Late Middle Ages are marked by a decline of papal power and church influence with accommodation to secular power becoming more and more of an aspect of Christian thought. The modern Inquisitions were formed in the Late Middle Ages at the special request of the Spanish and Portuguese sovereigns. Where the medieval inquisitions had limited power and influence, the powers of the modern "Holy Tribunal" were taken over, extended and enlarged by the power of the state into "one of the most formidable engines of destruction which ever existed."^[5]: 343 During the Northern Crusades, Christian thought on conversion shifted to a pragmatic acceptance of conversion obtained through political pressure or military coercion even though theologians of the period continued to write that conversion must be voluntary.

By the time of the early Reformation (1400–1600), the conviction developed among the early Protestants that pioneering the concepts of religious freedom and religious toleration was necessary.^[6]: 3 Scholars say tolerance has never been an attitude broadly espoused by an entire society, not even western societies, and that only a few outstanding individuals, historically, have truly fought for it.^[7]: 183 In the West, Christian reformation figures, and later Enlightenment intellectuals, advocated for tolerance in the century preceding, during, and after the Reformation and into the Enlightenment.^[8]: 206 Contemporary Christians generally agree that tolerance is preferable to conflict, and that heresy and dissent are not deserving of punishment. Despite that, the systematized government-supported persecution of minorities invented in the West in the High Middle Ages for garnering power to the state has spread throughout the world. Sociology indicates tolerance and persecution are products of context and group identity more than ideology.

Early Christian thought from the first century to Constantine

Historical background

In its first three centuries, Christian thought was just beginning to define what it meant to be a Christian, distinct from paganism and Judaism, through its definitions of orthodoxy and heterodoxy.^[9]: 1 Early Christian writers worked to reconcile the Jewish founding story, the Christian gospel of the Apostles, and the Greek tradition of knowing the divine through reason, but the substance of Christian orthodoxy was increasingly found in the homogeneous canon of writings believed to be apostolic (written by the apostles), that had circulated widely as such, and the writings of the church fathers that were based on them.^{[10]: 1, 10 [9]: 1}

Persecution and tolerance are both the result of alterity, the state of otherness, and the question of how to properly deal with those who are 'outside' the defined identity.^{[11]: 907, 908} Like the other Abrahamic religions, Christian thought has included, from its beginnings, two ideals which have affected Christian responses to alterity: inclusivity (also called universality) and exclusivity, or as David Nirenberg describes them, our "mutual capacities for coexistence and violence."^{[12]: viii–ix [13]: 4, 5} There is an inherent tension in all the Abrahamic traditions between exclusivity and inclusivity which is theologically and practically dealt with by each in different ways.^{[13]: 4, 5}

Justo L. González traces three veins of Christian thought that began in the second century. Out of Carthage, Tertullian the lawyer (155–200 CE) wrote of Christianity as revelation of the law of God. From the pluralistic city of Alexandria, Origen wrote of the commonalities between philosophy and theology, reason and revelation, seeing Christianity as the intellectual pursuit of transcendent truth. In Asia Minor and Syria, Irenaeus saw Christianity as God working in human history through its pastoral work of reaching people with God's love. Each vein of thought has continued throughout Christian history, and have impacted attitudes toward and practices of tolerance and persecution.^[14]

Inclusivity, exclusivity and heresy

Early Christian communities were highly inclusive in terms of social stratification and other social categories, much more so than were the Roman voluntary associations.^[15]: 79 Heterogeneity characterized the groups formed by Paul the Apostle, and the role of women was much greater than in either of the forms of Judaism or paganism in existence at the time.^[15]: 81 Early Christians were told to love others, even enemies, and Christians of all classes and sorts called each other "brother" and "sister". These concepts and practices were foundational to early Christian thought, have remained central, and can be seen as early precursors to modern concepts of tolerance.^{[15]: 88–90}

Though tolerance was not a fully developed concept, and was held with some ambivalence, Guy Stroumsa says Christian thought of this era promotes inclusivity, yet invents the concept of heresy at the same time.^{[16]: 174–179} Tertullian, a second-century Christian intellectual and lawyer from Carthage, advocated for religious tolerance primarily in an effort to convince pagan readers that Christianity should be allowed into the religious "market-place" that historian John North proposes second century Rome had become.^{[16]: 174, 175} On the other hand, Stroumsa argues that Tertullian knew co-existence meant competition, so he attempted to undermine the legitimacy of the pagan religions by comparing them to Christianity at the same time he advocated for tolerance from them.^[16]: 175 Justin Martyr (100–165 CE) wrote his First Apology (155–157 CE) against heretics, and is generally attributed with inventing the concept of heresy in Christian thought.^{[17]: 6, 174–178} Historian Geoffrey S. Smith argues that Justin writes only to answer objections his friends are facing and to defend these friends from ill treatment and even death. He quotes Justin in a letter to the emperor as saying he is writing: "On behalf of those from every race of men who are unjustly hated and ill-treated, being one of them myself."^[17]: 6 However, Alain Le Boulluec argues it is within this period that use of the term "heretic" in Christian thought and writings changes from neutral to derogatory.^{[18]: 59–62}

Supersessionism

Supersessionist thought is defined by "two core beliefs: (1) that the nation of Israel has forfeited its status as the people of God through disobedience; and (2) the New Testament church has therefore become the true Israel and inheritor of the promises made to the nation of Israel."^[19]: 12 It has three forms: punitive, economic, and/or structural supersessionism.^[19]: 12 Punitive supersessionism is the 'hard' form of supersessionism, and is seen as punishment from God.^[19]: 13 Economic supersessionism is a moderate form concerning God's economy: His plan in history to transfer the role of the "people of God" from an ethnic group to a universal group.^[19]: 15 The third form involves the New Testament having priority over the Old Testament by ignoring or replacing the original meaning of Old Testament passages.^[19]: 17 For example, within the early church, the rise of the use of Greek philosophical interpretation and allegory allowed inferences to be drawn such as the one Tertullian drew when he allegorically interpreted the statement "the older will serve the younger", concerning the twin sons of Isaac and Rebekah (Genesis 25.23), to mean that Israel would serve the church.^{[19]: 32, 33}

There is no agreement on when supersessionism began.^[19]: 27 Michael J. Vlach says that some claim it began in the New Testament, some say it began with the church fathers, others place its beginnings after the Bar Kokhba revolt in CE135. The destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in CE70 and again in CE135 had a profound impact on Jewish–Christian relations. Many saw the Jewish–Christians as traitors for not supporting their brethren, and Vlach says supersessionism grew out of those events.^{[19]: 30, 31} Scholars such as W. C. Kaiser Jr. see the fourth century, after Constantine, as supersessionism's true beginning, because that is when a shift in Christian thought on eschatology took place.^[20]: 133 The church took its universally held traditional interpretation of Revelation 20:4-6 (Millennialism) and its hope of the thousand-year reign of the Messiah on earth, centered in Jerusalem, ruling with the redeemed Israel,^[20]: 3 and replaced it with a "historicized and allegorized version, that set up the church" as the metaphorical Israel instead.^{[20]: xi, 12}

Tracing the roots of supersessionism to the New Testament is problematic since "there is no consensus" that supersessionism is a biblical doctrine at all.^[19]: 1 Vlatch says one's position on this is determined more by one's beginning assumptions than it is by any biblical hermeneutic.^[19]: 1 Arguments in favor of supersessionism have traditionally been based on implications and inferences rather than biblical texts.^{[19]: 32, 33} Vlatch asserts that the church has also "always had compelling scriptural reasons, in both Testaments, to believe in a future salvation and restoration of the nation Israel."^[19]: 3 Therefore, supersessionism has never been an official doctrine and has never been universally held. Supersessionism's alternative is chiliasm, also known as Millennialism. These are both the belief that Christ will return to earth in visible form and establish a kingdom to last 1000 years. This was the traditional and more universally held view of the first two centuries, and has remained an aspect of Christian thought throughout its history.^[20]: 3 Steven D. Aguzzi^[21] says supersessionism was still considered a "normative view" in the writings of the early church fathers, such as Justin, Barnabas and Origen, and has also been a part of Christian thought for much of the church's history.^{[20]: 5, 25}

Evaluation

Supersessionism is significant in Christian thought because "It is undeniable that anti-Jewish bias has often gone hand-in-hand with the supersessionist view."^{[19]: 5, 6} Many Jewish writers trace anti-semitism, and the consequences of it in World War II, to this particular doctrine among Christians.^{[22]: 169 [23]: 8, 9} Twentieth-century Jewish civil rights leader Leonard P. Zakim asserts that, despite the many possible destructive consequences of supersessionism, as theology professor Padraic O'Hare writes: supersessionism alone is not yet anti-semitism.^[24] John Gager makes a distinction between nineteenth century anti-Semitism and second century anti-Judaism, and many scholars agree, yet there are those who see early anti-Judaism and later anti-Semitism as the same.^{[23]: 2, 4} Anders Gerdmar [sv] sees the development of anti-semitism as part of the paradigm shift that occurred in early modernity. Gerdmar argues the shift resulted from the new scientific focus on the Bible and history that replaced the primacy of theology and tradition.^[25]: 25 Christopher Leighton associates anti-Judaism with the origins of Christianity, and anti-semitism with "modern nationalism and racial theories".^[24]

Deicide

Deicide as the prime accusation against the Jews appears, for the first time, in a highly rhetorical second century poem by Melito, of which only a few fragments have survived. In the fourth century, Augustine refuted the accusation, saying the Jews could not be guilty of deicide as they did not believe Christ was God.^[26] Melito's writings were not influential, and the idea was not immediately influential, but the accusation returned in fourth century thinking and sixth century actions and again in the Middle Ages.^[22]: 178

Constantine

Christian thought was still in its infancy in 313 when, following the Battle of the Milvian Bridge, Constantine I, (together with his co-emperor Licinius), issued the Edict of Milan granting religious toleration to the Christian faith. The Edict did not only protect Christians from religious persecution, but all religions, allowing anyone to worship whichever deity they chose. After 320, Constantine supported the Christian church with his patronage, had a number of basilicas built for the Christian church, and endowed it with land and other wealth.^[27]: 49 He outlawed the gladiatorial shows, destroyed temples and plundered more, and used forceful rhetoric against non-Christians. But he never engaged in a purge. "He did not punish pagans for being pagans, or Jews for being Jews, and did not adopt a policy of forced conversion."^[28]: 302

While not making a direct personal contribution to Christian thought, the first Christian Roman emperor had a powerful impact on it through the example of his own conversion, his policies, and the various councils he called.^{[29]: 57–58} Christian thought at the time of Constantine believed that victory over the "false gods" had begun with Jesus and ended with the conversion of Constantine as the final fulfillment of heavenly victory—even though Christians were only about fifteen to eighteen percent of the empire's population.^{[30]: 7 [31]: 640}

After Constantine, Christianity gradually became the dominant religion in the Roman Empire. In the view of many historians, the Constantinian shift turned Christianity from a persecuted religion into a persecuting religion.^[8]: 22 However, the claim that there was a Constantinian shift has been disputed. Theologian Peter Leithart argues that there was a "brief, ambiguous 'Constantinian moment' in the early fourth century", but that there was "no permanent, epochal 'Constantinian shift'".^{[32]: 287 [33]: 19} According to Michele R. Salzman, fourth century Rome featured sociological, political, economic and religious competition, producing tensions and hostilities between various groups, but that Christians focused on heresy more than pagans.^{[34]: 13, 407}

Antiquity: from Constantine to the fall of empire

Historical background

Historians and theologians refer to the fourth century as the "golden age" of Christian thought.^[35]: 1 Figures such as John Chrysostom, Ambrose, Jerome, Basil, Gregory of Nazianus, Gregory of Nyssa, and the prolific Augustine, all made a permanent mark on Christian thought and history. They were primarily defenders of orthodoxy. They wrote philosophy and theology as well as apologetics and polemics. Some had a long-term effect on tolerance and persecution in Christian thought.^[36]

Fourth century Christian thought

Fourth century Christian thought was dominated by its many conflicts defining orthodoxy versus heterodoxy and heresy. In what remained of the Eastern Roman empire, known as Byzantium, the Arian controversy began with its debate of Trinitarian formulas which lasted 56 years.^[37]: 141 It gradually trickled over into the Latin West so that by the fourth century, the center of the controversy was the "champion of orthodoxy", Athanasius. Arianism was the reason for calling the Council of Nicea. Athanasius was ousted from his bishopric in Alexandria in 336 by the Arians, forced into exile, and lived much of the remainder of his life in a cycle of forced movement. The controversy became political after Constantine's death. Athanasius died in 373, while an Arian emperor ruled, but his orthodox teaching was a major influence in the West, and on Theodosius, who became emperor in 381.^{[33]: 28, 29, 31 [37]: 20, 175} Also in the East, John Chrysostom, Bishop of Constantinople, who is best known for his brilliant oratory and his exegetical works on moral goodness and social responsibility, also wrote Discourses Against the Jews which is almost pure polemic, using replacement theology that is now known as supersessionism.^[38]: 29 However, Chrysostom did not advocate for killing heretics, even though he did advocate censoring them; he writes, "He doth not therefore forbid our checking heretics, and stopping their mouths, and taking away their freedom of speech, and breaking up their assemblies and confederacies, but our killing and slaying them".^[39]

By 305, after the Diocletian persecution of the third century, many of those who had recanted during the persecution, wanted to return to the church. The North African Donatists refused to accept them back as clergy and remained resentful toward the Roman government. Catholics wanted to wipe the slate clean and accommodate the new government. The Donatists withdrew and began setting up their own churches. For decades, Donatists fomented protests and street violence, refused compromise, attacked random Catholics without warning, doing serious and unprovoked bodily harm such as beating people with clubs, cutting off their hands and feet, and gouging out eyes.^{[40]: 172, 173, 222} By the time Augustine became coadjutor Bishop of Hippo in 395, the Donatists had been a multi-level problem for many years. Augustine held that belief cannot be compelled, so he appealed to them verbally, using popular propaganda, debate, personal appeal, General Councils, and political pressure.^{[40]: 242, 254} All attempts failed.

The empire responded to civil unrest with force, and in 408 in his Letter 93, Augustine began defending persecution of the Donatists by the imperial authorities saying that, "if the kings of this world could legislate against pagans and poisoners, they could do so against heretics as well."^[40]: 241 He continued saying that belief cannot be compelled, however, he also included the idea that, while "coercion cannot transmit the truth to the heretic, it can prepare them to hear and receive the truth."^{[41]: 107–116 [42]: 27} Augustine did not advocate religious violence, as such,^{[43]: 103–121} but he supported the power of the state to use coercion against those he saw as behaving as enemies.^{[40]: 241–243} His authority on this question was undisputed for over a millennium in Western Christianity, and according to Brown "it provided the theological foundation for the justification of medieval persecution."^{[41]: 107–116}

Augustine had advocated fines, imprisonment, banishment, and moderate floggings; when the state's persecution of individual Donatists became extreme, he attempted to mitigate the punishments,^[44]: 164 and he always opposed the execution of heretics.^[45]: 768 According to Henry Chadwick, Augustine "would have been horrified by the burning of heretics."^{[8]: 23 [43]: 103–121}

In 385, Priscillian, a bishop in Spain, was the first Christian to be executed for heresy, though this sentence was roundly condemned by prominent church leaders like Ambrose.^{[46]: 180 [8]: 23} Priscillian was also accused of gross sexual immorality and acceptance of magic, but politics may have been involved in his sentencing.^{[47]: 3–36 [46]: 180}

Anti-paganism in late antique Roman empire

Polytheism began declining by the second century, long before there were Christian emperors, but after Constantine made Christianity officially accepted, it declined even more rapidly, and there are two views on why. According to the Oxford Handbook of Late Antiquity, scholars of Antiquity fall into two categories, holding either the "catastrophic" view, or the "long and slow" view of polytheism's decline and end.^[48]: xx The traditional "catastrophic" view has been the established view for 200 years; it says polytheism declined rapidly in the fourth century, with a violent death in the fifth, as a result of determined anti-pagan opposition from Christians, particularly Christian emperors.^{[31]: 633, 640} Contemporary scholarship espouses the "long slow" view, which says anti-paganism was not a primary concern of Christians in antiquity because Christians believed the conversion of Constantine showed Christianity had already triumphed.^{[31]: 634, 640, 651} Michele R. Salzman indicates that, as a result of this "triumphalism", heresy was a higher priority for Christians in the fourth and fifth centuries than was paganism. This produced less real conflict between Christians and pagans than was previously thought.^[49]: 861 Archaeologists Luke Lavan and Michael Mulryan indicate that contemporary archaeological evidence of religious conflict exists, as the catastrophists assert, but not to the degree or intensity previously thought.^{[50]: 41 [51]: xix–xxi}

Laws such as the Theodosian decrees attest to Christian thought of the period, giving a "dramatic view of radical Christian ambition".^[51]: xxii Peter Brown says the language is uniformly vehement and the penalties are harsh and frequently horrifying.^[31]: 638 Salzman says the law was intended as a means of conversion through the "carrot and the stick", but that it is necessary to look beyond the law to see what people actually did.^{[49]: 363, 375} Authorities, who were still mostly pagan, were lax in imposing them, and Christian bishops frequently obstructed their application.^{[31]: 639 [31]: 640} Anti-paganism existed, but according to Rita Lizzi Testa, Michele Salzman, and Marianne Sághy who quote Alan Cameron: the idea of religious conflict as the cause of a swift demise of paganism is pure historiographical construction.^[52]: 1 Lavan says Christian writers gave the narrative of victory high visibility, but that it does not necessarily correlate to actual conversion rates. There are many signs that a healthy paganism continued into the fifth century, and in some places, into the sixth and beyond.^{[53]: 108–110 [54]: 4, 112 [51]: 8 [55]: 165–167 [50]: 156}

According to Brown, Christians objected to anything that called the triumphal narrative into question, and that included the mistreatment of non-Christians. Temple destructions and conversions are attested, but in small numbers. Archaeology indicates that in most regions away from the imperial court, the end of paganism was both gradual and untraumatic.^{[50]: 156, 221 [52]: 5, 41} The Oxford Handbook of Late Antiquity says that "Torture and murder were not the inevitable result of the rise of Christianity."^[48]: 861 Instead, there was fluidity in the boundaries between the communities and "coexistence with a competitive spirit."^[52]: 7 Brown says that "In most areas, polytheists were not molested, and, apart from a few ugly incidents of local violence, Jewish communities also enjoyed a century of stable, even privileged, existence."^[31]: 643 Having, in 423, been declared by the emperor Theodosius II not to exist, large bodies of polytheists all over the Roman empire were not murdered or converted under duress so much as they were simply left out of the histories the Christians wrote of themselves as victorious.^{[31]: 641 [51]: liv–lv}

Early Medieval West (c. 500 – c. 800)

Historical background

After the Fall of the Western Roman Empire, life in the West returned to an agrarian subsistence style of living, becoming somewhat settled sometime in the 500s.^[56]: 198 Christian writers of the period were more concerned with preserving the past than in composing original works.^[56]: 202 The Germanic tribes which had overthrown Rome became the new rulers, dividing the empire between them. Gregory the Great became Pope in 590AD, and he sent out multiple missionaries who peacefully converted Britain, Ireland, Scotland and more. Learning was kept alive in the monasteries they built which became the sole source of education for the next few centuries.^{[29]: 119–121} Patrick Wormald indicates the Irish and English missionaries sent out to those territories that would become the Holy Roman empire and then Germany, thought of the pagans on the continental mainland with "interest, sympathy and occasionally even admiration."^{[57]: vii, 49}

In most of history, victors of war imposed their religion on the newly subjugated people, however, the Germanic tribes gradually adopted Christianity, the religion of defeated Rome, instead.^[58]: 183 This brought, in its wake, a broad process of cultural change that lasted for the next 500 years.^[59]: 2 What had been formed by the unity of the classical world and Christianity, was now transplanted into Germanic tribal culture, thereby forming a new synthesis that became western European Christendom.^{[56]: 198–202 [60]: 18} The church had immense influence during this time due to the endless commitment and work of the clergy and the "powerful effect of the Christian belief system" amongst the people.^[56]: 217

Erigina was not a major theologian, but in 870, he wrote On the Division of Nature which foresaw the modern view of predestination denying that God has foreordained anyone to sin and damnation.^[29]: 124 His mixture of rationalism and Neo-Platonic mysticism would prove influential to later Christian thought, though his books were banned by the Roman Catholic church in 1681.^[29]: 125

Partial inclusivity of the Jews

According to Anna Sapir Abulafia, "Most scholars would agree that, with the marked exception of Visigothic Spain (in the seventh century), Jews in Latin Christendom lived relatively peacefully with their Christian neighbors through most of the Middle Ages."^{[61]: xii [62]: 3} Scattered violence toward Jews occasionally took place during riots led by mobs, local leaders, and lower level clergy without the support of church leaders or Christian thought.^{[63]: 1–17} Jeremy Cohen^[64] says historians generally agree this is because Catholic thought on the Jews before the 1200s was guided by the teachings of Augustine. Augustine's position on the Jews, with its accompanying argument for their "immunity from religious coercion enjoyed by virtually no other community in post-Theodosian antiquity" was preceded by a positive evaluation of the Jewish past, and its relationship to divine justice and human free will.^{[42]: 564–568} Augustine rejected those who argued that the Jews should be killed, or forcibly converted, by saying that Jews should be allowed to live in Christian societies and practice Judaism without interference because they preserved the teachings of the Old Testament and were living witnesses of the truths of the New Testament.^{[65]: 78–80}

Gregory the Great is generally seen as an important Pope in relation to the Jews. He denigrated Judaism but followed Roman Law and Augustinian thought with regard to how the Jews should be treated. He wrote against forced baptism.^{[63]: 7 : 158  : 125} In 828, Gregory IV wrote a letter to the Bishops in Gaul and the Holy Roman empire warning that Jews must not be baptized by force.^[63]: 11 Gregory X repeated the ban.^[66] Even Pope Innocent III, who generally found the behavior of Jews in Christian society to be "intolerable", still agreed that the Jews should not be killed or forcibly converted when he called for the Second Crusade.^[61]: 46

Jews and their communities were always vulnerable. Random ill treatment, and occasionally real persecution, did occur. However, their legal status, while it was inferior, was not insecure as it became later in the High Middle Ages. They could appeal to the authorities,^[63]: 6 and did, even on occasion appealing to the Pope himself. While the difficulties were not negligible, they were also not general enough to fundamentally impact the nature of Jewish life.^{[4]: 149 [67]: 20, 21}

Inclusive Benedict

St. Benedict (480–547) was another major figure who impacted pre-modern ideals of tolerance in Christian thought. Considered the father of western monasticism, he wrote his Rule around three values: community, prayer, and hospitality. This hospitality was extended to anyone without discrimination. "Pilgrims and visitors from every rank of society from crowned heads to poorest peasants, came in search of prayers or alms, protection and hospitality."^{[68]: 6, 7}

Exclusive Spain

Visigothic leaders in Spain subjected the Jews to persecution and efforts to convert them forcibly for a century after 613.^[63]: 13 Norman Roth says Byzantine legal codes were the method used to reinforce anti-Jewish attitudes. The Breviarium of Alaric summarizes the most significant anti-Jewish legislation of the Byzantine codes, and it was written in the sixth century.^{[69]: 7, 8}

Early Middle Ages (c. 800 – c. 1000)

Historical background

Christian thought from its early days had generally frowned upon participation in the military, but that became increasingly difficult to maintain in the Middle Ages. Chivalry, a new ideal of the religious warrior who fought for justice, defended truth, and protected the weak and the innocent formed. Such a knight was ordained only after proving his spiritual and martial worth: robed in white, he would swear an oath before a cleric to uphold these values and defend the faith.^{[29]: 130, 131}

Massacre of Verden

While contemporary definitions of religious persecution typically do not include actions taken during war, the Massacre of Verden represents an event that is still often seen as persecution by Christians. The massacre took place in 782, in what had been Roman Gaul, and would one day be modern France.^[70]

Charlemagne had become King of the Franks in 771, and ruled most of western Europe of the time. He advocated Christian principles, including education, openly supported Christian missions, and had at least one Christian advisor.^[71] But he also spent his entire life fighting to defend his empire and his faith.^[72] The Franks had been fighting the Saxons since the time of Charlemagne's grandfather. Charlemagne himself began to fight the Saxons in earnest in 772, defeating them and taking hostages in a battle on the upper Weser.^[73] "Time and again the Saxon chiefs, worn down by war, sued for peace, offered hostages, accepted baptism and agreed to allow missionaries to go about their work without hindrance. But vigilance slackened, Charles was engaged on some other front, rebellions broke out, Frankish garrisons were attacked and massacred, and monasteries were pillaged".^[74] Repeatedly, Saxons rose, pillaged and looted and killed, were defeated, and rose again, until after 779, Charlemagne felt he had pacified the region and gained genuine oaths of loyalty from the Saxon leaders.^[74]: 46 In 782, Charles and the Saxons assembled at Lippe, where he appointed "several Saxon nobles as Counts as a reward for their loyalty".^[73]: 66

Shortly thereafter, in that same year of 782, Widukind the Saxon leader, persuaded a group of Saxons who had submitted to Charlemagne, to break their oaths and rebel. Charlemagne was once again elsewhere, so the Saxons went to battle with the part of the Frankish army that had been left behind and the "Franks were killed almost to a man".^[73]: 66 They killed two of the King's chief lieutenants as well as some of his closest companions and counsellors.^[74]: 46 "In great anger at this breach of the treaty just made",^[75] Charlemagne gathered his forces, returned to Saxony, conquered the Saxon rebels, again, giving them the option to convert or die. The Saxons largely refused, and though no one knows the number for sure, it is said 4,500 unarmed prisoners were murdered in what is called the Massacre of Verden. Massive deportations followed, and death was decreed as the penalty for any Saxon who refused baptism thereafter.^{[76]: 74–75} After this, Charlemagne transported ten thousand families from the most turbulent district into the heart of his own territory, and the Saxons were finally settled.^{[75][72]: 39, 40}

Historian Matthias Becher asserts that the number 4,500 is exaggerated, and that these events demonstrate the brutality of war of the period.^[73]: 67 Yet it is clear something untoward occurred, since Alcuin of York, Charlemagne's Christian advisor who was not present in Verden, later wrote the king a rebuke concerning them, saying that: "Faith must be voluntary not coerced. Converts must be drawn to the faith not forced. A person can be compelled to be baptized yet not believe. An adult convert should answer what he truly believes and feels, and if he lies, then he will not have true salvation."^{[76]: 75 [77]: 72}

Crusades

Zdroj:https://en.wikipedia.org?pojem=History_of_Christian_thought_on_persecution_and_tolerance
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