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Rational Human · 12-26-2003, 06:49 PM

In 1858 the papal authorities ordered the kidnapping of 6 year old Italian Jew Eduardo Mortara. His crime? Being secretly baptized by his parents uneducated christian servant. According to papal rule of the time, christians could not live with jews and so Eduardo was taken by the Bologna authorities and placed in the churchs care.

This boy was indoctrinated and brainwashed by the church and was eventually turned into a priest. Eduardo later confronted his own mother and father in order to get them to convert.

This book is very well written, not only because the author has conducted such fantastically deep research and found accounts of the incident by known jews who wholly disagreed with it, but because she truly paints a very clear image of not only why the christains hate the jews but the laws they enacted against them.

This event was the final key in the utter destruction of christain rulership in Europe. The church lost most of it's power during the Napoleonic Era and after his death the church was only able to hold onto much of Italy thanks to the Austrian troops that were placed there. This event is also of significant interest in that it was the first time that world interest focused on a single event. This story was followed in papers across the globe and caused the outrage of hundreds of thousands.

A fantastic book to read, because while not only teaching us of the past, it also gives us an idea of what we could expect, should the christians ever again regain political power.

Opera Nut · 12-26-2003, 07:51 PM

Hello there, RH.

I just returned today from a multicultural holiday in NYC. I was staying in El Barrio (Spanish Harlem).

I went to the Jewish Museum which is just a few blocks up the street from the Guggenheim on the Upper East Side, and picked up another book there by the same author: THE POPES AGAINST THE JEWS: The Vatican's Role in the Rise of Modern Anti-Semitism, by David I. Kertzer, author of The Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara.

Scary, but not surprising to me.

The kidnaping book is mentioned in the Introduction, and the fact that the Popes were making Jews wear yellow stars, live in ghettos, etc. for several centuries before the rise of National Socialism and Hitler. In fact, there is still existing the Holy Office of the Inquisition, but they have changed their name.

Your timing could not have been better, as I discovered this book this last Tuesday at the gift shop in the Jewish Museum.

Thanks for posting.

Toto · 12-26-2003, 11:32 PM

The Kidnapping of Eduardo Mortara

Quote:

Out of seemingly small events are sometimes born great historical moments. The case of young Edgardo Mortara is one. In 1858 the 6-year-old Jewish boy was taken from his parents' home in Bologna, Italy, by agents of the Papal inquisition. The year before, seriously ill, Edgardo had been secretly baptized, by the Mortaras' Catholic servant (or so she claimed); it was against the law for baptized Christians to be raised by Jews, and so, in the eyes of the Church, the kidnapping was only just. Secular Italians did not agree, and thus was set in motion a series of reforms that ended the Church's temporal power in Italy and forged the creation of a liberal, near-democratic state. . . .

The Popes Against the Jews: The Vatican's Role in the Rise of Modern Anti-Semitism

12-26-2003, 06:49 PM	#1
Rational Human Junior Member Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Queens, NY Posts: 8	The Kidnapping of Eduardo Mortara In 1858 the papal authorities ordered the kidnapping of 6 year old Italian Jew Eduardo Mortara. His crime? Being secretly baptized by his parents uneducated christian servant. According to papal rule of the time, christians could not live with jews and so Eduardo was taken by the Bologna authorities and placed in the churchs care. This boy was indoctrinated and brainwashed by the church and was eventually turned into a priest. Eduardo later confronted his own mother and father in order to get them to convert. This book is very well written, not only because the author has conducted such fantastically deep research and found accounts of the incident by known jews who wholly disagreed with it, but because she truly paints a very clear image of not only why the christains hate the jews but the laws they enacted against them. This event was the final key in the utter destruction of christain rulership in Europe. The church lost most of it's power during the Napoleonic Era and after his death the church was only able to hold onto much of Italy thanks to the Austrian troops that were placed there. This event is also of significant interest in that it was the first time that world interest focused on a single event. This story was followed in papers across the globe and caused the outrage of hundreds of thousands. A fantastic book to read, because while not only teaching us of the past, it also gives us an idea of what we could expect, should the christians ever again regain political power.

12-26-2003, 07:51 PM	#2
Opera Nut Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Houston TX Posts: 1,671	Hi there! Very timely. Hello there, RH. I just returned today from a multicultural holiday in NYC. I was staying in El Barrio (Spanish Harlem). I went to the Jewish Museum which is just a few blocks up the street from the Guggenheim on the Upper East Side, and picked up another book there by the same author: THE POPES AGAINST THE JEWS: The Vatican's Role in the Rise of Modern Anti-Semitism, by David I. Kertzer, author of The Kidnapping of Edgardo Mortara. Scary, but not surprising to me. The kidnaping book is mentioned in the Introduction, and the fact that the Popes were making Jews wear yellow stars, live in ghettos, etc. for several centuries before the rise of National Socialism and Hitler. In fact, there is still existing the Holy Office of the Inquisition, but they have changed their name. Your timing could not have been better, as I discovered this book this last Tuesday at the gift shop in the Jewish Museum. Thanks for posting.

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