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To: annalex
I read the fathers of the Church daily, and I do come across some strong language, but it is always confined to the historical conflict between Jesus and the Pharisees and the persecution of the Church immediately after that.

Perhaps your reading hasn't extended to St. John Chrysostom. Here are texts of his 8 sermons against the Jews in which he said things like:

But do not be surprised that I called the Jews pitiable. They really are pitiable and miserable. When so many blessings from heaven came into their hands, they thrust them aside and were at great pains to reject them. The morning Sun of Justice arose for them, but they thrust aside its rays and still sit in darkness. We, who were nurtured by darkness, drew the light to ourselves and were freed from the gloom of their error. They were the branches of that holy root, but those branches were broken. We had no share in the root, but we did reap the fruit of godliness. From their childhood they read the prophets, but they crucified him whom the prophets had foretold. We did not hear the divine prophecies but we did worship him of whom they prophesied. And so they are pitiful because they rejected the blessings which were sent to them, while others seized hold of these blessing and drew them to themselves. Although those Jews had been called to the adoption of sons, they fell to kinship with dogs; we who were dogs received the strength, through God's grace, to put aside the irrational nature which was ours and to rise to the honor of sons. How do I prove this? Christ said: "It is no fair to take the children's bread and to cast it to the dogs". Christ was speaking to the Canaanite woman when He called the Jews children and the Gentiles dogs.

(2) But see how thereafter the order was changed about: they became dogs, and we became the children. Paul said of the Jews: "Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the mutilation. For we are the circumcision". Do you see how those who at first were children became dogs? Do you wish to find out how we, who at first were dogs, became children? "But to as many as received him, he gave the power of becoming sons of God".

http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/chrysostom-jews6.html
142 posted on 01/30/2009 4:34:49 PM PST by Maximilian
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To: Maximilian
It is very bitter indeed, but the anger is still at the Jews of the Gospel: "the Jews fail to know the Father ... they crucified the Son ... they thrust off the help of the Spirit ... God is not worshipped there" (HOMILY I)

I haven't read those, I admit, but I read similar strong language from some gospel commentary and from the same era. The anger is toward the Pharisees entrapping Jesus, rejecting Him and engineering His execution.

Is there any sociopolitical advice in these? No dispute, the early Christians were not terribly forgiving to their earstwhile oppressors.

144 posted on 01/30/2009 5:01:41 PM PST by annalex (http://www.catecheticsonline.com/CatenaAurea.php)
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To: Maximilian
Perhaps your reading hasn't extended to St. John Chrysostom. Here are texts of his 8 sermons against the Jews in which he said things like:

Are you taking this to be anti-semitic? After reading this it doesn't sound at all anti-semitic to me. The Jews definitely don't accept Christ, and to any Christian that is basically atheism. They had all the blessings and then rejected them in the end. Shouldn't that lead to pity? If we didn't think it pitiable then I hardly would think we deserve to be called Christian.

145 posted on 01/30/2009 5:13:37 PM PST by cothrige (Ego vero Evangelio non crederem, ni si me catholicae Ecclesiae commoveret auctoritas.)
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