From Christian Polemic to a Jewish-Converso Dialogue Jewish Skepticism and Rabbinic-Christian Traditions in the Scrutinium Scripturarum

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Abstract

This article presents a new reading of the polemical strategies and arguments embodied in the “anti-Jewish” tractate by the converted bishop of Burgos, Pablo de Santa Maria (c.1352–1435), the Scrutinium scripturarum (c.1432). It suggests the Scrutinium reflected a unique polemical dynamic that emerged between converts and Jews following the mass conversions of 1391 and the early fifteenth century, regarding the spiritual assimilation of converts to their new faith. Grappling with the new challenges faced by converts, the Scrutinium articulated a Christian approach toward rabbinic traditions and Jewish skepticism that differed dramatically from the scholastic–polemical traditions that were employed at the disputation of Tortosa. Its introduction of rabbinic esotericism provided its Latin-reading audience new historical and theological grounds for the integration of rabbinic authority within Christian scholarship and history. In doing so, it embodied what could be considered a distinct “converso voice,” which challenged the customary religious boundaries between Judaism and Christianity.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationInterreligious Encounters in Polemics between Christians, Jews, and Muslims in Iberia and Beyond
PublisherBrill
Pages160-196
Number of pages37
ISBN (Electronic)9789004401792
ISBN (Print)9789004401761
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Jan 2019
Externally publishedYes

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© koninklijke brill nv, leiden, 2018.

Keywords

  • Christian Hebraism
  • Christian Kabbalah
  • Christian mission
  • Conversion
  • Conversos
  • Esotericism
  • Geronimo de Santa Fe
  • Maimonidean controversy
  • Maimonides
  • Pablo De Santa Maria
  • Philosophy
  • Religious polemics
  • Scrutinium Sripturarum
  • The Tortosa Disputation

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