The crusades Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

The crusades - Essay Example eds much light on many mystic forms and ceremonies yet extant, notably upon Freemasonry, the Tarot, and the later Kabalah, and is a great aid to the comprehension of the Astro-Theosophic schemes of the Rosicrucians.† (Carnahan) Another important text is the Talmud, composed of the Mishnah and the Gemara, both written in the early Middle Ages. The Talmud contains Jewish oral law and customs, although it has not been taken as religious authority by all Jews. The manuscript Toledoth Yeshu provides a Middle Ages Jewish version of the Christian gospels, in which Jesus is seen as a false prophet who used the Ineffable Name to perform miracles (Humm). The Medieval Christians used typological allegory to connect the Old Testament to the New Testament Bible. For instance, the Old Testament was seen as prophesizing Christ’s life. In the Old Testament, Jonah was freed from the whale after three days; likewise, Jesus rose from the tomb after three days. Many other Old Testament events are linked in this way to Jesus. Illuminated manuscripts from the Middle Ages were mostly of a religious nature. In the case of the Christians, illuminated manuscripts were usually either the Bible or a book of prayers. Jewish illuminated manuscripts include the Padua Ashkenazi Mahor (NYPL), which is a medieval Jewish festival prayer book that reflects the customs of the Jewish community in Germany. A traditional Jewish allegory in the Padua manuscript refers to Israel as a rose. An image of a Gothic gateway is used for the Gates of Mercy. During the early Middle Ages, there was much legislation concerning Jewish ownership of Christian slaves, sometimes prohibiting the situation (Glick 33). Jewish ownership of slaves was atleast partly related to the fact that many Jewish merchants specialized in long-distance trade, including transport of slaves (Glick 45). The Christian clergy tried to prevent the loss of Christian slaves into Muslim territory as well as the conversion of Christian