Jewish and Christian Ethics

Jewish and Christian Ethics with a Criticism on Mahomedism

By

E. Benamozegh

Translated from the French

San Francisco: Published by Emanuel Blochman. 5633—1873.


 * Translator's Preface

PART FIRST

 * Chapter I GENERAL REMARKS

Examination of the Pretensions of Christian Ethics over Philosophy and Paganism.—Its Alleged Superiority to Judaism, and the Absurdity of this Assumption.—Immutability of Divine Declarations; Man capable of Perfection only when the Word of God is Perfect.—A Revelation Repeated is Suspicious and Useless; It Militates against Christianity.—Dissimilarity of Judaism; Its Civil and Moral Polity.—The Requisites of every Government; Christianity Incapable of Fulfilling them.—Patriotism a Jewish Sentiment.—Two ways of Interpreting Fraternity and Universal Equality in Christianity.—Defects and Weakness of Christian Ethics.—The limits of Comparison between both Systems.


 * Chapter II THE DOCTRINES UPON WHICH THE CHRISTIAN CODE OF MORALS IS FOUNDED

Abolition of the Law.—How it is understood by Jesus.—Faith without Works.—Rupture between Catholicism and Protestantism.—With Paul, Faith, without Works, Saves.—Contempt for the Body; Mysticism.—It ends in Immorality and Materialism; Proofs from Reason and History.—Gnosticism and its Excesses; Its Seed in the Gospel.—The Spiritualism of Paul, what.—The Liberty of Spiritual Death.—The Faithful, dead in Jesus Christ; Origin of this Fiction.—They rise with Him; Another Fiction, its Origin and Effects upon Morality.—The Redemption.—"The Law, the cause of Sin."—The Redemption of the Jew, the Christian.


 * Chapter III HISTORICAL RESULTS

Scandals in the Church.—Embarrassment of the Apostles.—The Nicolites. The Prophecy of Thyadira.—The Simonians.—Other Gnostic Sects.—Sects of the Middle Ages.—Principles of Gnostic Immorality; Inferential Theory.—Judaism Knows Nothing Similar.—Solitary Exception Confirmatory of our System.—Protestantism and its Ethical Systems.—Quietism.


 * Chapter IV CHRISTIAN ETHICS

Its Trials and its Pretentions.—Why Hebrew Ethics has not been duly appreciated.—Division of Ethics.—Dignity of Man, his Fall, his Regeneration.—Free Judgment and Grace.—Life.—General Maxims.—Pharisaical Plan.—Examples.—Testimony of the Gospels.


 * Chapter V HUMILITY

Abraham and Moses.—The Bible.—The "Poor in Spirit."—The Kingdom and the Earth that are to be their Heritage.—Cabalistic Sense necessary for the Comprehension of the Law.—Greatness of the Humble.—Authority.—Example of Jesus.—Submission to Injury.—Other Beatitudes.—The Persecuted.—Pride.—Anger.—Serpent and Dove.—The Child.—Self-Denial.—Voluntary Poverty.


 * Chapter VI CHARITY

Accusations of Jesus.—They Strike at the Bible as well as well at at the Pharisees.—Civil Law and Moral Law; Necessity of Distinguishing.—Cupidity and Anger Condemned by the Pharisees.—Their Expansion of the Decalogue.—Supposed Superiority of Gospel Charity.—God is Charity.—Hebrew Charity; Distinct from Alms which it Excludes.—The Three Enemies.—Who the Enemy According to the Gospel.—Country and Society in Christianity.—Parable of the Samaritan.


 * Chapter VII UNIVERSAL CHARITY

Qualities of the Universal Charity of Judaism.—Not to be found in Christian Charity.—Unity of Man's Origin.—The Worth and Results of the Doctrine in the Teachings of the Pharisees.—Man made after God's Image; Value of the Doctrine.—Unity of Destiny.—Moses and Sophonias.—History of the Primitive Ages.—Humanitarian Character of the Prophecies; Can be traced in the Laws.—Justice and Charity equal for all.—Universal Charity of the Pharisees.—Circumstances that Enhance its Value.—Salvation to all Men.—Idea of Man.—Humanitarian Ideas of the Pharisees.—Gentile Greatness equal to that of the High Priest.—Universal Love, Respect for Life, Property, and Reputation.—Restrictions.—Political Enemy.—Christ has Created the Religious Enemy.


 * Chapter VIII PERSONAL ENEMIES

Mosaic Precepts and Pharisaical Interpretations.—Forgiveness of Injuries.—Moses, the Prophets, and the Pharisees.—Reward of Pardon.—The Pardon of God.—Duties of the Injurer; Those of the Injured.—Examples of the Pharisees.—What enhances their Morality.


 * Chapter IX LOVE TO SINNERS

Meaning of the Pharisees' Reproach to Jesus.—Passage from Ezekiel.—Pharisees Interpretation.—Brotherly Reproof; Its Different Forms.—Aaron the Model of a Priest.—Abraham the Model of Apostles.—Doctors strive to convert Sinners.—Testimony of the Gospels.—Privileges of the Converted.—The Gentiles.—Measure for Measure.—Universality of Judaism.


 * Chapter X TRUST IN GOD

Trust Preached by Jesus.—Its Extravagance.—Two Pharisaical Schools.—The Jewish Prototypes of the Gospel Trust.—The Dogmatic Fiction, Making Man free from Toil.—Toil in Judaism and in Christianity.—Pharisaical Examples.—The Object of Life; The Glory of God.—Our Method of Comparing the Two Systems of Morality.—Judgment of Mr. Salvador.—Its Inaccuracy.—His Mode of Characterizing the Systems.—Man and Woman.—The House and the Cloister.

PART SECOND
ISLAMISM.


 * Chapter I MOHAMMEDISM Its Doctrines
 * Chapter II Worship and Ethics