Page:Jewish Encyclopedia Volume 1.pdf/412

364 — Alexandria, E^ypt

Till-:

(Ancient.)

Joscphus' remark ("Contra Ap."

Hmimn empemrs

conlimieil

tlic

ii.

5,

cud) tlmt the

Jews of Alexaiulria

the positions iif trust bestowed u])on thein l)y the former kings namely. the control of llie river " refere probably to the fre<iuent employment of the Jews as alabarehs. By "control of the river" must be undcrstooil the collection of taxes from tlic commerce thereon. From these facts it may be concluded that tlio Ptolemies, as well as the l{onian emperors, upon the whole, treated the Jews of Alexandria with considOf the Ptolenncs, according to Joscphus, eration. Ptolemy VII., Pliyscon, formed the only exception in his hostility toward them; and his couipou the enemies of the Jews, and Ptolemy VII. was ]iersuaded liy one of his concubines to undertake no further repressive' measures against them ("Contra Ap. " ii. 5). The same story is told of Ptolemy IV. in the third book of JIaccabces, which, liowever, can not be considered a trustworthy source. Josephus (I.e.), as well as the third book of the JIaccabees (vi. 36), makes note of a thanksgiving festival, annually celebrated in Alexandria in commemoration of this miraculous preservation of the Jews. That the latter eii.joyed perfect religious freedom under the Ptolemies is not gainSome of their synagogues even seem to have said. exercised the right of asylum on an equality with the heathen temples. There is in the Egyptian Museum at Berlin a Greek inscription of the later Koman iieriod ("Corpus Inscriptioiuim Latinarum." t. iii. supi>lem. n. (i.^s;!) found in lower E.iiypt, which says that the queen and the king (su|)|)0.sed by Monunsen to be Zenobia and Val)allathus) commanded the renewal of an old inscrii)lion, the main contents of which were that King Ptolemy Eucrgetes declared the synagogue inviolable that is, granted it the right of an asylum. Both Ptolemy III. and Ptolemy VII., Physcon, bore the cognomen Kuergclcs; but a pronounced friendly attitude toward the .Jews is to be ex])ecte(l from the former rathi'r than the latter. Moreover, it is in consonance with the custom prevalent during the reign of Ptolemy VII., that the queen should be mentioned together with lumself. Ptolemy VI. also permitted the building of theJewThe rights of the Jews ish temple in Leontopolis. were not altered under the Roman emperors. The persecution under Caligula was only a Under the passing episode. TheJews had express permission to discard the iiraetise of Empire, the Cresarcan cult, which was so contrary to their religion. Xeverthcless, repealed and sanguinary conflicts occurred but the Roman emperors. Cali.gula excepted, were not responsible for these unfortunate events, which had their cause largely in the deep-seated anti]iathy toward each other of the pagan and the Jewish popilations. In Roman limes this feeling became more intense, and often culminated in bloody strife. This mutual aversion was due to the religious peculiarities of Jews and Egyptians, and was equally strong on both sides. The Hame of jiopular passion burst forth, sometimes on one side and sometimes on the other. These strained relations between the two races ex-

Egypt from Cleopatra

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364

.IKWISIl KNCYCLOI'KDI.V

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Roman



isted also in other cities, especially where the Jews civil or political rights. In Alexandria, however, the situation was i)arlieularly dangerous, becjiuse tlu'Jews formed a powerful clement in the city.

enjoyed

The fundamental causes of

the persecutions under be traced to this circumslanci' though the emperor himself contributed to it in no small degree, by demanilingof the Jews that divine veneration which agreed with an ancient custom ]irevail ing .since the rule of the Ptolemies, and which the heathen poimlalion tlurefore were (piite willing to accord him. The actual conflict was begun by the heathen rabble of Alexandria: in the refusjd of the Jews to ol)ey the imperial decnc. they saw an excu.se for opening up hostilities against them. The persecution broke out in the autumn of the year 3s. at the time when the Jewish king .grippa was on a visit to Alexandria. The Riot in Alexandria, king was first made the subject of Cali.irula

may



ridicule in a pantomime, in which an imbecile, nanie<l Karabas. was arrayed in imitation royal insignia, and scoflingly hailed as kin.L'. with Once aroused, the the Syrian title Miirux (Lord). popidace was not easily SiitisHed, and ilemaudcd that statues of the emperor be erected in he syna.irogues. Flaccus, the Roman governor, from his knowle(l.geof the emperor's pecviliarities, did not dare to oppose them; he acceded toall the (hniandsof the Jew-baiters, who became more importunate with every concession made by lh<' governor. In ((uick succession, Flaccus ordered th<' placing fif statues in the synagogues: deprived the Jews of civil franchise by an edict; and finally ]i(rmitte<l a.general |ierseculionof Theenraged hcathensnow fell ujion the Jewthem. ish inhabitants of Alexandria: their dwellings and .shops were |ilundered; the Jews themselves were cruelly maltreated and killed, and their dead bodies mutilated. Some were publicly burned. an<l others dragged alive through the si reels. Some of the synagogues were destroyi'd. and .sonw dcseeraleil wilh an image of Caligula. Flaccus not only made no a I tempt to restrain the violence of the mobs, but of his own initiative instituted barbarous re,gulations against the Jews. He caused Ihirly-eight members of the gerusia to be manacled and hurried to the theater, where, before the eyes of their enemies, they were publicly scourged, some of them to death. The subsecpient events, from the autumn of 38 fill the death of Caligula in 41, are not recorded in (lct;iil. Flaccus was suddenly recalled in the year 38, and Ijanished to the island of Andros, where he was put to death by order of the emperor. It is highly improbable, however, that the condition of the Jews underwent any favorable change during the reign of ('ali.gula. The commission that procee<ied lo Rome un<lcr the li ii<lership Philo's of he philo.sopher Pliilo was treated Comwith conlemiit by the emperor, and mission to seems to have met with ulter failure, Rome. due, no doubt, to the simultaneous appearance, before the <'mperor, of anI

I

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other dele.ffation from Alexandria headed by Apion, the well-known opponent of the Jews which counteracted theeiKleavors of the Jewish commi.ssioners. It was only upon the dealh fif Caligula and the accession of C'laudius that the Jews were enabled to regain their former rights; and this was followed by a considerable jjcriod of cjuiet.*

On ascending the

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tlirone Claudius Immediately restored all Jews ("Ant." xix. .5. 8 2). and amone ttinsp liheralatjarch Alexander, who had tieen imprisoiH-d by ralieiila (if). .5, 8 1). The chief authority for the hisi..ry of this persecution are the two works of Philo, "Contra Flacciini " and rlprhts to ttie

ated

was the