The Denver Jewish news., 1922-05-10
The Ghetto
Written by Isidore Nedelman.

the sunlight rarely streaming thru;
situated in the worst slums of the
city; shut off by gates. barred and
bolted every night with chnins nnC
locks. none permitted to enter or de-
part from sundown to sunrise. The
solution had at last been found. the
jew was effectively excluded. For four
centuries this lasted.
This squalid quarter the Jews had
to occupy, and the inhumanity of Paul
the Fourth placed the capstone upon
the colmun of indigIity erected in the
course of the Christian centuries block
upon block, each designating some new
disgrace heaped upon the Jews. Tn
inimical attitude towards the devoted
people, and the day of his death was
hailed with joy throughout Jewry of
the papal states. The Jews hoped
that, as each new pope was an in
dependent sovereign and made new
rules for the government of his state,
his successor might revoke Paul's de
crees.
One of the great objects of the pope
was to convert the Jews to Christiai l.
ity, since they firmly believed that by
this they were accomplishing an i'm
portant and holy work. From their
standpoint they looked upon the Jews
as lost. They attributed the refusal
to accept Christianity to Obstinacy and
ed by them. but the strangest of them
all was that introduced by Pope Greg
ory the Thirteenth.
He commanded that in all places
where there was n sufficient number
of Jews. a sermon should be preach
ed to them on the truths of Christ
ianity every Saturday. All Jews above
the age of twelve, unless prevented by
illness or some other adequate eN-
cuse to he given to the bishop, We're
TO attend so that always at least one
third of the Jewish population was to
he present. On Saturday afternoons
the strange sight of men. women and
children being driven to church with
whips could have been witnessed
throughout the Roman Ghetto. AT the
entrance stood Waterman. counting
those that entered. to make sure that
the number was full. In the church
the police made the people pay atten-
ton; if any one appeared inattentive.
Or-under the sopporific influence of
the sermon-fell asleep he was arous-
ed by blows of the whip.
1t was not due to lack of zeal on
the part of the popes and the church
that the Jews did not adopt Christian
ity. The greatest inducements We're
held out to converts They were re-
leased from the Ghetto and granted all
civil rights aad privileges. The un-
remitting efforts at conversion met
with partial success. \ number of
Jews adopted Christianity in order to
improve their lot in life and the ca
reers of some of these and their des-
cendants are so brilliant striking and
surprising that they may well excite
wonder.
But who will wonder at the effects
which exclusion had on the develop.
mrnt of the Jew physically and men.
tally? Pen up mass of people for
centuries in narrow unhealthy streets
and noisesome quarters and what re
suits can he. expected? Owing to tn"
of the Jews environ
mcnt he could not develop physical
ly and thus became stunted- in body.
Owing to his enforced occupations.
small peddling and money transac-
tions. he gradually. in his Relations
to the outer world. became n fearful.
terrified. stricken creature and this
naturally reacted on the mind. Shut
off from all. contact with the world
at large, the Jew. within the walls of
the Ghetto. naturally did not respond
to the culture of the world. Learning
certainly there always was. and learn
ing was held in the highest respect.
but it was the learning of the ancients,
the talumdical and rabbinical dialects.
whose studies sharpened the mind, it
is true. but did not bring them into
contact with the world. They knew
nothing of the outer world and its
doings.
The enforced seclusion of n people
for four long centuries could not but
produce characteristic results. That
the Jew in many places and instances
still shows the effects of the Ghetto
period cannot be doubted. 1t is not
yet half century since they have
gained full political and social emanci-
Il, ,,,nstarr I>,,ronn Tho habits