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Last update - 13:41 12/02/2007
Bar-Ilan prof. defiant on blood libel book 'even if crucified'
By Ofri Ilani, Haaretz Correspondent

The author of a book on the use of blood by Jews in Ashkenazi communities in the Middle Ages said Sunday, in the face of the furor its publication aroused, "I will not give up my devotion to the truth and academic freedom even if the world crucifies me."

In an interview with Haaretz from Rome, Professor Ariel Toaff said he stood behind the contention of his book, "Pasque di Sangue," just published in Italy, that there is a factual basis for some of the medieval blood libels against the Jews. However, he said he was sorry his arguments had been twisted.

"I tried to show that the Jewish world at that time was also violent, among other things because it had been hurt by Christian violence," the Bar-Ilan history professor said. Of course I do not claim that Judaism condones murder. But within Ashkenazi Judaism there were extremist groups that could have committed such an act and justified it," he said.
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Toaff said he reached his conclusions after coming across testimony from the trial for the murder of a Christian child, Simon of Trento, in 1475, which in the past was believed to have been falsified. "I found there were statements and parts of the testimony that were not part of the Christian culture of the judges, and they could not have been invented or added by them. They were components appearing in prayers known from the [Jewish] prayer book.

"Over many dozens of pages I proved the centrality of blood on Passover," Toaff said. "Based on many sermons, I concluded that blood was used, especially by Ashkenazi Jews, and that there was a belief in the special curative powers of children's blood. It turns out that among the remedies of Ashkenazi Jews were powders made of blood."

Although the use of blood is prohibited by Jewish law, Toaff says he found proof of rabbinic permission to use blood, even human blood. "The rabbis permitted it both because the blood was already dried," and because in Ashkenazi communities it was an accepted custom that took on the force of law, Toaff said. There is no proof of acts of murder, Toaff said, but there were curses and hatred of Christians, and prayers inciting to cruel vengeance against Christians. "There was always the possibility that some crazy person would do something."

Toaff said the use of blood was common in medieval medicine. "In Germany, it became a real craze. Peddlers of medicines would sell human blood, the way you have a transfusion today. The Jews were influenced by this and did the same things.

"In one of the testimonies in the Trento trial, a peddler of sugar and blood is mentioned, who came to Venice," Toaff says. "I went to the archives in Venice and found that there had been a man peddling sugar and blood, which were basic products in pharmacies of the period. A man named Asher of Trento was also mentioned in the trial, who had ostensibly come with a bag and sold dried blood. One of the witnesses said he was tried for alchemy in Venice and arrested there. I took a team to the archives and found documentation of the man's trial. Thus, I found that it is not easy to discount all the testimony," he added.

Toaff, who will be returning to Israel today, said he was very hurt by accusations that his research plays into the hands of anti-Semitic incitement. "I am being presented like the new Yigal Amir. But one shouldn't be afraid to tell the truth." Toaff also said, "unfortunately my research has become marginal, and only the real or false implications it might have are being related to. I directed the research at intelligent people, who know that in the Jewish world there are different streams. I believe that academia cannot avoid dealing with issues that have an emotional impact. This is the truth, and if I don't publish it, someone else will find it and publish it."

Still, Toaff says he is sorry he did not explain some of the points in his book more clearly.

He claims that he has been making the same arguments for a long time. "After 35 years of research, I have not become a stupid anti-Semite, and have not published a book to make money."

In any case, Toaff says he believes his findings have current implications. "Extremists in the past brought disaster on us by false accusations. I wanted to show that hatred and incitement of this kind can develop, because there will always be someone who will take advantage of it."

Meanwhile, Bar-Ilan University announced Sunday that its president, Professor Moshe Kaveh, will summon Toaff to explain his research. The university's statement said it strongly objected to what was implied in media publications regarding Toaff's research, and condemned "any attempt to justify the terrible blood libels against the Jews." However, the university also reiterated that Toaff was among the senior lecturers in his field in Israel and internationally.
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  1.   The book will sell well in the Arab world 04:52  |  Dave 12/02/07
  2.   I bet this Nincompoop Actually Enjoys Reading Haaretz 05:00  |  Tod Zuckerman 12/02/07
  3.   research based on could of, might have, more correct probably 05:03  |  ralph 12/02/07
  4.   what is really saying is: i will not give up my devotion to my 05:04  |  ralph 12/02/07
  5.   "could have" happened ? Please.... 05:07  |  Bernard Warner 12/02/07
  6.   "could have" happened ? Please... 05:16  |  Bernard Warner 12/02/07
  7.   Foolish Professors 05:27  |  Henry 12/02/07
  8.   Nutty Professor 05:31  |  Rabbi Yakov Lazaros 12/02/07
  9.   A pervert professor 05:48  |  Alex K 12/02/07
  10.   Toaff is Treff 05:51  |  Peter in Beirut 12/02/07
  11.   He is A sick Sanctimonious Monster 06:02  |  Martin Luther 12/02/07
  12.   The New Hero of the Jew-Haters 06:03  |  Yaakov Cohn 12/02/07
  13.   Return Him to Where He Belongs 06:27  |  Martin Luther 12/02/07
  14.   So prove him wrong 06:47  |  keith 12/02/07
  15.   If This Imbecile Faced the Holy Inquisition... 07:11  |  massaraksh 12/02/07
  16.   Weird prof, weird subject, weird intention... 07:30  |  Esther 12/02/07
  17.   A fakakteh potz 07:39  |  Jason 12/02/07
  18.   Wow, customs none of us have ever heard of 07:42  |  Serious Doubter 12/02/07
  19.   Another New Historian 07:58  |  Yoram 12/02/07
  20.   Book misunderstood? 08:02  |  Zev 12/02/07
  21.   Does the really matter? 08:18  |  Dennis Gordon 12/02/07
  22.   Jews or Piranhas? 08:25  |  Walid 12/02/07
  23.   Be open minded and intelligent about this matter. 08:36  |  Robert Blum 12/02/07
  24.   close this talkback down 08:47  |  Martin 12/02/07
  25.   A mad man. 08:49  |  Vital 12/02/07
  26.   Profoundly insane? 08:57  |  Joe 12/02/07
  27.   Academic naivete 09:04  |  Sherlock Holmes 12/02/07
  28.   Pablo Christiani 09:24  |  Shmuel Saitowitz 12/02/07
  29.   A devoted psychotic 09:28  |  Albert Edelson 12/02/07
  30.   kaveh- remove that nut!! 09:35  |  shlomo 12/02/07
  31.   Read the book before judging 09:43  |  Physicist 12/02/07
  32.   14.Keith,.Correct..Stop name calling.Prove hm wrong.Stop Whining! 09:47  |  Moses 12/02/07
  33.   Bar-Ilan University 09:50  |  Issac 12/02/07
  34.   `Even if crucified`? 09:53  |  Margie in Tel Aviv 12/02/07
  35.   Drawing Blood 09:58  |  bo 12/02/07
  36.   Reply to #31 Can you read Italian? 10:00  |  Joe 12/02/07
  37.   Blood libel against Christians first 10:03  |  Joan Stuchner 12/02/07
  38.   Reply to #14. Every other scholar has rejected his view 10:03  |  Joe 12/02/07
  39.   Transsubstantiation 10:08  |  Ben Azai 12/02/07
  40.   The Middle Ages were a gruesome time..... 10:10  |  Swiss (Dino) 12/02/07
  41.   I`m REALLY curious. 10:13  |  John Mackie 12/02/07
  42.   Bar Ilan 10:13  |  Baruch 12/02/07
  43.   Veritas Vos Liberabit / The Truth will make you free 10:15  |  Johns Hopkins 12/02/07
  44.   Ahnenerbe 10:20  |  Ben Azai 12/02/07
  45.   NO fuss 10:30  |  Honi 12/02/07
  46.   blood 10:33  |  isiaiah 12/02/07
  47.   Treife blood 10:45  |  Esther 12/02/07
  48.   What a week argument! 10:45  |  El_Justiciero 12/02/07
  49.   #41 John Mackie 10:47  |  El_Justiciero 12/02/07
  50.   #41 NEXT TIME SOMEONE KNOCKS OUT YOUR TEETH YOU CAN TELL 10:49  |  paul harris 12/02/07
  51.   The Middle-Age -the time of the superstition 10:59  |  Lena 12/02/07
  52.   Correction-What a WEAK argument 11:01  |  El_Justiciero 12/02/07
  53.   To 31- Physicist -We need to read "Mein Kampf"? 11:03  |  Vital 12/02/07
  54.   OVER-REACTING 11:08  |  True Say 12/02/07
  55.   # 47 Esther 11:11  |  Swiss (Dino) 12/02/07
  56.   A wrongheaded and even evil action 11:13  |  Shalom Freedman 12/02/07
  57.   Blood libel book ... 11:22  |  Shoshana 12/02/07
  58.   #3 Ralph - That sounds familiar 11:41  |  Skandar 12/02/07
  59.   Prof. Tauff 11:44  |  Raviv Byron 12/02/07
  60.   Thank you Walid 11:48  |  Shai 12/02/07
  61.   OK,let`s "pogrom" the Romanians,then,too 11:51  |  Hastaroth 12/02/07
  62.   Blood Libel Myth 11:57  |  fk 12/02/07
  63.   #48 - One criminal act should not condemn an entire nation 11:57  |  Eric 12/02/07
  64.   TOAFF HAS BEEN DISPROVEN 40,000 TIMES 12:06  |  Ben 12/02/07
  65.   Keith 12:09  |  rich 12/02/07
  66.   Inflammatory? You bet 12:28  |  Raviv Byron 12/02/07
  67.   anyone can have an opinion 13:05  |  jake 12/02/07
  68.   massaraksh 13:07  |  Daniel 12/02/07
  69.   It is wrong to blame Jews of today for what happened 13:21  |  Khalid 12/02/07
  70.   -I directed the research at intelligent people,- 13:22  |  Nathan 12/02/07
  71.   Dave #1, the Professor is not lying 13:23  |  Richard 12/02/07