Anacletus II-the Jewish 'Anti-Pope'
By DAVID B. LEE
(Dedicated to my Grandson,
Bryan)
(A Seven Arts Feature)
You are only three years old
now, Bryan. But you will grow
and, I hope, read this true story
about a Jew and his father. And
you will know what the Mahzor
is, and what we read therein, espe-
cially on the second day of Rosh
Hashana. You will find a poem—
such poems are called piyutim —
written in the 12th century by a
man named Shimon Hagadol—the
great Shimon—of Mainz, a city in
Germany. You will recognize this
piyut because it starts with the
word "Elhanan."
Mainz had a large Jewish com-
munity living in a ghetto that, for
many years, was subjected to hor-
rible persecutions, Jews often being
slaughtered there simply because
they were Jews.
The Catholic archbishop of Mainz
was one of the worst anti-Semites
in existence. The kidnapping of
Jewish boys and their sale to the
local priests who would then have
these boys brought up as Chris-
tians, was a frequent occurrence
in Mainz.
Born to Shimon — later to be
called "Hagadol"—was a child he
named Elhanan. A Christian ser-
vant stole the child. Appeals to
the archbishop for recovery of
the baby were rejected contemptu-
ously. Elhanan had been, obvi-
ously, sold into priestly eapivity.
* s •
We skip now to the year 1130.
Pope Innocent H had just died.
The College of Cardinals was con-
vened in Rome for the election of
a new pope. There were several
candidates. One, whose name had
been put forward by the arch-
bishop of Mainz, was accused by
some prelates of being a Jew. The
"prince" from Mainz fought hard
for his nominee. The candidate
had an immaculate record as one
of the brightest young priests in
Rome. He had shown himself to
be a profound scholar and as pious
a priest as any ever seen. The
man was elected. He took on the
name of Pope Anacletus IL
After reigning for nearly eight
years, Anacletus II summoned
the , archbishop of Mainz to the
Vatican. In an open session, Ana-
cletus II announced he would
grant to the archbishop of Mainz
any favor sought by the man
from Mainz. The archbishop
asked that he be given the right
to exterminate all the Jews of
Mainz—man, woman and child.
"Granted," said Anacletus II-
But there was a provision. The
ruler of the church at Mainz was
to issue a decree for the slaughter
of all "his" Jews—but in the name
of the pope himself. Such a decree
would entitle the Jews to appeal
directly to the pope in the Vatican.
The archbishop was ordered to
permit such an appeal and to fur-
nish stout guards to insure the
safety of the Mainz Jewish delega-
tion on its way to Rome.
• • •
Very soon, under heavy guard,
there came to the Vatican three
Mainz Jews — the chief rabbi, a
shohet who had been named so
that the travelers could have
kosher food on their journey, and
the president of the community,
Shimon Hagadol. Eloquently, the
chief rabbi requested nullification
of the papal decree. Then Shimon
Hagadol spoke with great passion,
pleading for the lives of his people.
He told the pope of the horrible
harassments to which the Jews of
Mainz had been subjected by the
archbishop. He told of the many
Jewish boys who had been abduct-
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•
ed and sold to local priests. He
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said that he himself had lost a
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Anacletus II questioned Shimon. -,..,
He inquired especially about Shi-
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mon's own missing son. Then, de-
claring himself unconvinced of the
truth of Shimon's testimony, he
ordered that Shimon go with the
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pope into the pontiff's private
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chamber for further interrogation.
A papal secretary came forward
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but was waved away by the pope.
Two swordsmen — executioners —
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started to enter the pope's private
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chamber. They too were ordered
back. The captain of the pope's
private guard frisked Shimon, to
make sure that the Jew carried
no weapons hidden in his garments.
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Then the pope and Shimon entered
the pontiff's private chamber. The
entourage heard the pope locking
and bolting the door inside his
chamber. The two remaining Jews
prayed for the life of Shimon. All
in the pope's throne room were
sure that the pope would kill Shi- ,
s,
' Holiday Greetings .
mon Hagadol himself.
Pl
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• • *
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on his lips, muttering "father,
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father," Anacletus II told Shimon
Hagadol he knew that the horrible
decree would bring Shimon to the
Vatican for a final plea—and rec-
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ognition. Anacletus II had had - his
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own agents organize the facts.
Openly in a few minutes, the
pope resumed his place on the
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throne, with Shimon Hagadol
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joining his two fellow-Jews from
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Mainz in the prisoners' dock.
Anacletus II ruled that the
charges against the archbishop
of Mainz were so serious that he,
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the pope, would investigate the
situation in person. With an en-
larged escort of papal guards,
the pope and his three Jewish
prisoners left that day for Mainz.
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Meanwhile, Anacletus >lI order-
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ed that the archbishop bf Mainz if
be suspended from office\ and re
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main under house arrest in the ,
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Vatican.
Under papal guard, Shimon Hag-
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*
adol with his two fellow-Jews re- 14
entered the ghetto in Mainz. But
they were joined by another man.
Anacletus II declared himself El-
hanan ben Shimon Hagadol. For
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the time being, the Jews of Mainz
were saved.
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• * *
Elhanan ben Shimon Hagadol did
not live long after his return to
the ghetto. It was suspected that
he may have starved himself to
death. For many days and nights,
he had locked himself in a small
room in the main synagogue,
where he spent his time praying
and studying.
After Elhanan's death, Shimon
Hagadol wrote the piyut that opens
with the name of Elhanan. Since
death had come to Elhanan on the
second night of Rosh Hashana, the
rabbis of Mainz decreed that,
thereafter, the poem to the mem-
ory of Elhanan be incorporated
into the mahzor for Rosh Hashana.
In all its historic essentials,
Bryan, this story is true. When
you are old enough to check the
official Catholic Church chronol-
ogy of popes, you will find the
name of Anacletus II listed among
the popes. The years given are
1130-1138. But the official listing
gives the name of Anacletus II in
italic type. Such emphasis means
that, as far as the Catholic Church
is concerned, Anacletus II is con-
sidered an "anti-pope"—an enemy
of the papacy.
Editor's N o t e: Valentine's
Jewish Encyclopedia has this
information about the anti-pope:
"Anacletus II (Pietro Pierleoni):
20800 Greenfield Road
a pope of Jewish descent (1130-
1138), grandson of a baptized
Detroit, Michigan - 48237
Jewish moneylender who mar-
ried an aristocratic R o m a n
lady."
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