2 Being cursed: Medieval model texts

Abstract

Even though the Reformation had been brought about quickly, comprehensively, and with strong political and government support, Catholic traditions, rituals, and faith lived on for a very long time in Sweden. Scholars have only recently started to question the traditional view in which the Nordic Reformations heralded a sudden and complete change of religious system.80 Analyses of prayer books, visitation protocols, and church inventories have, however, shown that Catholic rites, adoration of relics, and side altars, as well as saints, were in use well into the eighteenth century. Many people in Sweden may have practised a form of denominational syncretism for centuries, sometimes with the blessing of the Lutheran State Church – “sometimes” because in other cases the State Church rigorously enforced religious homogeneity.81 Just as Catholic rituals and symbols remained not only intelligible, but were used on a daily basis, medieval Catholic anti-Judaism also remained intelligible and continued to be considered valid after the Reformation – this is probably one of the reasons why the reformers did not have to focus on this topic specifically. Even though transubstantiation was no longer an issue that could be invoked in accusations of host desecration, most other medieval religious tropes remained: the accusation of deicide, of torturing and mocking Christ, the alleged connection between Jews and bloodthirst, as well as greed and generally bad character traits. That Jews killed Jesus Christ has been one of the most deadly allegations made by the Christian side – one that has been repeated in many different narratives and versions. Originally deriving from early Christian (mis)readings of the Gospels, the concept of deicidal Jews flourished during the Middle Ages, resulting in a widespread, general idea that Jews like to kill people. Ritual murder accusations were only one extreme and specific outcome of this belief, closely con-