Hillel Newman: Jerome as an author adversus Iudaeos in dialogue with Jewish sources adversus Christianos

Students of Christian disputation literature adversus Iudaeos have long debated the degree to which such texts reflect genuine engagement of Jews and Christian in dialogue and confrontation. Though Jerome often justified his translation of the Hebrew Bible by stressing its utility in debates against the Jews and was not bashful in his frequent condemnation of their beliefs, his extensive use of Jewish exegetical tradition in his translations and in his commentaries demonstrates in practice a far more complex and nuanced approach to his Jewish sources. Given that much of his knowledge of these teachings was acquired first-hand from Jewish tutors and informants, his explicit remarks concerning debates with Jews and his critiques of Jewish beliefs provide an exceptional perspective on the Jewish-Christian controversy in his day. Comparison with contemporary Jewish sources from Late Antiquity occasionally reveals mirror images of Jerome’s arguments that are suggestive of genuine exchanges and debate.