372 A History of Judaism
in his autobiography, his attempts to undermine (as non- biblical) rab-
binic tradition, and especially the doctrines of immortality and
resurrection, led to his excommunication in 1624 by the Jewish auth-
orities, who were nervous about their status in the city:
I observed that the customs and ordinances of the modern Jews were quite
different from those commanded by Moses. Now if the Law was to be
observed according to the letter, as it expressly declares, the Jewish inter-
preters are not justified in adding to it interpretations quite contrary to the
original text. This provoked me to oppose them openly. Nay, I looked
upon the open defence of the Law against such innovations as a service to
God. The modern rabbis, like their ancestors, are an obstinate and stiff-
necked race of men ... This state of affairs led me to write a tract in
defence of myself and to prove plainly out of the Law of Moses the vanity
and the invalidity of the tradition and ordinances of the Pharisees as well
as their conflict with the Law. After I had begun this work (for I consider
myself obliged to relate everything clearly and circumstantially), it so hap-
pened that I entirely agreed with the opinion of those who confine the
rewards and punishments proposed in the Old Testament to this life only
and are little concerned with the future life or the immortality of the
soul ... The next step they took was to set their children upon me in the
streets. They insulted me en masse as I walked along, abusing and railing
at me. They cried out, There goes a heretic, there goes an imposter. At
other times they assembled before my doors, flung stones at the windows
and did everything they could to disturb and annoy me so that I could not
live at peace in my own house.
This story of violence and intimidation is all the more striking for
taking place in a city which had celebrated an extraordinarily rapid rise
to fortune since the beginning of the century by embracing freedom on
the grounds that encouraging minority groups like Mennonites, Mus-
lims and indeed Jews was good for business. In Amsterdam, Sephardi
Jews could plough the fortunes they had made through trade with fel-
low Sephardim in the bazaars of North Africa, or across the Atlantic in
places like Curaçao, into the building of magnificent private houses and
(in 1675) a superb great synagogue in the heart of the Christian city.
Amsterdam housed numerous printing presses and a flourishing book
trade. But even here, in a place of unparalleled self- confidence, prosper-
ity and freedom, Acosta could not follow his reason as far as it
encouraged him to go. He recanted, but in due course he reverted to his
opposition to the rabbis, claiming that he was a deist who obeyed a