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tan), in 1681, Toledot Yeshu had very much become an open secret, cited by no less than Martin Luther and frequently discussed by Christian Hebraists – even if mainly on the basis of extracts or summaries.10 Wagenseil’s edition was soon followed by another one, published in 1705 by the Swiss theologian Johann Jacob Huldreich. Both the Wagenseil and the Huldreich editions were widely cited and discussed in the 18th century. Thus the influential Protestant scholar and historian of the Jews Jacques Basnage sought to dispel the fear inspired by this and other “monstrous” works while noting that the narrative also pre- served a kernel of truth “in the midst of its accumulation of fables and lies” – namely that Jesus had indeed performed miracles.11 Or Voltaire, who went even further and, insisting on the work’s antiquity, claimed that Toledot Yeshu, how- ever despicable, was perhaps more trustworthy than the canonical Gospels.12 It comes as no surprise that in the wake of the Enlightenment, anti-Christian traditions such as Toledot Yeshu came to be appropriated by anti-clerical writers with a view to fostering their critique of religion and questioning the historical status of the biblical narrative.13 The subversive character of the narrative was fully recognized by those who copied and transmitted it. A number of manuscripts thus bear scribal indications that the work should be concealed lest Jews be exposed to the resentment of of Sézanne as its author. The story was also known through Ramón Martí’s Pugio fidei adversus Mauros et Judaeos (1278), whose citations of the works were reproduced by Porchetus Salvaticus in the 14th century and Alfonso de Espina in the 15th century; Deutsch 2011, 289. The latter work was first printed in Strasbourg in 1471 and subsequently appeared in no fewer than seven editions between 1475 and 1525. Porchetus, whose Victoria adversus impios Hebraeos was printed in Paris in 1520, was the source of Martin Luther’s 1543 translation of the work. For further late medieval mentions of the work see Callsen/Knapp/Nieser/Pryzbilski 2003, 17–18. Petrus Niger, Tractatus contra perifidos Judaeos de con- ditionibus veri Messiae (1475) (quoted in Wolf 1715–1746, vol. 2, 1114, 1443, and see Deutsch 2011, 291), also provided the Hebrew name of the work (Sefer Toldot Jehoschuah hanozeri, i.e. liber genera- tionis Jesu). Alfonso de Valladolid / Abner of Burgos and Thomas Ebendorfer cited the work in the 14th century and 15th century respectively, the latter even translating it into Latin, but their writings had only limited circulation; see the discussion in Barbu/Dahhaoui 2018. Knowledge of Toledot Yeshu also appears in a 1415 papal bull by Benedict XIII, Etsi doctores gentium (Simonsohn 1989, 593–602 [n. 538], at 595), whence it was cited by King Ferdinand I of Aragon in the wake of the disputation of Tortosa (cf. Feliu 1989, 243); and later in the ritual murder trials of Trent (1475) and Avila (1491), where Jews were accused of uttering blasphemies while staging the crucifixion and torturing a Christian child; see respectively Di Segni 1989 and Fita 1887, 88–89, with Horbury 1970, 69 and following. 10 Luther 1920, 573–648. For Luther, Toledot Yeshu showcased the absurdity of the rabbinic tradition as a whole, and as noted by Stephen Burnett, his attack was aimed as much at the dispersed Jewish communities of the imperial provinces as at rival theologians seeking to unearth theological riches from the Talmud and its medieval Jewish commentators, and thus flirting dangerously with “Judaism” (Burnett, forthcoming; cf. also Morgenstern 2016). See Kattermann 1938 on Luther’s use of Porchetus as well as von der Osten-Sacken 2002, sp. 184, n. 141 on his use of Anton Margaritha. I thank Prof. Bur- nett for his notes on this question. On Luther’s attitude towards the Jews, see now Nirenberg 2013, 246–269; Kaufmann 2018. 11 Basnage 1716, vol. 1, 14; vol. 5, 253–290, citation at 287. 12 See Barbu 2011. 13 See Wheeler and Foote 1885, with Lockshin 1993. 32 | Daniel Barbu www.jrfm.eu 2019, 5/1