all moral element.[1]
To crown the evil, it filled with ridiculous pride those who had
wearied themselves in acquiring it. The Jewish scribe, proud of the
pretended knowledge which had cost him so much trouble, had the same
contempt for Greek culture which the learned Mussulman of our time has
for European civilization, and which the old catholic theologian had
for the knowledge of men of the world. The tendency of this
scholastic culture was to close the mind to all that was refined, to
create esteem only for those difficult triflings on which they had
wasted their lives, and which were regarded as the natural occupation
of persons professing a degree of seriousness.[2]

[Footnote 1: We may judge of it by the Talmud, the echo of the Jewish
scholasticism of that time.]

[Footnote 2: Jos., _Ant._, XX. xi. 2.]

This odious society could not fail to weigh heavily on the tender and
susceptible minds of the north. The contempt of the Hierosolymites for
the Galileans rendered the separation still more complete. In the
beautiful temple which was the object of all their desires, they often
only met with insult. A verse of the pilgrim's psalm,[1] "I had rather
be a doorkeeper in the house of my God," seemed made expressly for
them. A contemptuous priesthood laughed at their simple devotion, as
formerly in Italy the clergy, familiarized with the sanctuaries,
witnessed coldly and almost jestingly the fervor of the pilgrim come
from afar. The Galileans spoke a rather corrupt dialect; their
pronunciation was vicious; they confounded the different aspirations
of letters, which led to mistakes which were much laughed at.[2] In
religion, they were considered as ignorant and somewhat heterodox;[3]
the expression, "foolish Galileans," had become proverbial.[4] It was
believed (not without reason) that they were not of pure Jewish blood,
and no one expected Galilee to produce a prophet.[5] Placed thus on
the confines of Judaism, and almost outside of it, the poor Galileans
had only one badly interpreted passage in Isaiah to build their hopes
upon.[6] "Land of Zebulon, and land of Naphtali, way of the sea,
Galilee of the nations! The people that walked in darkness have seen a
great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon
them hath the light shined." The reputation of the native city of
Jesus was particularly bad. It was a popular proverb, "Can there any
good thing come out of Nazareth?"[7]

[Footnote 1: Ps. lx