Lecture 16: Tolerance

In the 16th of 17 lectures in his "Civilizing the Barbarians" course, Stepanov begins his lecture by explaining why he needs to talk about the history of Christianity and how it relates to Western civilization. He also addresses objections from Jewish friends who gave feedback on his prior lecture by saying that Stepanov was making false accusations and that rabbinical Judaism did not reject Jesus. Stepanov clarifies his points in this lecture. He also mentions that there are 14 more lectures to go, but he only ever publishes one more after this.

One idea Stepanov emphasizes in this lecture is that Christianity is not just about being a good person and having values because non-Christians can be good people and have values and Christians can be bad people and lack values. Instead, he defines Christians as people who recognize Jesus Christ as Lord and as somebody who is the center of their faith. He goes on to say that, in the view of rabbinical Judaism, Jesus Christ is an utterly unacceptable center of faith. Stepanov reluctantly cites the book "Jesus in the Talmud" by Peter Schaffer, who has served as director of Princeton's Program in Judaic Studies since 2005. According to Schaffer, it's very clear that the Talmud judges Jesus very, very negatively. Stepanov encourages the class to read the Talmud, which he believes is an important text.

Another main idea is the issue of tolerance and how it is often confused with political correctness. Stepanov argues that people should learn to talk to each other, understand each other, and avoid judgment. He also believes that tolerance is a struggle and that people must fight mostly themselves, not the other side.

A third main idea is the historical fact that Christians have committed many atrocities throughout history. Stepanov acknowledges that, regarding atrocities, he will have to criticize Christians mostly. He also points out that Europe becomes Christian and Christians become the actors and therefore they do lots of bad things.

In conclusion, Stepanov reiterates that the title of the lecture is tolerance. He believes that it is an important topic to discuss and that people must be honest with themselves and each other in order to make progress. He also states that throughout the upcoming lectures, he will be discussing atrocities committed by Christians and not just by Jews, and that honesty is important in any discussion of history.