Several centuries ago, the Pope decided that all
the Jews had to leave the Vatican. Naturally there was a big uproar from the
Jewish community. So the Pope made a deal. He would have a religious debate
with a member of the Jewish community. If the Jew won, the Jews could stay. If
the Pope won, the Jews would leave. The Jews realized that they had no choice.
So they picked an elderly aged man named Moishe to represent them. Rabbi
Moishe’s Latin wasn’t very good - in fact, he knew very little--but he was a
man of great faith and well respected in the Jewish community. The pope agreed.
What could be easier than a silent debate?
The day of the great debate came. Moishe and the Pope sat opposite each other
for a full minute before the Pope raised his hand and showed three fingers.
Moishe looked back at him and raised one finger. The Pope waved his fingers in
a circle around his head. Moishe pointed to the ground where he sat. The Pope
pulled out a wafer and a glass of wine. Moishe pulled out an apple. The Pope
stood up and said, "I give up. This man is too good. The Jews can
stay."
An hour later, the cardinals were all around the Pope asking him what happened.
The Pope said: "First I held up three fingers to represent the Trinity. He
responded by holding up one finger to remind me that there was still one God
common to both our religions. Then I waved my finger around me to show him that
God was all around us. He responded by pointing to the ground and showing that God
was also right here with us. I pulled out the wine and the wafer to show that
God absolves us from our sins. He pulled out an apple to remind me of original
sin. He had an answer for everything. What could I do?"
Meanwhile, the Jewish community had crowded around Moishe. "What
happened?" they asked. "Well," said Moishe, "First he said
to me that the Jews had three days to get out of here. I told him that not one
of us was leaving. Then he told me that this whole city would be cleared of
Jews. I let him know that we were staying right here." "And
then?" asked a woman. "I don’t know," said Moishe. "He took
out his lunch and I took out mine."