The Legend of The Wandering Jew

By Crusader1307

Possibly many thousands of years old, this story was popular in Medieval Europe. As the legend goes, Christ fell while carrying his Cross. He fell in front of a Jewish Cobbler's Shop. Annoyed that his business was suffering, the foolish Merchant chastised Jesus, yelling at him to move faster and away from the front of his shop. Christ said (so the story goes), that he would move on, but that the Cobbler would endure until the last day. From that day forward, the Cobbler could not die. Being immortal, he wandered the World (still practicing his trade). Anyone foolish enough to buy a pair of his shoes or have any work done  would have bad luck (even death), befall them. The story and subsequent sightings go well into the 19th Century. It is certain, the story was cultivated by European populations who were prompted by The Catholic Church to shun and despise Jews (evidenced by the horrible persecutions against them in The Middle Ages).