the wandering Jew

[Heikki Raudaskoski]

As I remember it, the wandering Jew is actually a Christian legend. There
was this guy who hit Jesus when he was carrying the cross, which made J.C.
react: "I go now, but you will wait until I come back". So this Jew is not
searching for a homeland, not exactly yo-yoing, either, but awaiting the
Second Coming. When anti-Semitism enjoyed a renaissance in the 16th 
century Germany, the wandering Jew was named "Ahasverus", which spread 
quickly to all Protestant countries. Let it be added that in Scandinavian
literature this fellow has been named, yes, the "Shoemaker of Jerusalem".

Heikki