Yosef Goldman, a New York Hebrew bibliographer and collector of books, recently published Hebrew Printing in America, 1735-1926, A History and Annotated Bibliography.
The two volume folio size work is a veritable treasure house of information about American rabbis, Jewish scholars, educators and writers and their published Hebrew writings.
The more than 1200 publications described in the work before us are organized in 18 chapters, such as: Bibles, Liturgy, Haggadah, Bible Studies, Bibliography, Education and Pedagogy, Rabbinics, Derash, Periodicals and Zionism.
Each entry includes a biography of the author and a brief description of the book. If the book carries approbations, a list of the Maskimim is provided. There is also a note naming the libraries in which a copy of the book can be found. References at the end of each entry guide the reader to books, studies and articles where he can find more information about the book and its author. (A twenty page bibliography at the end of the second volume lists hundreds of books and studies that include material relating to the authors and the books written about in Hebrew Printing in America.) Many of the entries feature a photograph of the book described. In his learned and beautifully written introduction Goldman describes the development of Hebrew printing in general and the various stages of Hebrew printing in America. Writing about Hebrew bibliographers, he notes that they were utterly uninterested in Hebraica printed in America. “One can study the many volumes of bibliographic studies on Jewish printing by Habermann, Yaari and Ben Menahem, as well as the more than eighty volumes of Kiryat Sefer (the Journal of bibliography published by the Hebrew University) and assume that no Hebrew Press was ever established in America,” he states.
(Yaari and Yudlov list American editions in their Haggadah bibliographies. Goldman himself mentions them in their respective entries but his observation on Hebrew bibliographers’ disinterest in American Hebraica is no doubt generally true.)
According to Goldman, Ephraim Deinard (1888-1926) was the first American who actively furthered the study of American Hebrew bibliography. His Kohelet Amerika contains a list of about 1000 Hebrew works printed in America between 1735 and 1926. The usefulness of his book was however marred by errors and omissions. Goldman’s book was initially planned as a revision of Kohelet Amerika, and that is why the 1926 cutoff date was retained.
In the last paragraphs of his introduction, Goldman explains the difference between his and other bibliographies. He remarks:
Bibliographies that list books and describe features, such as title page information and format, shed light only on the physical features of the books. They do not illuminate the soul of the book, thereby hiding the essential importance of each individual book as it relates to its age and place. Entries in the present have therefore been arranged by subject as one may easily chart the development of a particular subject and its implications for American Jewish history…”
“In this work each entry has also been annotated with a biography of the author and a description of the book. This information places the books in their contexts and demonstrates their individual value towards reconstructing the state of American Jewry. Without this contextual description, a bibliography remains just a list of books.
The title page of Hebrew Printing in America names Ari Kinsberg as the person in charge of research and the editing of the work.
(To be continued )
The Jewish Press, Friday, November 10, 2006
The introduction is followed by a page of acknowledgments in which thanks are expressed to scholars, bibliographers and librarians active in Israel, the U.S. and Great Britain for their assistance in the compilation and writing of Hebrew Printing in America.
Of interest is the following statement on that page: “After we had almost given up on locating numerous rare items, new hope was injected into the project by a survey of the collections of two institutions, Agudas Chassidei Chabad Ohel Yosef Yitzchak Lubavitch (Brooklyn, New York) and Hebrew Union College (Cincinnati). Agudas Chassidei Chabad is particularly rich in its holdings of ephemeral items. Hebrew Union College also has an especially fine collection of American Judaica.”
The first chapter of the work describes Bibles printed in America. Much space is devoted here to Rabbi Isaac Leeser and his editions of the Bible. He was the author of the first Jewish translation of the Pentateuch into English. It was printed together with Hebrew text in five volumes in Philadelphia in 1845-1846.
Leeser was born in 1806 in Westphalia, Germany. He came to America in 1824. In 1829 he was appointed minister of Philadelphia’s Mikveh Israel congregation. He was the author of various books, including Sefardic and Ashkenazic prayer books with English translation and was the founder and editor of “The Occident and American Jewish Advocate,” a Jewish periodical devoted to the diffusion of knowledge of Jewish literature and religion (1843-1869).
His edition of the Hebrew text of the Pentateuch with English translation was frequently reprinted.
In 1854 he published all the 24 books of the Holy Scriptures “carefully translated according to the Masoretic text” and following the best Jewish authorities, supplied with short explanatory notes. This English translation of the entire Bible was the first to be prepared by a Jew. This edition does not have any Hebrew text, except for the names of the weekly portions and some words in the footnotes. Leeser writes about his translation that he himself is an Israelite in faith in the full sense of the word and he trusts therefore, that he has rendered an acceptable service to those who agree with him in their religious persuasion, as they now have the opportunity to study a version of the Bible that was not prepared under the authority of churches in which they can have no confidence.
Two years later, in 1856, a new edition of the translation was published, without the notes.
Hebrew Printing in America quotes an American Jewish Bible scholar’s statement to the effect that soon after its appearance, Leeser’s Bible became the standard Bible of English-speaking Jews, especially in America.
Rabbi Nachman Heller was the older brother of Reb Chaim Heller, the valiant fighter against Bible criticism. He was born in Bialystok in 1862 and studied with Rabbi Shemuel Mohliver and Malbim. He was ordained by them as well as by Rabbi Alexander Lapidot of Raseiniai. He also studied at the University of Vienna. He immigrated to the U.S. around 1900. He served as rabbi and teacher in various communities, contributed to the Hebrew press and was known as a preacher who propagated Zionism. He also pursued studies at Baylor University (Texas) and at the University of Chicago. He died in 1932 in New York.
His publications include the Hebrew text of the Psalms with Hebrew paraphrase, English and Yiddish translation, and additional notes in English (New York, 1923).
Among the approbations printed in the volume there is one by Theodor Herzl written in 1901.
I don’t think that Herzl’s haskama is mentioned in any of the books about Herzl. Rabbi Nachman Heller must have made the acquaintance of Herzl during the time he studied at the University of Vienna.
(To be continued)
The Jewish Press Friday, November 17, 2006
(Continued from last week)
“Rabbinica” is the 11th chapter of Hebrew Printing in America. Its first listings include the very first printing of a tractate of the Talmud and of a commentary on the Talmud in the United States.
Rabbi Abraham Eliezer Alperstein who raised funds for the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary and was the first instructor there was born in Kobrin, Grodno Province, in 1853.
He was a student of Rabbi Joseph Dov Baer HaLevi Soloveichik and Rabbi Jacob David Willowsky (Ridbaz) He later studied in Kovno and in Vilna. He served as rabbi in various communities, including Slobodka, before leaving for American in 1881. He was rabbi in New York, Chicago and St. Paul, returning to New York in 1901 to become rabbi of the Yagustan Synagogue.
He was also a founder and a vice president of Agudath HaRabbonim, and was associated with the Mizrachi. He died in 1917.
In 1887 he published in Chicago, Tractate Bikkurim of the Jerusalem Talmud with three commentaries of his own. Three years later (1890), also in Chicago he printed an expanded edition.
The new edition carried approbations by Rabbi Joseph Dov Baer Halevi Soloveitchik of Brisk and Rabbi Jacob Joseph of New York. Both approbations were given in 1889.
Rabbi Joseph Dov Baer Solovetichik’s haskama was seemingly the only one given by him for a book printed in the U.S.
In 1984, the late Rabbi Chaim Karlinsky published his monumental biography of Rabbi Joseph Dov Baer Solovetichik, HaRishon Leshoshelet Brisk. In the volume he reproduced 83 approbations including the one Rabbi Soloveitchik wrote for Rabbi Abraham Eliezer Alperstein’s book. Rabbi Karlinksy refers to Rabbi Alperstein’s commentary as Harel, the name printed on the title page of the book.
Hebrew Printing in America lists two complete editions of the Babylonian Talmud.
The first was printed in 1913 in New York by the Morgen Journal. This one volume edition of the Babylonian Talmud contains the entire text of the Talmud, Rashi’s commentary and some minor commentaries, but not the Tosafot. The volume was reprinted by the Morgen Journal (New York, 1917) and by the Hebrew Publishing Company (New York, 1937).
With the stoppage of many Hebrew printing presses in Eastern Europe during World War I, Agudath HaRabbonim and Rabbi Bernard (Dov) Revel of the Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary agreed in 1918 to collaborate on the publication of the first American edition of the Babylonian Talmud with the traditional commentaries, based on the Standard Vilna edition. Rabbi Israel Rosenberg of Agudath HaRabbonim was chosen chairman, and Rabbi Revel honorary chairman of the Joint Publication Committee. The Rabbi Isaaac Elchanan Theological Seminary eventually withdrew its participation, and Agudath HaRabbonim assumed complete control of the project. The printing, with the help of of photographic reproductions of the Vilna (Romm) edition was carried out by the Eagle Publishing Company, publishers of the Kanader Adler, Montreal’s Yiddish daily. The first volume (Tractate Berakhot and the Mishnayot of the Order of Zerai’im) was published in March 1919. The printing of all 18 volumes was completed in 1920. The commentaries which are usually printed at the end of each volume of the Talmud were not included in the American edition.
The publication was plagued by various difficulties and setbacks which are described in great detail in Hebrew Printing in America.
Although the American edition was a photographic reproduction of the Vilna (Romm) edition, the American publishers never secured permission to use it.
(To be continued)
The Jewish Press, Nov. 24, 2006
Dec. 1 does not contain article on Hebrew Printing
(Continued from Nov. 24)
“Derash” is the 12th chapter of Hebrew Printing in America. In the introduction to this chapter, which describes books of sermons and homiletics printed in America , we are told about the important role of “Derash in Jewish life generally and in Jewish life in America in particular.
The introduction points out “No genre of traditional literature mirrors the Jewish people of each generation and locale better than Derash. Derash speaks to all and seeks to address the contemporary needs and concerns of the masses in a language they can understand.”
“The man most responsible for incorporating the sermon into the fabric of the synagogue service in America was Isaac Leeser of Philadelphia…. Leeser’s practice of delivering sermons on a regular basis was ultimately adopted by American congregations, and preaching became one of the primary duties of Jewish clergymen.”
Only a few of the authors of the more than 200 books described in this chapter can be mentioned here.
Zevi Hirsch Masliansky was a renowned preacher before he came to the United States. He was born in Slutzk in 1856 and was educated in famous Yeshivot. After the pogroms of 1881, he advocated the return to Zion. In 1894 he was expelled from Russia. He went to England, and a year later to the U.S. Before long he was one of the most popular Yiddish orators in the country. He resided in New York, traveling far and wide from there to inspire the masses with his speeches. Two volumes of his speeches in Yiddish and one volume in Hebrew entitled Homer LeHatafa, which contains brief synopses of sermons, were printed by the Hebrew Publishing Company (New York, 1908-1909). They were reprinted in 1915.
Masliansky contributed to various Hebrew journals and visited the Land of Israel several times. He passed away in 1943.
Rabbi Benzion Eisenstadt was born in Kletzk, Minsk Province in 1873. He came to the U.S. in 1903 and served as rabbi in various congregations in New York. A prolific author, he wrote responsa and Talmudic novella as well as biographies of rabbis and writers. He published several books of Derash, including Na’eh Doresh (New York, 1906) 17 sermons on the festivals and on High Holidays; Doresh L’Shvah (Brooklyn, 1910), Sefer Or Lifnei HaDorshim (New York, 1916) 32 sermons, most of them for Sabbaths, holidays, life cycle, some dealing with assimilation; Ohr Hadash LeMatifim, (New York, 1918) 37 sermons for Sabbath Holidays, life cycle events and other occasions, delivered in Brooklyn; Sefer Tzaddik Livrocho (New York, 1919), a eulogy for Rabbi Chaim Soloveitchik, containing a brief biographical sketch of Rabbi Soloveitchik and Rabbi Eisenstadt’s reminiscence of a visit to his house; Doresh Tov, (St. Louis, 1921); sermons about assimilation, the Reform Movement, the Desecration of the Sabbath; and Sefer Leyemin Evyon (New York, 1922), five sermons delivered in Brownsville to raise money for war victims, specifically Jewish scholars.
Rabbi Eisenstadt, who was active in the Mizrachi passed away in 1951.
Anthologies discussed in this chapter of the book, include Otzar Derashot, which contains 200 sermons and lectures by famous preachers throughout the generations compiled by Judah David Eisenstein, the editor-in-chief of the ten volume Hebrew Encyclopedia, Otzar Yisrael.
Rabbi Ezekiel Preisser was born in Lithuania in 1829. He came to the United States in 1884 and published here (New York, 1909, 1913?) two volumes of end-time calculations.
In Hebrew Printing in America, we read about him: “In 1909 he attempted, unsuccessfully, to initiate a Daf Yom program. It called for the adoption of a uniform seven year study cycle of the Talmud, whereby the same folio would be studied each day in all communities. Preisser’s hopes remained unfulfilled when he died in 1915, and it remained for Rabbi Meir Shapiro of Poland to initiate the first successful Daf Yomi cycle in 1924.” [Note: the year was 1923.]
We are all greatly indebted to Yosef Goldman for having drawn attention to Rabbi Yosef Preisser’s Daf Yomi project. Now it is up to students of the history of the Daf Yomi to undertake the collection of all material relating to Rabbi Preisser’s daf Yomi plan (in one of his books he has called upon American Jews to organize a Daf Yomi program), so that when the history of the Daf Yomi is finally written, Rabbi Preisser will be accorded the place of honor he deserves.
(To be continued)
The Jewish Press, Friday, December 8, 2006
(Continued from last week)
A whole chapter of Hebrew Printing in America is is devoted to a description of Hebrew periodicals published in the United States.
“A common misconception is that America attracted immigrants who were uneducated and and non-observant,” we read in the introduction to this chapter. “Hatzofe Be’erez Hachadosho- the first Hebrew periodical printed in America– however, is a high quality journal with many articles of intellectual value. Articles and advertisements also testify to the concern of the immigrants with the observance of the minutiae of Jewish law.”
Nearly 40 Hebrew periodicals are enumerated and discussed in this chapter. We are told about their content, their editors, and publishers, their contributors, the advertisements displayed therein, as well as other interesting details.
Some of these periodicals should be mentioned here. (The English transliterations of the names of the Hebrew periodicals are given here as they appeared in these periodicals.)
Hatzofeh Berez Hachadasha, was as mentioned earlier, the first Hebrew periodical printed in America. It was launched in 1871 by Zevi Hirsch Bernstein and appeared until 1876. Bernstein, an immigrant from Eastern Europe, arrived in the U.S. in 1870. In the summer of that year he founded the short lived Yiddishe Post, which also included Hebrew articles. Subsequently, he published Hebrew News, a journal with English, German, Hebrew and Yiddish articles.
The weekly Hapisgah (“The Summit”) edited by Zev Wolf Schur appeared from 1888-1889. Schur was well known for his Hebrew travel chronicles that were printed in Europe before he came to America in 1888. The weekly contained current events, essays, history, poetry, book reviews and information about Hebrew and Zionist societies.
In 1899 Schur changed the name of the weekly to “HaTechiah” (Regeneration”) in order to secure a license for distribution in Russia. The weekly ceased publication toward the end of 1900, after Schur became ill.
Schur was an advocate of Herzlian Zionism. He attended the fourth World Zionist Congress (1900), but after his return from the Congress, he became paralyzed and lived an impoverished and lonely life until his death, in 1910.
HaIvri, a Hebrew weekly published in New York, was founded in 1892 by Kasriel Hirsch Sarasohn and appeared until early 1902. Sarasohn, who was one of the leaders of the Lower East Side immigrant community was also a pioneer of the Yiddish press. His Tageblatt which he launched in 1885, became the most popular daily newspaper of the Orthodox community.
In 1895 Gerson Rosenzweig became the editor and publisher of HaIvri. Rozenzweig who wrote both in Yiddish and in Hebrew, has been described as “the father of Hebrew satire in America.” His writings include Hebrew poems and the very popular Massekhet Amerika, a satire on the life and manners of Jewish immigrants in America, modeled on the language and style of the Talmud. His work was first published in HaIvri.
HaToren (“The Mast”), established in June 1913 as a monthly became a weekly in 1916. It returned to a monthly format in 1921 but ceased publication in December 1925. In 1917 HaToren had achieved a circulation of 13,000 subscribers. It also reported 13,000 subscribers from 1921-1923 but the numbers dwindled to 10,000 subscribers in 1924. As one of the Hebrew periodicals in America that lasted the longest, it exerted a great influence. It featured literary criticism, poetry, book reviews, obituaries as well as articles on history, Zionist affairs and education. Prominent Hebrew writers served as editors, at various times. Among them were Isaac Dov Berkowitz, Daniel Persky, Simon Ginzburg, – whose writings included poetry, translations of English poetry into Hebrew and studies about Rabbi Moshe Hayyim Luzzato– Shmaryahu Levin, Reuben Brainin and Mordecai Lipson.
(To be continued)
The Jewish Press, Friday December 15, 2006
Another publication by the name HaIvri was a religious Zionist weekly that appeared in Berlin from 1910 to 1914. Its editor, Rabbi Meir Berlin (Bar Ilan) was a son of Rabbi Naftali Zevi Yehuda Berlin (Netziv) of Volozhin and a student of Rabbi Hayyim Soloveitchik and of Rabbi Jehiel Michal Epstein, the author of Arukh HaShulhan. He was active in behalf of the Mizrachi movement in Berlin and was invited in 1913 for a lecture tour in the U.S. to help strenghthen the Mizrachi there. In 1915 he returned to the U.S. and established himself in New York. There he renewed, in 1916 the publication of HaIvri which appeared for several years until the 17th of Heshvan 5682 (1921).
HaIvri — in the American edition the name was transliterated on the title page as Haibri– played an important role in the development of the modern Hebrew press in America. Many of America’s prominent Hebrew writers, including those who were not affiliated with Mizrachi, contributed news, views and literary articles.
Mordecai Lipson was for several years the actual although not the official editor of HaIvri. Born in Bialystok in 1885, Lipson studied at the “Kibbutz” of the Hafetz Hayyim in Radun. He moved to Antwerp in 1905 working there in the diamond industry and serving as Hebrew teacher as well as co-editor of Belgium’s first Yiddish newspaper. In 1913 he came to the United States. As mentioned earlier, he was one one of the editors of HaToren. He also served as editor of other Hebrew periodicals. He wrote both in Yiddish and in Hebrew and was a very productive author and translator (translating from Yiddish into Hebrew and vice versa).
Other contributors to HaIvri included Hillel Bavli, Reuben Brainin, M.M. Dolitzki, Judah Leib HaCohen Fishman (Maimon) who was then in the U.S., Simon Ginzburg, Zevi Hirsch Maslianksy and Zevi Sharfstein.
Among contributors from afar was Rabbi Hayyim Heller. Rabbi Heller gained fame throughout the Jewish world not only as a rabbinical scholar but also on account of his studies about the ancient translations of the Bible and his utter rejection of Bible criticism. Rabbi Heller published his Al HaTargum HaYerushalmi Latora (About the Jerusalem Targum to the Pentateuch) in HaIvri. It appeared in installments in several issues of the weekly in 1921.
That same year it was reprinted with an English preface as a separate booklet. The English title, as printed on the back of the book’s jacket reads; “A Critical Essay on the Palestinian Targum of the Pentateuch.”‘ The reprint is listed (Number 216) in the chapter devoted to Bible studies of Hebrew Printing in America.
After Rabbi Heller’s death (1960) I compiled for the Mizrachi periodical Or HaMizrach a bibliography of his writings. The late Dr. Isaac Rivkind then drew my attention to several publications of Rabbi Heller that were not well known. I learned from him that the reprint of Al Hatargum Hayershalmi LaTorah appeared in two editions. One featured “Errata and addenda” on the pages separating the Hebrew text from the English preface. The other editions, apparently printed earlier did not include these additions. In Hebrew Printing in America only the later edition is mentioned. (See Or Hamizrah Tishrei 5723, p. 52.)
During his stay in the U.S., Rabbi Meir Bar Ilan was chosen president of the American Mizrachi. He was also president of the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (1920-1922) and was active in various other organizations and institutions. In 1926 he settled in the Land of Israel, serving as the president of the World Mizrachi Center in Jerusalem. He represented the Mizrachi in the leading institutions of the Yishuv and the World Zionist Organization.
In 1927 he founded the Mizrachi daily HaTzofeh heading it until his death, in 1949. He also founded the Talmudic Encyclopedia and served as co-editor of its first two volumes. Rabbi Shlomo Yosef Zevin wrote about Rabbi Meir Bar Ilan’s personality and his work for the encyclopedia at the beginning of volume two of the Talmudic encyclopeida.
Rabbi Meir Bar Ilan’s writings, in addition to political and ideological articles, included his memoirs, “From Volozhin to Jerusalem,” originally written in Yiddish and translated into Hebrew, and Rabban Shel Yisrael (1943) biography of his father, Rabbi Natali Zevi Yehuda Berlin (Netziv)
To be continued
The Jewish Press, Friday Dec. 22, 2006
Continued from last week
In the last two articles we described some of the more important Hebrew periodicals that were published in the United States. This article is devoted to two Hebrew dailies that were printed in America.
The first Hebrew daily printed in the U.S. was HaYom (“The Day”). It was published and edited by Moses Goldman and appeared daily with the exception of the Sabbath and Jewish Holidays. It featured general current news, information on Jewish organizations and Hebrew societies, scholarly articles, poetry, weather reports, book reviews , advertisements and more.
Goldman had been the editor and publisher of the Hebrew periodical HaLe’um (“The Nation”) for several years. On October 30, 1908, he suspended its publication in order to issue the daily HaYom.
The first issue of HaYom appeared in New York on July 18, 1909. Several months later, in the issue of November 5, 1909, Goldman informed his readers that the paper would be temporarily suspended and would resume publication in January 1910. In fact it did not appear until 1913 (eighth of Tamuz 5673) when it was issued first as a daily then three times a week and finally as a biweekly. Publication ceased again, forever after less than five months (the 6th of Heshvan 5674).
The New York Hebrew periodical Hadoar (“The Post) was established in 1921. The first issue came out on November 1, 1921, and it appeared daily – no weekend editions – until June 29,1922.
It reported general and Jewish news and featured articles on Jewish literature and education, serving a a vocal proponent of Hebrew culture in America. Its contributors included prominent Hebrew writers from America and the world over. The editor of the daily HaDoar was Mordechai Lipson, whose widespread literary activities were mentioned in our last article.
In order to prevent the suspension of the daily whose initial circulation had reached 9000 before declining rapidly, most of the workers donated to the paper the equivalent of a week’s salary, and others agreed to work for half wages until such time as the paper could pay them.
A week after its suspension as a daily, it was revived as a weekly (July 7, 1922) by the Histadruth Ivrith of America, which had assumed ownership.
HaDoar appeared as a weekly under the auspices of the Histadruth Ivrith of America until early in the 21st century. It was widely read and respected in the Jewish world.
Lipson continued as editor of the weekly HaDoar for a short time. He was succeeded by Menachem Ribalow, a native of Volhynia who had come to the United States in 1921. A very productive writer who had begun his literary career by sending Hebrew poems to HaShiloah, he served as editor of HaDoar for three decades. Ribalow was an outstanding and very productive publicist, writing about and commenting on a wide range of problems of Jewish interest. Literary criticism was one of his fields. He wrote reviews about almost every new Hebrew literary publication. Many of his literary essays have been collected in books. He died in 1953. M Waxman writes in his History of Jewish Literature that Ribalow “exerted considerable influence on the course of development of Hebrew literature in the U.S.”
Mordkhai Lipson settled in the Land of Israel in 1930. He served as editor of the HaTzofeh daily from its inception in 1937 until 1944. His many widely accepted writings included the folkloristic MiDor Dor (3 volumes) and Anshei Middot (6 volumes). He died in 1958.
(To be continued)
The Jewish Press, Friday, December 29, 2006
(Continued from last week)
Judah David Eisenstein was probably the most productive Hebrew writer in the United States.
He was the editor in chief of the Hebrew encyclopedia Otzar Yisrael. In the wake of the success of Otzar Yisrael, he embarked on the compilation of a variety of anthologies, which earned him the title of Ba’al HaOTzarot. We will describe some of his well known and widely used anthologies on the basis of their entries in Hebrew Printing in America.
Eisenstein was born in Poland. He studied Talmud with his grandfather and a tutor taught him languages, mathematics and sciences. In 1872, at the age of eighteen he came to the United States where his father had settled earlier. Eisenstein became a successful manufacturer of coats, but lost his business after investing in an ill fated attempt to establish an agricultural colony for Jewish immigrants in New Jersey. He wrote and edited numerous books in Hebrew and contributed thousands of articles to the Hebrew, Yiddish and English press.
In 1880 he helped found, in New York, the Hevrat Shoharei Sefat Ever (The Society of Friends of the Hebrew Language) which was established to promote the Hebrew language and was probably the first of its kind in the world. He was an organizer of Kollel America-Tifphereth Jerusalem which supported poor American and Canadian Jews living in the Holy Land. He died in 1956 at the age of 102.
Eisenstadt’s magnum opus was the 10 volume Hebrew encyclopedia which was printed in New York in 1907-1913. He was aided in his work as editor-in-chief by teams of assistant editors, each of whom was in charge of one of the volumes. Jewish scholars from all over the world contributed articles. According to Eisenstein, the scholarship of Otzar Yisrael was conservative in nature, striving to confirm and sustain the “accepted faith transmitted to us by the sages of blessed memory.”
The appearance of the encyclopedia was indeed, greatly welcomed by traditional Jews. It was granted approbations by leading rabbis and prominent scholars, including Rabbi Jacob David Wilowski (Ridbaz), Rabbi Hayyim Bernstein, and Rabbi Isaac Jacob Reines. The latter wrote that he considered Otzar Yisrael a testimony to America’s status as a center not only of materialism but also “of the spirit of Israel and its literature.” Otzar Yisroel was reprinted by European Jewish publishers in the period between the two world wars. Editions with corrections and additions appeared in New York (1951) and Jerusalem (1971,1972).
Otzar Yisrael’s success encouraged Eisenstein as mentioned earlier to compile a series of anthologies (Otzarot). In 1915 he published in New York the two volume Otzar Midrashim, which contained 200 texts of smaller Aggadic collections, among them many that deal with phrases of early Jewish mysticism. Each Midrash was preceded by an introduction which discussed its character, authorship and date.
In compiling and alphabetically organizing this anthology, Eisenstein made use of A. Jellinek’s Beth HaMidrash, Solomon Wertheimer’s, Battei Midrashot, Hayyim Meir Horowitz’s Kovetz Midrashim Ketanim and Beth Eked Haagadot, Elazar HaLevi Greenut’s Sefer HaLikkutim and other such works. The introductory essay, “Preaching and Preachers,” was a summary of the article on Derash in Otzar Yisroel. The work also featured a list of proverbs and epigrams, a subject index, and a glossary of foreign words by Dr. Solomon Todros HaLevi Hurvitz. Otzar Midrashim was reprinted in New York in 1928.
In 1917 Eisenstein published his Otzar Minim and U’Minhagim, whose English title was a Digest of Jewish Laws and Customs in Alphabetical Order.” The work focused on the customs and laws of non-Hasidic Russian and Polish Jews as opposed to Sephardim and Hasidic Jews since they constituted the majority of American Jews at the time.
Eisenstein also appended a section “Customs of the Synagogue Arranged by Months” because congregations were ignoring many customs on account of the ignorance of beadles and the attitude of rabbis that these customs were not important.”
The book was dedicated to the “New Russia, born March 13, 1917, destined to be a Haven for Religious Liberty and Social Justice.” Hebrew Printing in America notes that the dedication is lacking in later editions. It was obviously removed after the hopes for a new Russia were squashed by the Bolshevik Revolution.
Otzar Dinim Uminhagim was printed by the Hebrew Publishing Company of New York in 1922, 1928 and 1938.
(To be continued)
The Jewish Press, Friday, January 5, 2007
Continued from last week
In 1918 Judah David Eisenstein published “Otzar Midrashim Nivcharim” (Anthology of Midrashic Literature). His purpose in compiling this work was to lead his contemporaries back to the study of the Midrashim. The anthology, in which choice Midrashim are arranged according to the order of the Bible was reprinted in 1929 by the Hebrew Publishing Company of New York.
Otzar Maamarei Chazal which was published in 1922 contains Midrashic quotations from the Talmud and Medrash arranged alphabetically by subjects and accompanied by notes. According to Eisenstein this work is truly an index of all the treasures of Talmudic and Midrashic literature, comprising almost 1300 subject entries, each of which offers many quotations from the Jerusalem Talmud and the Babylonian Talmud as well as from the Midrashim. Some of the entries take up entire pages.
A second edition of Otzar Maamarei Chazal appeared in New York in 1929 and a third edition in 1947.
Eisenstein’s Otzar Masa’ot (“A Compendium of Jewish Travels”) was published in New York in 1926. It contains the travelogues of Benjamin of Tudela, R. Obadia of Bertinora, David Reuveni, Chaim Yosef David Azulai, Judith Montefiore and others.
Einsenstein noted that many of the travelogues were written without proper care for style and grammar and without a sense for chronological order which spoiled the intentions of the authors.
These shortcomings were corrected in his edition.
He also wrote that he intended to publish a second volume that would include Jewish travelogues from 1840 until his time, together with an account of his own travels from February 16 to May 17 1926 to the Mediterranean, Egypt, the Land of Israel and Europe.
According to Hebrew Printing in America, Eisenstein prepared a second volume of his Otzar Masa’ot but it was never published. In an earlier article, we described Eisenstein’s Otzar Derashot (Anthology of Jewish Sermons) which was published in 1919 and contained 200 sermons and lectures by great preachers of Israel.
We have sought to acquaint the readers with most of Eisenstein’s Otzarot (Anthologies) described in Hebrew Printing in America. Eisenstein was also the author of Otzar Vikuchim (1928), Otzar Zichronotai (1929), which includes an autobiography and other material and Otzar Mussar Umiddot (1941). They are not described in Hebrew Printing in America because they appeared after 1926.
Eisenstein’s Otzar of commentaries and illustrations on the Passover Haggadah was first published in New York in 1920 and was reprinted in 1947. It is mentioned in Hebrew Printing in America but it is not described there.
Other books by Eisenstein described in Hebrew Printing in America, in addition to his anthologies include: Hassagot, critical notes on Kaufmann Kohler’s new English translation of the Psalms, published by the Jewish Publication Society of America, (1906), Maamarei Bikorret, a critical review of Michael Rodkinson’s English translation of tractates Rosh Hashana and Shabbat of the Babylonian Talmud (1897); and the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States with Hebrew and Yiddish translations and explanatory notes in Hebrew which was intended to benefit the Russian Jewish immigrants and was printed by the Russian American Hebrew Association of New York (New York, 1891). Hebrew Printing in America also lists several publications of Eisenstein in behalf of Kollel America Tiferet Jerusalem.
(To be Continued)
The Jewish Press, Friday, January 12, 2007
We have devoted several articles to Hebrew periodicals in the United States described in the chapter on “periodicals” in Yosef Goldman’s Hebrew Printing in America.
That chapter did not include rabbinic periodicals that appeared in the United States. Those publications are featured in the book’s section on “Rabbinics.” We will now, in concluding our review of Yosef Goldman’s book, focus on these periodicals.
The first rabbinical periodical published in the United States was Beth Vaad Lakhakhamim, a monthly that appeared in New York from Shevat until Tammuz 5663 (1903) six issues in all.
The editor and publisher of the monthly was Rabbi Dov Baer Abramowitz. The purpose of the periodical was to strengthen the Orthodox observance of Judaism in the United States. In his publication, the editor also appealed to rabbis outside the United States to help him in his endeavors.
Addressing the rabbis of Europe, he wrote, “There are many in our country who donate a lot of money to support your houses of learning…. and so the Jews of America can justly say that ‘your Torah is ours.’ Thus we have a right to ask of you to help support us spiritually in exchange for our material support.”
The periodical featured many essays on Jewish law with emphasis on matters of contemporary concern such as the use of electricity on the festivals. It also contained essays on Jewish history, Biblical exegesis and poetry. Contributors included rabbis from many localities in the U.S., from Jerusalem and from Europe.
Rabbi Dov Baer Abramowitz (1860-1926) was born in Lithuania. When he was ten years old his family moved to Jerusalem. He studied in the Holy City and was ordained by Rabbi Samuel Salant. He came to the U.S. in 1894 and served as rabbi in Philadelphia, NY and St. Louis. He helped found the Rabbi Isaac Elchonon Theological Seminary and Agudath HaRabbonim. In St. Louis he established the first branch of the Mizrachi in America. He was later president of Mizrachi in the United States and attended the London Zionist Conference in 1920. He returned to Jerusalem in 1921.
He co-authored Sefer Dat Yisrael, a digest of practical Halakha based on the Kitzur Shulchan Arukh and on Chayei Adam. Other works of his include Sefer Ketav HaDat (1900) a volume of homiletic essays on miscellaneous subjects of Jewish itnerest.
In the summer of 1903 Abraham Hayyim Charlap edited in New York the weekly “HaYisraeli” (English title: The Orthodox Israelite). It contained reports of current events, biographies, rabbinics and poetry. Only five issues appeared.
A. H. Charlap (1861-1916) was born in Poland and came to the U.S. in 1892. He served as principal of a Talmud Torah in Syracuse and later taught in New York. He wrote on Hebrew grammar and was the editor of several daily prayerbooks with English instructions. Other works of his include a Yiddish translation of Isaiah. He also contributed to the Hebrew press in the U.S. and Europe.
THe publisher of this short-lived weekly was the aforementioned Rabbi Dov Baer Abramowitz.
HaMitzpah, a Hebrew monthly devoted to “Torah, Science and Jewish Affairs,” was edited by Rabbi Avrahahm Aaron Yudelewitz. Only six issues appeared [Sivan to Ellul 5670 (1910); Nissan and Sivan 5671(1911)].
Rabbi Yudelewitz (1850-1930) was born in Novogrudok (Russia) and studied in Volozhin. Before coming to the U.S. in 1904 he had served as rabbi in several Jewish communities in Lithuania as well as in Manchester, England. He held rabbinic positions in Boston, in Bayonne (N.J.) and in New York. He was also an instructor in the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary.
HaMitzpa, to which both European and American rabbis contributed, included responsa, miscellaneous religious writings, book reviews and poetry.
Rabbi Yudelewitz’s published writings include seven volumes of responsa.
(To be continued)
The Jewish Press, Friday January 19, 2007
(Conclusion)
The following are several other rabbinical periodicals that are mentioned in Hebrew Printing in America, 1735-1926.
The Hebrew month “HaRabbani” of which only two issues appeared was established in New York in 1912 and was edited by Rabbi Israel Isaacson (1851-1922). He was born in Russia and had come to the United States in 1907. The periodical, whose English title was HaRabony – A Monthly Orthodox Magazine,” featured national and international current events, rabbinic and homiletical contributions, obituaries and biographies.
Rabbi Isaacson served as rabbi in New York City and was later an instructor and Mashgiah at the Rabbi Isaac Elchanon Theological Seminary. He also taught at Yeshiva Tiferet Banim.
Rabbi Moses Benjamin Tomashoff (1878-1950) studied in the Yeshiva of Slutsk and Slobodka and was ordained by Rabbi Isser Zalman Meltzer. He resided in Slutsk where he operated a printing press. In 1909, answering a call by Rabbi Meltzer, he became co-publisher of the rabbinic journal Yagdil Torah. Though Yagdil Torah was very popular in rabbinic circles, it ceased publication when Tomashoff emigrated to the U.S. in 1912. Rabbi Tomashoff settled in New York, where he opened a printing press and served as rabbi of Brownsville’s Beth Israel Congregation, a congregation he was to serve for 46 years. He was a member of the executive of Vaad HaRabbonim of New York and Agudath organizations of New York and of the Holy Land and was a member of the Mizrachi.
In 1916 he resumed the publication of Yagdil Torah. The journal which was well received by rabbis and Torah scholars was in existence for over five years. The first issue appeared in Tevet 5676 (December 1915) and the last in Tevet 5681 (1921). Altogether 34 issues were printed.
Numerous rabbis from many localities throughout the U.S. contributed to the journal, which contained responsa, homilies and novellae. Contributors included Rabbi Abraham Duber Kahana Shapiro of Kovno and Rabbi Shimon Vinograd of Jerusalem.
(In the 1920s Rabbi Yechezkel Abramsky and Rabbi Shlomo Yosef Zevin attempted to publish a Torah journal in Communist Russia. They called it Yagdil Torah, after the rabbinic journal that originally appeared in Slutsk. They succeeded in publishing only two issues.)
In 1925 Rabbi Tomashoff edited and published Migdal Torah, a volume of responsa and novellae by various rabbis. It was meant to be a continuation of Yagdil Torah but no subsequent volumes appeared.
Tomashoff’s many published writings include a manual for writing a Get, which became a standard reference work, and Avnei Shoham, a collection of responsa and novellae.
In 1924 students of the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Rabbinical Seminary of New York published Ner Maarovi, which English subtitle was “A Magazine Dedicated to Studies in All Branches of Jewish Research.” The editors of Volume 1, part of which was in English were Benjamin Axelman and Hyman Kaplan. Volume 2 was edited by Hyman Kaplan and contained no English articles. It appeared in 1925.
Both volumes featured articles on Jewish law, Aggadah, literature and history.
In the preface to Volume 1 we read: “The most pressing need of intellectual Jewry today is a more complete and systematic synthesis of secular Jewish learning and rabbinic wisdom. Recently …. a renaissance of interest in the Talmud seems to have pervaded the minds of modern Jewish youth. This and a growing interest of our great rabbis in the need and the problems of Jewish research promise to introduce a new spirit and progress in Biblical and Talmudical Studies. It was our wish to share in this work and do our humble part in promoting this spirit that prompted us to undertake the publication of Ner Maaravi and dedicate it to Torah and Chochmat Yisrael.”
The Jewish Press, Friday, January 26, 2007