Composition siding with Tsar Alexander II, stating that he is Holy! by Moshe Rosenson ben Yosef.
Only Edition, Vilna, 1870. Hebrew & Russian.
Very Rare!
This copy has many more leaves than that listed by the Bibliography of the Hebrew Book.
264, [2], 6, [6] Sides. 14.5 Cm.
The author Moses Rosenzweig or Rosenzohn (1820-1897) was a wealthy Jewish philanthropist from Vilnius. He conceived the idea of founding a synthetic "Universal" religion that would incorporate the good principles of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, or at least to reform Judaism. Rosenzweig served as a Gabai of the modern synagogue "Taharat Hakodesh" in Vilnius and was a well-known benefactor both in Lithuania and beyond. His home became a center for collaborative activities involving Jewish and Christian scholars.
The reactions within the Jewish community to Rosenzweig’s novel ideas were sharp. Moses Leib Lilienblum (MLL) published a literary analysis of his philosophy in an article titled "Revealing the Secret" in the collection "Kohelet" by Alexander Zederbaum (Petersburg 1861). In it, Lilienblum hinted that Rosenzweig wrote as a Christian missionary. Lilienblum concluded that due to Rosenzweig’s age and wealth, the possibility of his becoming a missionary was unlikely, and he might simply be "mistaken and misleading." Ephraim Deinard also opposed the characterization of Rosenzweig as a missionary, writing, "Even the literary lunatic Moses ben Joseph Rosenzweig in Vilna, whose every book has a spirit, and with all his eccentricities, I knew him as an idealist who gave money generously, seeking to do good according to the folly of his belief that he thought to create a new religion, a mixture of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, as he admitted to me in his letter."
He bequeathed his assets to his only daughter and later to the Jewish community in Vilnius.
Good Condition, Hole to Russian title page, stains, later binding.
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Lot #301