Bidspirit auction | Beit Yaakov – First Edition;

Beit Yaakov – First Edition; Copy of Rabbi Naftali Katz, Author of Semichat Chachamim - Responsa Beit Yaakov – First Edition, Dyhernfurth 1696 Personal Copy of the Holy Gaon and Kabbalist Rabbi Naftali Katz, Author of Semichat Chachamim Described by the Chida as a “wondrous kabbalist, versed in practical and Divine Kabbalah, ” this is a rare and historically significant edition of Beit Yaakov – a collection of responsa and communal rulings, including matters related to the Chmielnicki massacres of 1648–1649. Authored by Rabbi Yaakov, Av Beit Din of the community of Zülz. Dyhernfurth, 1696. First edition. This particular copy belonged to Rabbi Naftali Katz, famed author of Semichat Chachamim, one of the great mystics and leaders of his generation. His personal signature appears faintly on the bottom of the title page in his known style: ”Naftali HaCohen mi-Ostra”, as he customarily signed (see Shalshelet Zahav, Jerusalem 2001, p. 17). Between the pages are two marginal glosses in early handwriting (content not yet researched), and the [8] final leaves of indices were completed in period hand at the time of printing. The Signature of the Semichat Chachamim as a Segulah for Salvation: In Divrei David (Husiatyn 1904, p. 60), the holy Rabbi David Moshe of Chortkov recounts: “When the Baal Shem Tov was in Istanbul on his journey to the Land of Israel, he heard talk of the wonders attributed to Rabbi Naftali HaCohen, who distributed amulets and used sacred names. The Baal Shem Tov asked someone to bring him an amulet of Rabbi Naftali’s and opened it, only to find written within solely the name: ‘HaKadosh Naftali HaCohen.’ That name alone was effective for all the salvations the amulet was meant to bring!” A rare book, further elevated by its association with one of the most revered kabbalists of Ashkenaz. Collation: [2], III–XLV, XLV–LIII, LVIII–LXI, LVII–CXXVIII leaves. Size: 28 cm. Condition: Good. Minor worming. The ”Semikhat Chachamim” signature is faded. New leather bindings. Rabbi Naftali Katz (c. 1649–1719) – The Semichat Chachamim A holy and wondrous figure, rabbi of Ostroh, Posen, and Frankfurt. Son of Rabbi Yitzchak Katz of Lublin, grandson of Rabbi Naftali Katz, and great-grandson of Rabbi Yitzchak Katz, son-in-law of the Maharal of Prague. A towering Torah authority and kabbalist, Rabbi Naftali was appointed rabbi of Posen in 1689 (at age 40), succeeding Rabbi Yeshaya Horowitz (grandson of the Shelah and descendant of the Maharal), and served as head of the Council of Four Lands, the supreme halachic body of Polish Jewry. In 1704 he became rabbi of Frankfurt am Main, where he was deeply involved in mystical pursuits. In 1711, a fire broke out in Frankfurt and he was falsely accused of causing it through his use of practical Kabbalah, forcing him into exile in Prague. Around 1718, he set out for the Land of Israel but died en route in Istanbul, where he is buried. His famous ethical will, Tzava’at Rabbi Naftali Katz, has been reprinted many times. Among his descendants are many prominent rabbis and the Belz Hasidic dynasty. Of additional note: the verso of the title page includes a printed approbation from “Naftali HaCohen residing in the holy community of Posen” – none other than Rabbi Naftali Katz himself, whose personal copy this book is.