Milchemeth Chovah

(POLEMICS)

Naftali Hertz B. Azriel of Vilna and Yonah B. Yaakov

Contstantinople

1710

First Edition

Yaari, Const. 272, J. Rosenthal, “Anti-Christian Polemics ...” in Areshet,vol. II pp. 130-179, O. Rankin,Jewish Religious Polemic (1970) pp. 157-228

The rare, important first edition of the most famous Medieval anti-Christian polemical debates . Includes Nachmanides debate with the notorious convert Fra Paulo (Pablo Christiani) held before the king of Aragon in July, 1263, Rosenthal #40, p. 140., David Kimchi (Redak) Rosenthal #43, Sefer Ha-berit by R. Yosef KImchi,Setirat Emunat Ha-Notzrim by R. Shmon Bar Tzemach,Rosenthal #82 plus the introduction to Sela Ha-machloket by R. Abraham Roman. The twelve final leave contains Reamim Ve-reashim by R. Yitzchak Luria (the Ari Zal) on the significance of various seasonal thunder storms and other phenomena. The so-called Viku’ach le-ha-RaDaK (pp. 13a-18b) was falsely attributed to Rabbi David Kimchi. The late Prof. Frank Talmage thought it likely the work was written by a Jew living in northern Italy, perhaps Milan. This peculiar disputation adopts the old strategy of “divide and conquer" by playing off the Cathar heretics and the Catholic Church, one against the another. Frank Ephraim Talmage, Apples of Gold in Settings of Silver (Toronto, 1999), pp. 212-237.