Holzman, Elijah Moses. Emek Repha'im ["Valley of Repha'im": Indictment of American Reform Judaism]

(AMERICAN JUDAICA).

Leib Chaim Frank

New York

1865

FIRST EDITION. Text in square Hebrew characters, introduction in rabbinic font. English page of endorsements from M.J. Raphall, and S.M. Isaacs.

Singerman 1894; Goldman, Hebrew Printing in America 1089

Following the Avnei Yehoshua, the Second Hebrew Book Printed in America, The First on an American Theme. According to the title page, "Repha'im" (Biblical giants of old) is a pun on "roph'im" (doctors), an allusion to the likes of Dr. Isaac Mayer Wise of Cincinnati, who spearheaded Reform in America. The book is dedicated to Shachna Isaacs of Cincinnati, who openly denounced Wise, publicly burning his Reform prayer book (p.4). Punning on Wise's name, the author refers to him as "the white hair" of leprosy (see Leviticus 13:3). (In German, "weiss" means white.) For the same reason, Wise is referred to as "Doctor Laban" (p. 13), ("Laban," besides being the villainous father-in-law of Jacob, is the color white.) Also held up to ridicule are Rothenheim ("Edom") of Cincinnati (pp. 10-11) and Dr. Max Lilienthal (pp. 17-19). See I. H. Sharfman, The First Rabbi - Origins of Conflict between Orthodox & Reform: Jewish Polemic Warfare in pre-Civil War America (1988) pp. 426-7.