A handwritten approbation (haskama) I acquired this week, written by Rav Zvi Pesach Frank, chief rabbi of Jerusalem in 1940, provided some fascinating insights into the state of printing and Jewish book publishing during the Holocaust Era. The approbation was written for Rabbi Eliyahu Landau (1873-1946), a great-great grandson of the Vilna Gaon, who was active in the early 1900s in Jerusalem, publishing many sefarim. Best known for his publication of many works of the Vilna Gaon, he was also the first to publish a Jewish edition of the Bible that was published by religious Jews and for religious Jews in Eretz Yisrael. (In that era, missionaries in Palestine took advantage of the financial difficulties of many Jews and published Bibles and distributed them to Jews in hopes of luring them in to their missionary work.) This approbation was for Rabbi Landau’s Jewish edition of the Tanach. It reads:
“…has begun the publication of a very necessary edition of the Tanach for Jewish students, he has already invested much funds in this publication but has yet to be able to complete it…
“Now, in these times of horror, when the enemy who is oppressing the Jewish people is destructing Jewish homes one at a time, between them the publishing houses of Jewish books have been demolished to their foundations and it has become nearly impossible to obtain texts for students in Jewish schools. The situation has become so dire, that the missionaries have since printed their own Bibles and distributed them among the Jews. […] aid him in his publication so the students can learn from a book printed in holiness. As it is well known that learning from books printed in holiness is a great influence on the readers to create a spirit of knowledge and fear of the great G-d.
“It is crucial that every man who fears for himself, shall purchase at least one copy of this Tanach. […] those that support this endeavor shall be blessed with all the good things, may we merit to see the salvation of Israel…”
