ABRAHAM BEN ISAAC AUERBACH:

By: Joseph Jacobs

Liturgical poet of the seventeenth century; born at Kosfeld and became rabbi at Münster. During a visit to Amsterdam in 1675, he was made acquainted with an attempt by a clergyman, named Christopher Bernard, to asperse the Jews, who triumphantly disproved the charges. Abraham ben Isaac composed a number of seliḥot (penitential hymns) and pizmonim (triumphant odes), the former while the danger was impending, the latter when it was past. These were printed by Joseph Athias at Amsterdam in 1677, in a brochure which has become very rare and which is distinguished by the number of rabbinical authorities who expressed their approbation of Auerbach's poetical efforts. Both the past and present rabbis of the German congregation of Amsterdam, Isaac Aboab, the ḥakam of the Portuguese congregation, besides rabbis and rabbinical assessors of Posen, are included among the signatories of the haskamah (approbation).

J.