Decision del ... Sevi Asquennazi, ... sobre el problema si naturaleza, y DIOS, ... es todo uno ... Segun to predico' el Senor H.H.R. David Nieto ... (Decision of ...R[abbi] Zevi Ashkenazi ... on the problem of whether God and nature ... are one ... as preached by David Nieto...) Zevi Hirsch ben Jacob Ashkenazi, London: James Dover, 1705

13 leaves (8 1/2 x 6 in.; 215 x 155 mm). 2 ff.+5 pp+5 pp [hebrew]+9 pp. Title page with stamp residue and subsequent repair. Lightly  browned and soiled, cracking at gutter; second part [Respuesta] from another copy with its own flyleaf and marbled endpaper, detached. Modern kid.

Palau, 18566;  ESTC, 13696; Vinograd, London 19; Derek Taylor, British Chief Rabbis:1654-2006, London: 2007.

An extremely rare first edition of the Haham Zevi's Exoneration of David Nieto in Hebrew and Spanish

The appointment of Rabbi David Nieto as haham of the Spanish and Portuguese Synagogue in London in 1701 had not been celebrated by all members of the community.  His vociferous opposition to the followers of Sabbetai Sevi (such as his predecessor in London, Solomon Ayllon) made Nieto a target for members of the congregation who still derived inspiration from the false Messiah. Following a controversial sermon on the topic of God and nature delivered in November of 1703, an expanded version of his remarks was published in 1704 (see previous lot). Nieto's sermon and the controversy it inspired point to the fractious nature of London's small, tightly knit community of Sephardic Jews.

When a complaint against Nieto was lodged with the Amsterdam rabbinical court, they proved reluctant to get involved in the contentious issue, instead suggesting that the matter be passed on to the eminent Talmudist and legal scholar, Rabbi Zevi Hirsch Ashkenazi (Haham Tzvi) of Altona.  Although the Western Sephardim generally belittled the cultural achievements of their German and Eastern European coreligionists, Ashkenazi's erudition and stature were so revered by the Spanish and Portuguese Jews that his authority was considered unimpeachable.

After Ashkenazi ruled in favor of Nieto, the leaders of the London community published a pamphlet in Spanish containing two documents relating to the incident: the original complaint lodged by Joshua Zarfatti against David Nieto and Haham Zevi Hirsch Ashkenazi's responsum vindicating Nieto's position.  The original Hebrew text of the responsum was also included as was an introduction that chronicled the entire series of events beginning with the original sermon in 1703 and enumerating events through the Autumn of 1705.

These documents reflect the powerful intellectual currents and contentious social issues that deeply impacted Sephardic Jewish life in the eighteenth century. The international scope of this dispute points to another defining element of early modern Sephardic life.  The Spanish-Portuguese Jews of London hailed from throughout Europe, they profited from transatlantic and continental commercial activities and saw themselves as part of the wider network of Western Sephardic congregations centered around the Amsterdam kehillah.