Levi Yitzchok of Berditchev

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The front page of a copy of Kedushas Levi printed in 1861

Levi Yitzchok of Berditchev (1740-1810), known as the Berdichever Rebbe was a rabbi and Hasidic leader. He was one of the main disciples of the Maggid of Mezritch. Reb Levi Yitzchok was known as the "defense attorney" for the Jewish people, because it was believed that he could intercede on their behalf before God. Known for his compassion for every Jew, he was therefore one of the most beloved leaders of Eastern European Jewry. He authored the Hasidic classic Kedushas Levi, which is a commentary on many Jewish religious books and laws, and is arranged according to the weekly Torah portion.

Rabbi Levi Yitzchak wrote some popular Hasidic religious folk songs, including Dude'le and "The Kaddish of Rebbe Levi Yitzchok." Reb Levi Yitzchak also composed a prayer in Yiddish, "God of Abraham", that many Jewish people recite at the close of the Sabbath. He was buried in the old cemetery in Berdychiv, Ukraine. His direct descendant, Rabbi Lavey Derby, is Senior Rabbi at the Conservative synagogue Congregation Kol Shofar in Tiburon, California.

Paul Robeson often sang a musical rendition of Yitzchok's famous Kaddish.

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