Levi Isaac Berdychever -A Pleader for Israel

BY DR. H. RABLNOWICZ

(A Seven Arts Feature)

Outstanding among the Hassidic
saints who have flourished in
Jewry during the past two cen-
turies was Rabbi Levi Isaac b. Meir
of Berdychev (1740-1809), the au-
thor of the famous Hassidic work
"Kedushat Levi." A disciple of
Rabbi Dov Baer, the Maggid of
Messeritz, he settled in 1780 in
Berdychev, "the Jerusalem of Vol-
hynia," which became a stronghold
of Hassidism. He was affectionate-
ly known as the "Great Defender
of the House of Israel." Hassidic
legend has it that when the Berdy-
chever was born, Rabbi Israel Baal
Shem-Tov, the founder of Hassid-
ism, prophetically proclaimed: "A
great and holy soul has descended
into the world, and it shall be an
eloquent pleader for Jewry."

Friends and Customers a Year of Health and Happiness
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upon a Jew eating in publi c Lora or we universe, haast Thou
. On which the Berdychever
upon the Fast of Av. "Surely,"
enjoined nations, other than Jews
the Rabbi remonstrated, "yo u. to eat and drink today (the eve of "commented: "0, Yankel, Yankel,
? .did you let God off so light-
must have forgotten that Coda
the fast), they would surely have whv
ly
.
over-eaten
is the ninth of Av?" "No, I have over-eaten and drunk themselves
into a stupor. But Thy people And when the Rabbi had nc
not forgotten," was the reply
"Perhaps, my son, you are no , Israel are sober and are all stand case to present, he would question
enjoying good health and wer e ing before Thee. Hast , Thou, in the validity of the Heavenly Trb-
truth, a people comparable to u al. - "Do not our sages tell us that
advised by your doctor to eat?'
a person who is childless is not
Israel?"
"No, I am in excellent health.'
eligible
to be a member of the
Cried the Sage aloud: "See, I
Like all great advocates, he Sanhedrin
as he may be devoid of
Lord, what a wonderful peopl
would often use a good story in
How then are the Angels
are the Jews. Even when the
, support of his brief. Once a man pity?
entitled to constitute a 'Heavenly
transgress t h y commandment
said: "I, Yankel, am a poor tailor, Tribunal? .,"
'
they do not stoop to utter un
who the truth be told, have not
It was said of Rabbi Levi Isaac
truths."
been too honest in my work. I
When he saw a driver, clad i n have at times kept left-over cloth, Berdychever—and it is indeed a
Talith and Tephilin, greasing th e and I have missed an occasional fitting epitaph—that he loved God
and he loved Judaism but that his
wheels of his wagon, the Rabbi e :- afternoon service. But Thou, 0, love for the Jews
surpassed his
claimed: "What a holy people i s
Lord, hast taken away infants love for both.
Thine! Even when they oil th e
wheels of their wagons, they ar e .9._Q_Q_ Q .QQQ_Q_Q_Q_QQ9_932 _Q_Q_Q_QQQQjz9QQQQQQQQQQQ22,Q_ Q st _sus/J 9_6
mindful of Thee, and commun e
New Year Greetings
with Thee." And when he heard a
thief boasting to confederates o f
RAYMOND, HAROLD, LESTER GREENSPAN
the night's haul, the Rabbi co m-
mented: "It is still a long time t
Selichot; yet the man has alread °
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begun to confess his sins."
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His attitude to the sinner wa
nn
truly saintly. He was constantl ,, rrtro-lnnnnfInr/s'/iwi5-ir/fwlPS-crb--yyrn5-zs--y----yrtrtnns--tns-yyzns-
--.
striving "to love a good Jew a s
much as God loves a wicked one.
Happy New Year
He is reputed to have told an i -
veterate evil-doer: "I actually env
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you. For if you would only repen t
and return wholeheartedly to of
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Father in Heaven, a ray of ligh t
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would go forth out of every one o r
your transgressions, and yo 1
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would be luminous altogether."
If his anger was ever roused,
it was always in the cause of
Israel whom he defended fierce-
Happy New Year
ly against the itinerant Maggi-
dim who would castigate the as-
s e m b l e d congregations with
"fire, flame and brimstone."
OPTICAL CENTER
When he heard a preacher ac-
160
Vesper
cusing the people of a multitude
JO 4-6313
of sins, he protested vigorously:
"Lord of the Universe! This poor
Maggid complains bitterly
against Thy people because that
is how he earns his livelihood.
New Year Greetings
Give him, I beg of You, his daily
bread, and save him the neces-
sity of defaming Your holy na-
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tion."
The Berdychever was equall '
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distressed when he heard anothe .
Rabbi publicly admonish a congre
gant for the hasty and indecorou ;
manner in which he was recitin g
Best Wishes for a Happy New Year
his prayers. Said the Berdychever
"It is wrong to criticise a Jew, an
Phillips Shoe Company
on such ground. God will surel .
,
understand him just as a lovin ,
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mother understands the mum
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blings, seemingly unintelligible, of
Broadway, corner Gratiot
her little child."
Westland Center
On the Days of Judgment, Ros
Hashanah and Yom Kippur, the $
Great Advocate excelled himself
The House of Israel was on trial;
Happy Holiday
The Heavenly Tribunal was assem-
•
bled; all his legal- faculties, his
powers of eloquence and oratory,
REFRIGERATION SERVICE INC.
were called for and were fearless-
ly employed.
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In a famous colloquy, that has
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been set to music, he pleaded:
•
"Tell, me, 0 Lord, what hast
Thou against Israel? Thou hast 0 ,c, _QJLQ_Q. 9.A.R..Q.S....QW SU2_9_.9....CULSULUASUUSa-WaSUSULZAS. 9
.
written in Thy Holy Torah,
_
Happy New Year
`speak'. Unto whom? Unto Israel.
-
Thou hast written 'say'. Unto
_
whom? Unto Israel. Thou hast
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written Tonunand.' Unto whom?
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Unto Israel. Hast Thou no other
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nation to instruct in Thy Laws?
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Hence it must follow that Thou
lovest Israel. Have mercy upon cenlicrtro
lf-rnirtrisrn-n—ci
o .
him, and fulfill his great needs."
Emotion was not the only wea-
pon in his armory. He would
seize upon every technicality to
Best Wishes on the New Year
procure an acquittal. When Rosh
Hashanah occured on a Sabbath,
he seized the opportunity offered:
MR. and MRS. TED ROGVOY
"0 God, Thou hast forbidden us to
write on the holy Sabbath, except
in order to save life. Write us
down therefore for Life, as other-
wise Thou too mayest not write on
the Sabbath."
Holiday Greetings
He was always on the look-out
for facts which would place his
"client" Israel in a favourable
light. On one Kol Nidre night, he
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propounded this argument: "0
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Rabbi Levi Isaac fulfilled 'his
great destiny. He was endowed
with boundless optimism and with
a passionate faith in the inherent
goodness of humanity; he was ut
terly devoid of bitterness despite
the many tribulations to which he
was subjected. He could not "be
hold iniquity in Jacob nor per
verseness in Israel." Just as every
letter in a Sepher Torah is sacred,
so is every member of the House
of Israel sacrosanct and above re
proach. For a man is given two
eyes; with one he is to regard his
own failings, and with the other
he is to observe the virtues of his
fellow-men.
Innumerable are the anec-
dotes and aphorisms that reveal
the Berdychever's true nobility
of character. It is related, for
example, that he once chanced

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from their mothers, and mothers
from their infants. Let us, on this
Day of Days, be quits. Mayest
Thnn
fnr aivo
______"
__- mn
. _ _ ac T
__
_ fnr
-- - o1ve -

-

.

Rest Wishes to the Community

on the

Year

ESTO KRAFT

Makers of

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SMOOTH-TOP MATTRESS

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you sleep ON it . . . not IN it!

THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
60—Friday, September 24, 1965

3401 Riopelle, corner Erskine

TE 1-5940

