Eliezer Lieber of Berdichev: Difference between revisions
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* [http://www.barditchev.co.il/%D7%A8%D7%91%D7%99-%D7%9C%D7%99%D7%91%D7%A8-%D7%94%D7%92%D7%93%D7%95%D7%9C/%D7%AA%D7%95%D7%9C%D7%93%D7%95%D7%AA%D7%99%D7%95/ Biography of Rabbi Lieber the Great] — Berdichev Community Memorial Site | * [http://www.barditchev.co.il/%D7%A8%D7%91%D7%99-%D7%9C%D7%99%D7%91%D7%A8-%D7%94%D7%92%D7%93%D7%95%D7%9C/%D7%AA%D7%95%D7%9C%D7%93%D7%95%D7%AA%D7%99%D7%95/ Biography of Rabbi Lieber the Great] — Berdichev Community Memorial Site | ||
* [https://www.hebrewbooks.org/44024 ''Tzror HaChaim''] by Chaim Lieberzohn (grandson of Rabbi Lieber), on [[HebrewBooks]] — p. 12 contains some of his teachings and biographical details | * [https://www.hebrewbooks.org/44024 ''Tzror HaChaim''] by Chaim Lieberzohn (grandson of Rabbi Lieber), on [[HebrewBooks]] — p. 12 contains some of his teachings and biographical details | ||
[[Category:Disciples of the Baal Shem Tov]] | [[Category:Disciples of the Baal Shem Tov]] | ||
[[he:ליבער מברדיטשוב]] | [[he:ליבער מברדיטשוב]] | ||
Latest revision as of 17:29, 18 June 2026
Rabbi Eliezer Lieber of Berdichev (c. 1668 – 28 Cheshvan 5531 / 1770) was among the foremost disciples of the Baal Shem Tov. Some held that he stood not merely as a disciple but as a talmid chaver — a peer-disciple — of the holy Baal Shem Tov himself.
Biography[edit | edit source]
He was born to Rabbi Avraham Ashkenazi, a scholar of note and a man of considerable wealth. Rabbi Lieber was a fourth-generation descendant of the great Kabbalists Rabbi Shimshon of Ostropol and Rabbi Yechiel Michel of Nemirov, and traced his lineage as well to Rabbi Noson Neta Shapiro, author of the Megaleh Amukos.
Rabbi Lieber wielded profound spiritual influence. He lived apart, set off from the rest of the townspeople, immersed always in the study of Kabbalah and the meticulous fulfillment of practical mitzvos. The Jews of Berdichev regarded him as a holy man, and he was particularly renowned for his extraordinary hospitality.
He passed away on 28 Cheshvan 5531 (1770) and was buried in Berdichev.
His Spiritual Stature[edit | edit source]
In his youth, Rabbi Lieber lived in a small settlement near the site where the city of Berdichev would later be built, and would seclude himself in prayer in the forests surrounding his town. On one occasion, a local nobleman (poritz) came upon him and, angered at being blocked on the path, beat him severely. When the nobleman returned home he fell gravely ill. He was subsequently compelled to find out who the Jew was that he had struck, and at Rabbi Lieber's request, he erected a house of study on the very spot where the beating had taken place — and from that point the city of Berdichev took root and grew.
When Rabbi Lieber prayed, he was entirely withdrawn from the world. The Baal Shem Tov testified of him: "There are tzaddikim who merit a revelation of Elijah the Prophet. With Rabbi Lieber it is the reverse — Elijah the Prophet merited a revelation of Rabbi Lieber."
For Further Reading[edit | edit source]
- Rabbi Eliezer the Great: A Collection of Articles and Stories of... Rabbi Eliezer Lieber the Great, One of the Members of the Palace of... Rabbi Yisrael Baal Shem Tov..., Bnei Brak: Machon L'Hafatzas Toras HaChassidus Nachalas Tzvi, 2000.
External links[edit | edit source]
- Biography of Rabbi Lieber the Great — Berdichev Community Memorial Site
- Tzror HaChaim by Chaim Lieberzohn (grandson of Rabbi Lieber), on HebrewBooks — p. 12 contains some of his teachings and biographical details