Rabbi Arthur Schneier of Park East Synagogue in N.Y. said Rabbi Levin’s death “certainly is an irreparable loss and void.” Rabbi Schneier, who last June 26 became the first American rabbi to lead services in Moscow, filling in for Rabbi Levin when the latter was hospitalized for a prostate condition, said Rabbi Levin “was a rabbi in the old tradition who was the point of contact with Russian Jewry. He was very warm and had a very impressive, striking personality. He had love for his people.
Rabbi Moshe Sherer, executive president of Agudath Israel of America, said “the death of Chief Rabbi Levin is a great loss to the cause of Russian Jewry because his departure cuts one of the last links of Jews throughout the world with this symbol of Jewish eternity which he represented.” Rabbi Sherer, who met with Rabbi Levin during the latter’s 1968 visit to the US said the late Chief Rabbi maintained correspondence with Western Jews.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.