Raphael Berdugo

Raphael Berdugo (Hebrew: רפאל בירדוגו‎; Meknes in 1747 – 1821), a son of Rabbi Mordecai Berdugo, was a dayan, a scholar, and an influential Moroccan rabbi.[1][2]

Berdugo was respected by his contemporaries, and his decisions continue to be a source of inspiration to Moroccan rabbis.[1] His peers saw him as an excellent speaker with a great natural authority, who did not shirk from conflict with the notables, pointing out for example their inconsideration for yeshiva students. He did not limit himself to his role as a dayan (judge), but was a community activist. Berdugo made the shohatim abandon their old customs and follow the Castilian customs. He also introduced reforms in the laws of inheritance, for example the inheritance of a husband and children in case of the death of a wife.[3]

Berdugo had a number of adversaries. One of them was Rabbi Baruch Toledano. Their controversies were quite heated and have remained famous.

Berdugo is listed as a saint in Culte des Saints et Pélerinages Judéo-Musulmans au Maroc, and Rabbi Raphael married a daughter of the Mashbir and had four sons.