Luciano Moše Prelević

Rabbi Luciano Moše Prelević
Position	Rabbi
Synagogue	Jewish community Zagreb Synagogue
Began	2008
Predecessor	Rabbi Zvi Eliezer Alonie
Other	Chief rabbi of the Montenegro Jewish community (2013–present)
Personal details
Born	1953 (age 71–72) Zagreb, SFR Yugoslavia, (now Croatia)
Nationality	Croatia
Denomination	Orthodox Judaism
Residence	Zagreb
Alma mater	Shehebar Sephardic Rabbinical College Jerusalem

Rabbi Luciano Moše Prelević (born 1953 in Zagreb) is Croatian rabbi of the Jewish community Zagreb and chief rabbi of the Montenegro Jewish community.

Early life and family

From his mother's side of the family he is a descent of the Split Jewish family Levi. His great-grandfather, Mojsije Levi, was a rabbi in Split in the early 20th century. He came to Split from the island of Corfu, Greece, where he married a daughter of Marijo Goldstein, one of the most popular Split photographers, who arrived in Split from Poland. Prelević spent his youth in Split. He studied architecture in Split and Zagreb.

Later years

Prelevic worked at the Croatian oil and gas company INA. His cousin brought him in the Jewish community of Zagreb and there he became interested in Judaism. In the Jewish community of Zagreb Prelević intensified his religious life and devoted himself to the study of Torah. Prelević read English literature translated from Hebrew, and as he wanted to read the originals, he started to learn Hebrew. In 1999 Kotel Da-Don, another Croatian rabbi, offered him to go for one year in Jerusalem, to learn for a teacher and then return to Zagreb. After that he decided to become a rabbi. The Jewish community of Zagreb supported him with a scholarship. In rabbinical college, Yeshiva, he spent eight years and graduated in 2007, as the best student of his class at the Ashkenazi Yeshiva. In the study the subjects that Prelević completed were Halakha and Jewish philosophy. He obtained the diploma of the rabbi from a rabbi of the Yeshiva. In 2008 he was commissioned into the service as a rabbi of the Jewish community in Zagreb. Prelević is the first Croatian born rabbi of the Jewish community in Zagreb since rabbi Miroslav Šalom Freiberger, who was killed in Auschwitz concentration camp. In 2013 Prelević was named chief rabbi of the Montenegro Jewish community.