Rabbi Nolan Lebovitz, PhD, Defends 'Dual Loyalty' in Critically Acclaimed New Book

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 23, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Rabbi Nolan Lebovitz is proud to release his critically acclaimed new book, "The Case for Dual Loyalty: Healing the Divided Soul of American Jews," widely endorsed by some of the most important Jewish thought leaders of the 21st century, including Rabbi David Wolpe, Yossi Klein Halevi, and Professor Gil Troy (see endorsements below).

How has the October 7 massacre and fallout changed the American Jewish community?
The horrific massacre of October 7 and its aftermath around the world prompted Rabbi Lebovitz to speak out about the next chapter of Jewish life. Lebovitz synthesizes the Jewish turning point in history with lessons from the past, arguing that it is a moral imperative to radically change how we engage with Israel and the United States.

Subverting the trope commonly cast against the Jewish people, Lebovitz asserts that dual loyalty, paradoxically, is how we strengthen both the United States and Israel and ensure the survival of a strong Jewish peoplehood. Proudly declaring Jewish loyalty forges a new path forward imbued with pride in peoplehood and collective destiny. By challenging the trope commonly cast against the Jewish people in the diaspora, Lebovitz argues that affirming dual loyalty serves as our best hope to shape a brighter tomorrow here in the United States and for the future of Jewish peoplehood.

In addition to appearing on several podcasts and lending his voice to articles, Lebovitz will speak at various Jewish institutions to promote the themes in his book.

Purchase the Book Here

About the Author
Rabbi Nolan Lebovitz, PhD, is the Senior Rabbi at Valley Beth Shalom, one of the largest Conservative synagogues in North America. Shaped by a proud Zionist upbringing and as the grandchild of four Holocaust survivors, he has endeavored to instill a strong relationship with Israel in all of his congregants. As a prominent Jewish thought leader, his work has appeared in The Los Angeles Times, Jewish Journal, and Jerusalem Post. Rabbi Lebovitz is an adjunct fellow at the Z3 Institute, sits on the Executive Board of the Zionist Rabbinic Coalition, and serves as a national board member of MERCAZ.

Purchase the Book Here 

Endorsements
In his courageous and profoundly moving manifesto of Jewish pride, Rabbi Nolan Lebovitz offers keen insight into the dilemmas confronting American Jews in the post-October 7 world. Lebovitz responds to rising antisemitism the way our ancestors did: by reaffirming Jewish loyalty. Written with passion and grace, "The Case for Dual Loyalty" deserves a space on the short shelf of indispensable books on contemporary American Jewry.
- Yossi Klein Halevi, Senior Fellow, Shalom Hartman Institute, Jerusalem

At this critical moment in history – and Jewish history – how lucky we are to have Rabbi Nolan Lebovitz's courageous, unapologetic, cry for American Jews to develop a "proud dual loyalty." He justifies this timely, compelling call by taking us on a fascinating, learned journey into Jewish history, American values, and Zionist thought.
- Professor Gil Troy, author of To Resist the Academic Intifada: Letters to My Students on Defending the Zionist Dream

With both eloquence and erudition, Rabbi Nolan Lebovitz makes a powerful case for American Jews to care for — indeed to love — both America and Israel.
- Rabbi David Wolpe, Max Webb Emeritus Rabbi of Sinai Temple, author of Why Faith Matters and David: The Divided Heart

Anyone whose Judaism was startled awake on the morning of October 7, 2023, would do well to grapple with Rabbi Lebovitz's call to radically rethink the ways in which our commitment to living Jewishly informs and deepens our love for America, and vice versa. As great moral leaders ought to do, Rabbi Lebovitz offers us hard questions and harder challenges, the sort, hallelujah, that may yet rekindle our hope and accelerate our efforts to fashion a more promising future for American Jews.
- Liel Leibovitz, Editor at Large, Tablet Magazine

Rabbi Nolan Lebovitz's clear vision of Zionism dispels so much of the moral cloudiness that afflicts our community and instills a renewed sense of responsibility toward Israel and America.
- Rabbi Ed Feinstein, author of Tough Questions Jews Ask and In Pursuit of Godliness and a Living Judaism, teaches at the American Jewish University and the Shalom Hartman Institute

Media Contact: Rebecca Begin, [email protected]

SOURCE Valley Beth Shalom