On this week’s episode of the Seekers of Meaning TV Show and Podcast, Rabbi John L. Rosove, senior rabbi emeritus of Temple Israel of Hollywood, discusses his new book, Finding Your Moral Compass: Jewish Values for the 21st Century.
About the Book
Finding Your Moral Compass places enduring Jewish values in a 21st century context, offering a thoughtful and enriching guide for those seeking ethical direction and spiritual grounding through and in Jewish tradition.
In this collection of 40 essays, Rabbi John L. Rosove explores foundational Jewish values and helps readers affirm their Jewish identity while drawing connections between Jewish teachings and universal moral principles.
Rosove combines classic scholarship, compassion, and personal experience in his reflections upon Judaism’s age-old moral and ethical traditions and Jewish identity as they have evolved over centuries and since the Holocaust and the establishment of the State of Israel.
As a thought-leader at the forefront of social justice and liberal Israel activism in North America, Rosove draws from his personal experiences to present moral clarity and an ethical compass for liberal Jews and all who are interested in contemporary Judaism. With accessible prose and heartfelt insight, this collection of essays invites liberal Jews – and anyone interested in finding moral clarity – to consider how Jewish wisdom can serve as a compass in navigating today’s world.
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About the Guest
Rabbi John L. Rosove
Rabbi John L. Rosove is Rabbi Emeritus of Temple Israel of Hollywood in Los Angeles where he served as Senior Rabbi from 1988 to 2019. He is a past National Chairman of the Association of Reform Zionists of America (ARZA) representing 1.5 million Reform Jews, a member of the International Advisory Council for the Israel Movement for Reform and Progressive Judaism (AIC), and a past national co-Chair of the Rabbinic and Cantorial Cabinet of J Street (a pro-Israel, pro-peace, and pro-democracy political organization based in Washington, D.C.).
John is the author of four books –
Finding Your Moral Compass – Jewish Values for the 21st Century – to be published by the University of Toronto New Jewish Press in April, 2026 – please check back then
From the West to the East – A Memoir of a Liberal American Rabbi (Fresno: West of West Center, 2024) – available from the publisher directly here and at Amazon.com.
Why Israel and its Future Matters – Letters of a Liberal Rabbi to the Next Generation with an Afterword by Daniel and David Rosove (New Jersey: Ben Yehuda Press, 2019 – 2nd edition, 2023) with a Foreword written after October 7, 2023 – available from the publisher and at Amazon.com.
Why Judaism Matters – Letters of a Liberal Rabbi to his Children and the Millennial Generation with an Afterword by Daniel and David Rosove (Nashville: Jewish Lights Publishing, a division of Turner Publishing Company, 2017) available at the publisher and at Amazon.com.
John is a co-editor of Deepening the Dialogue – Jewish-Americans and Israelis Envisioning the Jewish-Democratic State (New York: CCAR Press, 2020), in English and Hebrew. Available from the publisher and at Amazon.com.
John translated and edited the Hebrew biography of his Great-Granduncle – Avraham Shapira – Veteran of the Haganah and Hebrew Guard by Getzel Kressel (publ. by the Municipality of Petach Tikvah, 1955). The translation was privately published (2021).
John also translated and edited a book of Hebrew poetry, letters and writings by his Israeli cousin Michael Shapira (1933-1952) called In the Prime of his Days with an Introduction by Hebrew University Professor Yosef Yoel Rivlin, Michael’s cousin and the father of the former President of the State of Israel, Reuven Rivlin (published by Michael’s parents, Devorah and Yitzchak-Tzvi Shapira of Petach Tikvah, 1953). The volume was given to John by Michael’s parents in 1973. The translation was privately published (2022).
John was the 2002 Recipient of the World Union for Progressive Judaism International Humanitarian Award and has received special commendation from the State of Israel Bonds. In 2013 he was honored by J Street at its Fifth Anniversary Celebration in Los Angeles.
John wrote a series of 8 Jewish Life Cycle Guides. The Guide Preparing for Jewish Burial and Mourning appears on the web-site of Hillside Memorial Park and Mortuary in Los Angeles. (http://hillsidememorial.org/jewish-lifecycle-guide/).
John writes a regular blog that appears at The Times of Israel at https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/author/john-l-rosove/ and this blog – https://rabbijohnrosove.blog/. His Facebook site is www.facebook.com/RabbiJohnLRosove – his LinkedIn site is https://www.linkedin.com/in/rabbijohnrosove
John is married to Barbara. They are the parents of two sons – Daniel and David. Daniel is married to Marina. John and Barbara have two grandchildren and live in Los Angeles.
The post Finding Your Moral Compass: Jewish Values Explained, with Rabbi John Rosove – Seekers of Meaning 7/17/2026 appeared first on Jewish Sacred Aging.
