Joseph Telushkin facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Joseph Telushkin
Born	1948 (age 76–77)
Occupation	Rabbi, writer, lecturer
Genre	Judaism, ethics

Joseph Telushkin (born in 1948) is a well-known American rabbi and writer. He has written over 15 books. These books cover topics like Jewish ethics and Jewish history. One of his famous books is Rebbe, which became a New York Times bestseller in 2014.

Early Life and Education

Joseph Telushkin grew up in Brooklyn, New York. His parents were Solomon and Hellen Telushkin. He went to the Yeshivah of Flatbush for school. There, he met his friend Dennis Prager in tenth grade. They later wrote two books together.

After high school, Telushkin was ordained as a rabbi at Yeshiva University. He also studied Jewish history at Columbia University.

Career and Important Work

Telushkin has had a busy career as a rabbi, writer, and speaker. He was the rabbi of the Los Angeles Synagogue for the Performing Arts until it closed in December 2022. He is also involved with several Jewish organizations. For example, he is a Senior Associate with CLAL. He is also on the board of directors for the Jewish Book Council. Since 1997, Newsweek magazine has listed him as one of the 50 most influential rabbis in America.

Fighting for Human Rights

While at university, Telushkin was a leader in the Student Struggle for Soviet Jewry. This group worked to help Jewish people in the Soviet Union. As part of this work, Telushkin visited the Soviet Union. He met with important people who disagreed with the government, like Andrei Sakharov. Because of his efforts, the KGB (the Soviet Union's main security agency) listed him as an anti-Russian agent.

Books and Their Impact

Telushkin has written 16 books about Judaism. His book Words That Hurt, Words That Heal inspired a special idea in the US Senate. Senators Joseph Lieberman and Connie Mack suggested a "National Speak No Evil Day." This would be a day for Americans to try not to say anything unkind about anyone.

Another very popular book by Telushkin is Jewish Literacy: The Most Important Things to Know About the Jewish Religion, Its People and Its History. This book was one of the best-selling books on Judaism in the 1990s and early 2000s. It is still an important book for many people today.

Telushkin considers A Code of Jewish Ethics: You Shall Be Holy to be his most important work. The first part of this book came out in 2006. It won the National Jewish Book Award for Jewish Book of the Year. The second part, A Code of Jewish Ethics: Love Your Neighbor, was released in 2009.

In 2013, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, António Guterres, invited Telushkin to speak in Geneva.

In 2014, Telushkin released Rebbe. This book appeared on the bestseller lists of New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Publishers Weekly.

Speaking and Other Projects

Joseph Telushkin travels across the United States. He gives lectures on many Jewish topics. Talk Magazine named him one of the 50 best speakers in the United States. He also wrote an episode for the TV show Touched by an Angel called 'Bar Mitzvah'. The famous actor Kirk Douglas was a guest star in that episode.

Selected Works

• A Code of Jewish Ethics: Volume 1: You Shall Be Holy
• A Code of Jewish Ethics: Volume 2: Love Your Neighbor As Yourself
• Jewish Literacy: The Most Important Things to Know About the Jewish Religion, Its People and Its History
• The Book of Jewish Values: A Day-by-Day Guide to Ethical Living
• Words that Hurt, Words that Heal: How to Use Words Wisely and Well
• Jewish Humor: What the Best Jewish Jokes Say About the Jews
• Biblical Literacy: The Most Important People, Events and Ideas of the Hebrew Bible
• Jewish Wisdom: Ethical, Spiritual and Historical Lessons from the Great Works and Thinkers (1994, Morrow/HarperCollins) ISBN: 0-688-12958-7
• The Ten Commandments of Character: Essential Advice for Living an Honorable, Ethical, Honest Life
• The Golden Land: The Story of Jewish Immigration to America
• Rabbi Daniel Winter mystery series, including:
  • The Unorthodox Murder of Rabbi Wahl (also published as The Unorthodox Murder of Rabbi Moss)
  • The Final Analysis of Dr. Stark
  • An Eye for an Eye
• Nine Questions People Ask About Judaism (with Dennis Prager)
• Why the Jews: The Reason for Antisemitism (with Dennis Prager)
• Heaven's Witness (with Allen Estrin)
• The Quarrel (with Dennis Prager)
• The Case for Jewish Peoplehood: Can We Be One?, by Erica Brown, Misha Galperin, and Joseph Telushkin, 2009
• Hillel: If Not Now, When?
• Rebbe: The life and teachings of Menachem M. Schneerson, the most influential Rabbi in Modern History (2014)