Most Popular Books by Shmuley Boteach

The bestselling author of "Kosher Sex" and star of TLCs "Shalom in the Home" focuses on the problems facing marriages and nuclear families, revealing a great malaise in American life and offering some heartfelt solutions.

In this provocative and wide-ranging book, Shmuley Boteach makes the case for Kosher Hate, a seemingly paradoxical idea derived from Jewish theological tradition. In this startling and original defense of hatred as a moral response to evil, Boteach challenges the liberal notion that understanding and forgiveness are the appropriate response to evil deeds, arguing that this is merely a secularized version of the misguided Christian teaching—one that many Jews have embraced—that we must “turn the other cheek” and “love our enemies.” Instead, he maintains that it is Godly to hate evil and it is our duty to do everything we can to bring evildoers to justice. While forgiving petty slights is admirable, doing so with mass murder is an abomination. While loving our enemies is noble, this applies to those who steal our parking space or get our promotion at work. It does not apply to God’s enemies, those who engage in genocide and whose murderous ways destroy civilized living.

Honoring the Child Spirit is an inspirational, emotional, and prescriptive book that calls upon each of us to recognize and honor the openness, creativity, innocence, and awe of children—and to tap into and pay tribute to the childlike spirit that lies at the heart of us all. Adulthood, according to the late Michael Jackson, is not the be all and end all of growing up and living a worthwhile life. With society’s high expectations placed upon maturity and responsibility, we often shut down our curiosity, sense of play, and deep sensitivity. And with this shutting down, we too often fail to recognize and cherish that spirit in our own children—and the world’s children—so that they can thrive and flourish as children. With evocative chapters on the childlike qualities most important to Michael Jackson—from Awe and Wonder, Creativity, and Gratitude to Imagination and Security—this heartfelt book gives voice to the eternity of Michael’s spirit and how he should be remembered: as someone who tried to live by these childlike qualities. Though far from perfect, it was this attempt to sustain innocence amidst the trappings of fame that became his life’s goal.

Our culture is showing the cracks of a growing fracture. Soaring divorce rates; a crippled economy that rewards the few and punishes the many; religious-fueled hatred; record rates of depression-the headlines paint a grim picture. We inhabit a society that desperately needs fixing. But as Rabbi Shmuley Boteach reveals in his new book, Renewal, our society can made whole again when we as individuals make the choice to live a life based on values. For too long, conversations about values have been derailed by political movements trying to score points over hot-button issues like gay marriage or abortion. Boteach, one of our wisest and most respected counselors and spiritual experts, reaches deep into our history and into our shared religious legacy to revive the key universal values of Judaism for our struggling world. He presents these age-old ideas as guideposts for the challenges of modern times. These values, whose roots are in the Bible and thousands of years of Jewish spiritual living, can be applied to anyone in the modern world-from Christians and Muslims to atheists and agnostics-who want to renew their existence and recommit themselves to the most precious things in life. Renewal shows everyone how to use the timeless values of the Hebrew Bible and Judaism to live a more fulfilling, modern life.

With the publication of his runaway bestseller Kosher Sex, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach gained instant fame as a sage and savvy commentator on public and private life. Now he turns his outspoken energy and vast erudition to the core teachings of Judaism itself. During his years as Rabbi of Oxford University and founder of the university''s Jewish outreach organization, the L''Chaim Society, Boteach began to realize how well-matched the foundational beliefs of Judaism are to the broad human needs of the modern world. Unlike the dualist credo of other religions—in which the material and spiritual are always in conflict—the Jewish faith uniquely represents a spiritual philosophy concerned about life in this world, rather than in the hereafter. In Judaism for Everyone, this most unorthodox of orthodox rabbis explores the Jewish and Biblical origins of civilization''s seminal moral ideas and presents Judaism as a program of action for people of all faiths. Boteach''s interpretations and commentary are a vibrant celebration of the dynamism that is Judaism. Whether he''s peppering his points with stories from his childhood, promoting feminism, decrying boredom, or extolling the virtues of leisure and solitude, Shmuley Boteach never fails to inform, inspire, and surprise. Judaism for Everyone is for anyone who seeks a universal moral creed to maximize human goodness and inner potential.

In light of the October 7th massacre of fourteen hundred Israeli and American Jews at the hands of the savage terrorists of Hamas, and the brazen tsunami of antisemitism that has been overtaking the media and college campuses, it’s now time to fight back. It’s time for the rise of the Israel Warrior. Rabbi Shmuley Boteach provides the information that will win the war for Israel in the marketplace of ideas and publicize the justice of Israel’s cause. The Israel Warrior is an electrifying journey through the murky waters of Middle East muddle that allows the reader to finally understand the truth about Israel and the genocidal enemies who will stop at nothing to destroy it. The Israel Warrior is for those brave souls prepared to take up the cudgel in defense of the only democracy and human-rights-protecting republic of the Middle East and the first Jewish state in two thousand years.

In this alternately humorous and horrifying memoir, a Jewish father schleps his reluctant children around Europe on a hard-charging tour of Holocaust sites and memorials in order to impress on them the profound evil of Hitler’s war against the Jews and the importance of combatting genocide. In 2017, renowned author and celebrity rabbi, Shmuley Boteach, decided to take his family on a European holiday. But instead of seeing the sights of London or Paris, he took his reluctant—and at times complaining—children on a harrowing journey though Auschwitz, Treblinka, Warsaw, and many other sites associated with Hitler’s genocidal war against the Jews. His purpose was to impress upon them the full horror of the Holocaust so they would know and remember it deep in their bones. In the process, he and his children learn a great deal about the scope and nature of the European genocide and the continuing effects of global hatred and anti-Semitism. The resulting memoir is an utterly unique blend of travelogue, memoir and history—alternately fascinating, terrifying, frustrating, humorous, and tragic. “It is my honor to contribute a foreword to his important book, in which Rabbi Shmuley Boteach details the excruciating journey he took with his wife and children in the summer of 2017 to the killing fields of Europe, a pilgrimage which every person of conscience should attempt at least once in their lifetime. It is our universal obligation to dedicate ourselves to the memory of the martyred six million, just as it is our obligation to confront and defeat genocide wherever it rises.” —From the foreword by Amb. Georgette Mosbacher

Great sex consists entirely of motions, Kosher Sex consists of motions that elicit lasting emotions. Great sex is an undertaking of two separate bodies, Kosher Sex is two halves of the same whole. Twenty-five years ago, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach''s celebrated international bestseller Kosher Sex changed how we view and approach sex, marriage, erotic attraction, and personal relationships by drawing on traditional Jewish wisdom. Based on his extensive experience counseling individuals and couples, the author breaks down sexual taboos and openly yet respectfully discusses the meanings, emotions, and hidden power of sex. With his unique anecdotal style, Rabbi Boteach illustrates each and every point, using real couples who have discovered the joys of "kosher sex"—sex that blends passion and lovers—and suggests revolutionary ways of synthesizing the best that each has to offer. When half of all marriages fail and one third are sexless and platonic, Kosher Sex has an astonishing and electrifying impact.

In 2000–2001, Michael Jackson sat down with his close friend and spiritual guide, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, to record what turned out to be the most intimate and revealing conversations of his life. It was Michael’s wish to bare his soul and unburden himself to a public that he knew was deeply suspicious of him. The resulting thirty hours are the basis of The Soul of Michael Jackson. There has never been, and never will be, anything like them. In these searingly honest conversations, Michael exposes his emotional pain and profound loneliness, his longing to be loved, and the emptiness of his fame. You discover why he was suspicious of women and how only children provided the innocence for which he so desperately longed. In his own words, he takes us into the jarring moments of his childhood and speaks of the measures he took to try and heal. He divulges how he came to be alienated from his strong religious anchor and describes his views on the nature of faith. Michael brings us into his tortured yet loving relationship with his siblings. He opens up about his father and his yearning for a time when they might finally reconcile. He talks about his most personal friendships and shares with us his terror of growing old. Despite his unprecedented fame and recent death, there remain unanswered questions about his life. The answers, presented here in The Soul of Michael Jackson, will both intrigue and move you. You will be surprised, riveted, and troubled as you peer into the soul of a tragic icon whose life is an American morality tale and whose flame was extinguished much too early.

The Rules meets the Torah in Dating Secrets of the Ten Commandments, a fresh, sane look at the dating game by Shmuley Boteach, author of the bestseller Kosher Sex. Does the whole business of dating fill you with dread? Do you fear that romance always ends in rejection? Do you prefer the company of your cat to that of members of the opposite sex? Does life in Antarctica suddenly seem very appealing? Don''t despair! Shmuley Boteach will show you that lasting love is indeed within your reach, whatever your age, faith, or situation. Drawing on the ancient wisdom of the Ten Commandments, this book describes how to: Turn your date into a meeting of mind, body, heart, and soul Make your date feel like the happiest person in the world--because he or she has you! Enhance your attractiveness by maintaining mystique Become a heart-maker rather than a heart-breaker Know when you have found a loving soul mate rather than just a partner The Ten Commandments are the ultimate plan for fulfillment and contentment. In applying the timeless wisdom they contain to dating and romance, Shmuley Boteach will help you discover the joyful rewards of making someone else happy.

A world famous thinker, author, lecturer, and activist, whose diverse, acclaimed and immensely popular body of work covers such subjects as religion, relationships, and bravery, Boteach now turns his attention to America''s present state of mind and comes to the conclusion that fear is crippling society with unprecedented force. The only way to escape this climate is to learn what fear is and how to overcome it. He tackles fear headlong and answers the following questions: What is fear? What is it doing to us? Why is it affecting us now more than ever before? How can we be so powerful a society yet so succeptible to fear? How can we conquer it? Why do we need to conquer it? Face Your Fear is a book so relevant that it has a chance to be absorbed by society''s consciousness and to change the way we think.

From the author of the internationally bestselling Kosher Sex. A wake-up call about the growing trend of misogyny in our culture-as evidenced by the flood of reality TV shows, ads, and lyrics that portray women as brainless bimbos, or worse Shmuley Boteach, the social commentator and outspoken relationship guru, shares his grave concerns about our society''s growing contempt for women. Turn on the television: Reality TV shows such as The Bachelor, For Love or Money, and Average Joe boost their ratings by showing attractive women in competition for one man, one man''s money, or both. On a "quest for true love," these women quickly devolve into a pit of vipers-and millions of Americans tune in each week for more. During commercial breaks, women are objectified to sell beer, cars, and every other product under the sun. Flip on the radio: Women are bitches, hos, and gold diggers, at least if you listen to the rap lyrics pumping out into our mass consciousness. And female pop stars like Britney and Madonna, says Boteach, have pushed the envelope past provocative and into the downright pornographic. ''Tween girls across the country follow their lead, and standards for how women should be treated plummet. Perhaps one of the most troubling aspects of this trend, he says, is women''s complicity in their own degradation. Either they''ve become resigned to base stereotypes, or worse, they''ve bought into these mass market values (hence the deluge of shows like The Swan and Extreme Makeover, on which female contestants insist they need a new nose, teeth, or boobs to feel a positive sense of self-esteem). "There are strong consequences," writes Boteach, "in a world where men have no respect for women and women have no respect for themselves." Greedy gold diggers, brainless bimbos, publicity prostitutes, and backstabbing bitches-are these the stereotypes we want our sons and daughters bombarded by as they grow up? Hating Women offers a vision of how we can correct this downward spiral-along with a strong argument for why we absolutely must.

Celebrity author and therapist Rabbi Boteach shows how to use the power of self-talk to reach your full potential Some of the most effective talk therapy is self-talk therapy—learning to connect positively with that internal voice that serves as your own personal GPS to guide you through life. Rabbi Shmuley teaches the reader to reconnect with the inner voice of conscience, the source of personal dreams and values, which has been so drowned out by the noise of a culture that emphasizes form over substance, career over calling, and consumption over conviction. Drawing on Rabbi Shmuley''s extensive counseling experience, this book helps you defeat negative self-talk and strengthen your positive inner voices of inspiration, conscience, and deepest self to help you move forward and live your truest life. Filled with dramatic real-life examples and practical exercises, it guides you through the ten most important and life-changing conversations you will ever have. Shows how to use the art of conversation and self-reflection to turn negative self-talk into positive self-talk and improve your life Includes dramatic stories from Boteach''s own counseling work and practical self-improvement exercises Covers important life issues such as love, self-esteem, success, and fear of aging From the star of TLC''s television series Shalom in the Home and author of 10 Conversations You Need to Have with Your Children and other books Start the conversation today and you''ll find the voice of inspiration, the motivation to make the right choices in your life, and the ability to be true to your innermost self.

As many as one in three long-term marriages in America are sexless, and most people accept this as the inevitable course of a romantic relationship. In this groundbreaking book, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach explains why the prioritizing of love and companionship in marriage is all wrong, and why we should not go quietly into that dark night of celibate marriage. It is not love, Rabbi Shmuley shows, but lust that is the glue of a marriage. In this book you will learn how to restore lust to its rightful place as the central pillar of marriage. You will learn about the three principles of lust, and how to tap into them to keep the flames burning in the family hearth. Finally, you will discover the incredible emotional and spiritual potential of the intimate marital bond. In a wide-ranging discussion that plumbs the depths of the erotic mind, Rabbi Shmuley delivers a revolutionary message with the power to completely transform your most important relationship.

America has a contradictory relationship with sex. Sex is everywhere—advertisements, the Internet, magazines, and television—yet one third of all marriages in America are utterly sexless. Our over-exposure to sex has diluted the most powerful form of intimacy to such an extent that most couples have forgotten what passion feels like. In The Kosher Sutra, Shmuley Boteach, the New York Times bestselling author, delivers a much-needed guide to reigniting desire in our relationships while at the same time creating renewed energy in every aspect of our lives. Boteach''s Eight Secrets are the key to reawakening our dormant desires and releasing ourselves from the complacency that has taken hold of far too many of us. Honed from decades of counseling experience, the Secrets range from the role of innocence in physical attraction, to why we always want what we can''t have, to urging couples to practice reckless abandon in the bedroom. With his trademark frank and conversational style, Boteach offers practical advice as well as sage guidance through stories of real-life struggles and triumphs of couples who he has counseled throughout his career. Boredom has ruined too many relationships and The Kosher Sutra provides all the tools necessary to restore the fire, power, and energy back into the bedroom and everyday life.

Why do I have to repeat everything? Why does every conversation end in an argument? Communicating with our children. Conversing. Connecting. When did it become so difficult? And how do we begin to change it for the better? This book was designed to help parents answer these important questions, and it is based on two fundamental ideas: The first is that there are no bad children, and no deliberately bad parents -- but that sometimes, despite the best of intentions on both sides, there can be bad relationships between parents and children. The second is that, as parents, we must do everything we can to save those relationships, to reach out and really communicate with our children, because it is only through talking to them that we can create an environment for inspiration and change. In this compelling book, Shmuley Boteach, passionate social commentator and outspoken relationship guru, walks you through the critical conversations, including: cherishing childhood; developing intellectual curiosity; knowing who you are and what you want to become; learning to forgive; realizing the importance of family and tradition; being fearless and courageous. As a father of eight, Rabbi Shmuley speaks from a wealth of experience. He has written a book for parents of children of all ages, from toddlers, who are just beginning to become aware of the world around them, to adolescents, who must learn to navigate all sorts of tricky social and academic pressures. 10 Conversations will help you stay connected to your children so that they develop the kind of strong moral character that leads to rich, meaningful lives.

In 2000-2001, Michael Jackson sat down with his close friend and spiritual guide, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, to record what turned out to be the most intimate and revealing conversations of his life. It was Michael''s wish to bare his soul and unburden himself to a public that he knew was deeply suspicious of him. The resulting thirty hours are the basis of The Michael Jackson Tapes. There has never been, and never will be, anything like them. In these searingly honest conversations, Michael exposes his emotional pain and profound loneliness, his longing to be loved, and the emptiness of his fame. You discover why he was suspicious of women and how only children provided the innocence for which he so desperately longed. In his own words, he takes us into the jarring moments of his childhood and speaks of the measures he took to try and heal. He divulges how he came to be alienated from his strong religious anchor and describes his views on the nature of faith. Michael brings us into his tortured yet loving relationship with his siblings. He opens up about his father and his yearning for a time when they might finally reconcile. He talks about his most personal friendships and shares with us his terror of growing old. Despite his unprecedented fame and recent death, there remain unanswered questions about his life. The answers, presented here in The Michael Jackson Tapes, will both intrigue and move you. You will be surprised, riveted, and troubled as you peer into the soul of a tragic icon whose life is an American morality tale and whose flame was extinguished much too early.

Where was the hand of G-d on 9/11?Was G-d absent from Poland in the 1940s?Does pain make us into more sensitive people?Is a person who questions G-d still righteous?Rabbi Shmuley Boteach tackles the ultimate, timeless questions that go to the heart of the human condition and arrives at some surprising answers.Drawing on numerous confrontations with God from the Bible, and using examples of appalling suffering from todays headlines, Rabbi Shmuley argues forcibly against Rabbi Harold Kushner s best-selling Why Bad Things Happen to Good People and boldly guides us to the conclusion that challenging God and His actions is not just our right but our foremost obligation as human beings. This revolutionary book turns millennia of mistaken belief on its head, providing a concrete action plan for emboldening ourselves against victimhood. If life has ever defeated you, or if you have ever felt let down by G-d, this is the book for you.

Does it mean nothing at all that we are spiritual beings? What does one of the world''s oldest religions have to say? The author tackles these important issues in a freshly argued, provocative book that will stir debate.

"Something''s missing in my life." "Everyone I meet is imperfect." "I date and date, but I just can''t commit." "I''m so busy all the time." "Who needs love, anyway?" Sound familiar? For every such plea, Shmuley Boteach -- author of the international bestseller Kosher Sex -- has the answer. In Why Can''t I Fall in Love? Boteach blends time-honored wisdom with practical tips and anecdotes from his private counseling practice. Boteach presents a radical program designed to help singles (and even those in long-term relationships) make their dreams of love a reality.

Transmitting your passions to your children, motivating them with shared goals, and getting them excited about values are the most important things you can do as a parent. With great humor and insight, Shmuley Boteach, bestselling author and former host of TLC''s Shalom in the Home, lays out his guiding principles for taking your child to the mountaintop, and creating a parent-child bond based on vitality, exuberance, and mutual respect. Everywhere you go these days, you see unruly, unhappy kids, or lifeless, listless teenaged zombies. Admit it: even your own kids can be hard to reach. They prefer friends to family, video games to books, and headphones to conversations. But you’ve given them everything—what could be missing? According to Boteach, the missing ingredient is inspiration: giving your child the example, incentive, and tools to make something of themselves, to live life at the wave’s crest.

An unlikely pair of voices-the world''s most recognizable beauty icon and "America''s rabbi"-comes together to diagnose how meaningful, passionate sex is on the decline in Western culture, and what is necessary to save it. Sex is dying in America. Inundated with sex and starved for it, obsessed with it yet clueless about it, we are slowly forgetting how to make love. The crisis of modern sexuality is seen in high divorce rates, in the degradation of sexuality through pornography, and tasteless displays of empty, counterfeit erotica. Most of all, it''s seen in sexless marriages and platonic relationships where cybersex has become more addictive than the real thing. Sex has become so trivialized, coarsened, and vulgarized that couples no longer feel its pull. The once powerful and irresistible magnetism of sex is being diluted and drained. The authors propose replacing the 1960s'' sexual revolution with a new sensual revolution, a rediscovery of intimacy that encourages and ennobles human relationships, elevates healthy lust, and gets us from looking up from the glowing screens of our smartphones to the people around us, most especially the people we love the most. Lust for Love embraces the idea that what our most important relationships need most is lust. It is necessary to rediscover what''s sexy again, how to bring back romance, and to understand that in addition to love, we need lust to repair our unfulfilling sex lives and broken relationships. Lust for Love proposes a return to what lovemaking was always meant to be: a desire to know and experience another person in the deepest possible way.

Michael Jackson inició en el año 2000 un diálogo de varios meses con su amigo y confidente el rabino Shmuley Boteach: el ídolo más retraído y enigmático había decidido desnudarse ante el consejero espiritual que le había presentado Uri Geller y, por esa vía, ante un público que entonces le parecía incomprensiblemente receloso. Esa dilatada conversación se convertiría en un auténtico examen de conciencia y en las treinta horas de cinta magnetofónica que constituyen la materia prima de este libro. Nunca ha habido y ya nunca habrá un documento semejante. Instigado por ese guía, Jackson se adentra en las más recónditas esquinas de su existencia: cuenta, opina, medita, lamenta y proclama. Así nos va descubriendo hondas heridas y soledades multitudinarias, el anhelo de amores impolutos y los vacíos rebosantes de fama, las grandiosas inhibiciones y los delirios de grandeza... Así nos deja presenciar tanto su formidable amor a los niños como su pintoresca relación con el (otro) sexo, y en particular con el muy voraz de Madonna o el todavía incipiente de Brooke Shields. Así averiguamos por qué desconfiaba de las mujeres y cómo se fabricaba una infancia perpetua. Tampoco nos oculta los motivos de sus amistades y hostilidades, los momentos más espinosos de su vida y los extraños métodos empleados para arrancarse las espinas, su visión de Dios o de Hitler y sus peripecias religiosas, la tortuosa relación con sus hermanos, el lacerante conflicto con su padre, su pánico a la vejez, sus antojos y sus histerias... Si Michael Jackson fue una incógnita envuelta en un misterio (siempre iluminado por los focos), aquí se hallarán curiosas respuestas a las preguntas tantas veces formuladas y jamás contestadas. El lector que se asome a estas páginas se sentirá a un tiempo inquieto y cautivado, estupefacto y conmovido.

JUST AFTER MIDNIGHT, shell-shocked and numb, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach got the news that his father had died. There were so many details to attend to - and as soon as the funeral was over, his obligation to say Kaddish began. Three times a day, every day, for eleven months, he would need to assemble a quorum of ten to say the Jewish mourning prayer for his father... while much of the world was in lockdown. With sensitivity, wisdom, humility, and even a liberal dose of his trademark humor, Rabbi Shmuley takes us through his year of mourning and shares the lessons learned. This moving book touches on universal themes about grief, love, and how to move on with life after the deepest loss