Rabbi Levi Shemtov

Rabbi Levi Shemtov is the founder and spiritual leader of TheSHUL of the Nation’s Capital. TheSHUL offers a unique place for Jewish life, regardless of formal affiliation, children's programs, Torah study programs and celebrations of Shabbat and Jewish holidays. He has been dubbed "the rabbi of Capitol Hill".

Rabbi Shemtov is also the Executive Vice President of American Friends of Lubavitch (Chabad) and serves the daily governmental and diplomatic needs of the international Chabad-Lubavitch movement, the world's largest and fastest growing Jewish network of educational and social service institutions, with over 3,500 centers in 49 states and over 80 countries. He maintains close relationships with numerous members of the United States Congress, senior Administration officials and leaders in the international community, including a number of heads of state and government. Rabbi Shemtov chairs the organizing committee of the International Chabad-Lubavitch Conference - Living Legacy, which facilitates high-level interaction between rabbis and communal leadership from around the globe and prominent US and international figures in the arenas of government, diplomacy, academia and the arts. 

Programs he organizes include several signature events such as the annual lighting ceremony of the National Chanukah Menorah drawing thousands to The Ellipse (across from the White House) every year, and seen by millions more via various media and the internet. In addition, he founded and directs the Capitol Jewish Forum, which is the largest (apolitical) Jewish group on Capitol Hill, designed to "create and enhance a sense of identity and community among Jewish Congressional staffers and members of Congress" and which enjoys strong support of the Leadership and members of both parties in the US Senate and House of Representatives. Rabbi Shemtov is often at the White House, Pentagon, United States Department of State and other venues in official Washington, seen by many as an effective, bipartisan unifier and premier Jewish resource. He has overseen the koshering of the White House for the celebration of Jewish American Heritage Month and Chanukah in the administrations of George W. Bush and Barack Obama.

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