“When you think ‘America’ and ‘rabbi,’ you think Wolpe,” said one longtime Jewish journalist, echoing the view of many others. “He’s steering the course for the decade.” In addition to inspiring over-the-top devotion at Sinai Temple in Beverly Hills—the largest Conservative temple west of the Mississippi—Wolpe has created something of an online mega-church, more than doubling his Facebook followers since our last list: 25,000 have joined his page as “fans” who receive his daily sermonic posts, and he actually takes the time to answer many of the comments personally. (Some fault the occasionally too-pat epistles, but huge numbers find insight.) A seasoned defender of faith (Christopher Hitchens was a frequent challenger), Wolpe spent last year defending God in venues from Mexico to Great Britain. His rousing Friday night service, Friday Night Live—known by insiders as FNL—which Wolpe created with troubadour Craig Taubman and has been emulated, recently celebrated its 13th anniversary. (2011: #2)
