Beth Jacob Congregation (Beverly Hills, California)

Beth Jacob Congregation

Beth Jacob Congregation in 2015
Basic information
Location 9030 West Olympic Boulevard, Beverly Hills, California
Geographic coordinates 34°3′33.08″N 118°23′20.26″W / 34.0591889°N 118.3889611°WCoordinates: 34°3′33.08″N 118°23′20.26″W / 34.0591889°N 118.3889611°W
Affiliation Orthodox Judaism
Direction of façade North

Beth Jacob Congregation is a synagogue in Beverly Hills, California. It is the largest Orthodox synagogue in the Western United States.

Location

The synagogue is located at 9030 on West Olympic Boulevard in Beverly Hills, California.[1]

History

The congregation was started in West Adams, Los Angeles in 1925.[2] It was named West Adams Hebrew Congregation, and it was located at the corner of West Adams Street and Hillcrest Drive.[2]

In 1954, it relocated to Olympic Boulevard in Beverly Hills.[2][3][4][5] At the same time, the congregation became more traditional and Orthodox under the leadership of Rabbi Simon A. Dolgin.[2][4][5] In 1955, its day school was named the Hillel Hebrew Academy and moved into a building one block away.[2]

After Rabbi Dolgin moved to Ramat Eshkol, Jerusalem, Israel, Rabbi Maurice Lamm served from 1971 to 1984.[2] He was followed by Rabbi Abner Weiss from 1984 to 2000, and Rabbi Steven Weil from 2000 to 2009.[2][6] Since 2009, Rabbi Kalman Topp has served as the Senior Rabbi.[2]

In July 2014, a ceremony was held at Beth Jacob to honor the murder of Israeli teenagers Yaakov Naftali Frankel, Gilad Michoel Shaar and Eyal Yifrach.[7] Indeed, Lihi Shaar, the aunt of Gilad Shaar, is a member of Beth Jacob.[7]

Significance

It is the largest Orthodox synagogue in the Western United States.[6]

References

  1. ↑ Beth Jacob Congregation: Contact Us
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 Beth Jacob Congregation: Our History
  3. ↑ Marc Wanamaker, Beverly Hills, (Ca): 1930-2005, Arcadia Publishing, 2006, p. 39
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Kerry M. Olitzky, The American Synagogue: A Historical Dictionary and Sourcebook, Greenwood Publishing Group, 1996, p. 388
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Max Vorspan, Lloyd P. Gartner, History of the Jews of Los Angeles, Huntington Library, 1970, p. 261
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Michael Gilgannon, Let My People Go: Insights to Passover and the Haggadah, Rowman & Littlefield, 1985, p. xv
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 The City of Beverly Hills Lowers Flags to Honor Fallen Teens, Beverly Hills Courier, July 01, 2014