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

Western United States The Western United States (also called the American West, the Far West, and the West) is the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the meaning of the term ''the We ...

.Michael Gilgannon, ''Let My People Go: Insights to Passover and the Haggadah'', Rowman & Littlefield, 1985, p. x

/ref>

Location

The synagogue is located at 9030 on West Olympic Boulevard (Los Angeles), Olympic Boulevard in Beverly Hills, California.

History

The congregation was started in

West Adams, Los Angeles West Adams is a historic neighborhood in the South Los Angeles region of Los Angeles, California. The area is known for its large number of historic buildings, structures and notable houses and mansions throughout Los Angeles. It is a youthf ...

in 1925.Beth Jacob Congregation: Our History
/ref> It was named West Adams Hebrew Congregation, and it was located at the corner of West Adams Street and Hillcrest Drive. In 1954, it relocated to Olympic Boulevard in Beverly Hills.Marc Wanamaker, ''Beverly Hills, (Ca): 1930-2005'', Arcadia Publishing, 2006, p. 3

/ref>Kerry M. Olitzky, ''The American Synagogue: A Historical Dictionary and Sourcebook'', Greenwood Publishing Group, 1996, p. 38

/ref>Max Vorspan, Lloyd P. Gartner, ''History of the Jews of Los Angeles'', Huntington Library, 1970, p. 26

/ref> At the same time, the congregation became more traditional and Orthodox under the leadership of Rabbi Simon A. Dolgin. In 1955, its day school was named the Hillel Hebrew Academy and moved into a building one block away. After Dolgin moved to Ramat Eshkol,

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

, Maurice Lamm served as

rabbi A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...

from 1971 to 1984. He was followed by Abner Weiss from 1984 to 2000, and Steven Weil from 2000 to 2009. Since 2009,

Kalman Topp Rabbi Kalman Topp is an American Modern-Orthodox rabbi, educator and author, currently serving as the Senior Rabbi of the Beth Jacob Congregation of Beverly Hills, California. Early life A native New Yorker, Topp was raised in Kew Gardens Hi ...

has served as the Senior Rabbi. In July 2014, a ceremony was held at Beth Jacob to honor the memory of murdered Israeli teenagers Yaakov Naftali Frankel, Gilad Michoel Shaar and Eyal Yifrach.The City of Beverly Hills Lowers Flags to Honor Fallen Teens
, ''Beverly Hills Courier'', July 01, 2014 Lihi Shaar, the aunt of Gilad Shaar, is a member of Beth Jacob.

References

{{Authority control Synagogues in Beverly Hills, California Orthodox synagogues in California Jewish organizations established in 1925 1925 establishments in California 1954 establishments in California Synagogues completed in 1954