Judaism

Main article: Jewish history. See the Economy section of the Los Angeles County article for a list of such companies in Los Angeles County. However, in most Orthodox synagogues these positions are filled by laypeople. There are many other well-known companies with headquarters located in the County of Los Angeles or the greater Los Angeles area, but they are far beyond the City of Los Angeles (and the scope of this article). Since the Enlightenment large synagogues have often adopted the practice of hiring rabbis and hazzans to act as shatz and baal koreh, and this is still typically the case in most Conservative and Reform congretations. The companies below clearly benefit from their proximity to Los Angeles, while at the same time they also avoid the city's taxes (and other problems). The three preceding positions are usually voluntary and considered an honor. For example, Los Angeles charges a gross receipts tax based on a percentage of business revenue, while most neighboring cities charge only small flat fees.

Many congregations, especially larger ones, also rely on a:. Few major companies are headquartered within the boundaries of the City of Los Angeles for a variety of reasons, such as the city's high taxes. The same person is often qualified to fill more than one role, and often does. The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are vital to North American trade with the Pacific Rim countries. Note that these roles are not mutually exclusive. The most important industries in Los Angeles are entertainment, adult entertainment, and media production, aerospace, telecommunications, law, tourism, health and medicine, manufacturing and transportation. Jewish prayer services do involve two specified roles, which are often, but not always, filled by a Rabbi and/or Hazzan in many congregations:. Main article: Economy of Los Angeles.

The most common professional clergy in a synogogue are:. County, Whittier, Long Beach area
Area code 626 - Pasadena, San Gabriel Valley
Area code 661 - Antelope Valley including Palmdale, Lancaster; Santa Clarita
Area code 818 - The San Fernando Valley, Glendale
Area code 909 - Pomona, parts of the east County. Some activities -- reading the Torah and haftarah (a supplementary portion from the Prophets or Writings); the prayer for mourners; the blessings for bridegroom and bride; the complete grace after meals -- require a minyan, the presense of ten adults (Orthodox Jews and some Conservative Jews require ten adult men; some Conservative Jews and Reform Jews include women in the minyan). Area code 213 - Downtown L.A.
Area code 323 - Doughnut-shaped area surrounding downtown, including greater Hollywood, the Fairfax neighborhood, East L.A., northern South-Central L.A.
Area code 310 - West L.A. and the South Bay
Area code 562 - South-West L.A. A Jew can fulfil most requirements for prayer by himself.
Related topics:. From the times of the Mishna and Talmud to the present, Judaism has required specialists or authorities for the practice of very few rituals or ceremonies. (The "neighborhood councils" of Los Angeles began in 1999 and often follow different borders).

The priesthood is an inherited position, and although priests no longer have clerical duties, they are still honored in many Jewish communities. Signs have been placed on major thoroughfares designating some of the communities, a practice going back decades. Technically, the last time Judaism had a clergy was prior to the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 C.E., when priests attended to the Temple and sacrifices. These divisions have no legal status but are of significance to residents for cultural and financial reasons. Judaism does not have a clergy, in the sense of full-time specialists required for religious services. Most of the neighborhood names come either from farm towns that were annexed by the growing city, physical terrain features, major streets, or subdivision names coined by enterprising developers. Life-cycle events occur throughout a Jew's life that bind him/her to the entire community. The city is divided into many neighborhoods.

The laws of niddah dictate that sexual intercourse cannot take place while the woman is having a menstrual flow, and she has to count seven "clean" days and immerse in a mikvah (ritual bath). There are also unincorporated enclaves which are under Los Angeles County jurisdiction. tzeniut, modesty in dress) are perceived, especially by Orthodox Jews, as vital factors in Jewish life. territory. The laws of niddah ("menstruant", often referred to euphemistically as "family purity") and various other laws regulating the interaction between men and women (e.g. San Fernando in the northern corner of the San Fernando Valley is also a separate city entirely surrounded by L.A. Main article: Niddah. Both Santa Monica and Marina del Rey are surrounded except on their ocean side.

Reform and Reconstructionist Jews do not keep kosher, Orthodox Jews and some Conservative Jews do keep kosher, to varying degrees of strictness. except where it shares a boundary with the unincorporated communities of Ladera Heights and Baldwin Hills. From the context of the laws in the book of Leviticus, the purpose of kashrut is related to ritual purity and holiness. Culver City is surrounded by L.A. Food in accord with Jewish law is termed kosher, and food not in accord with Jewish law is termed treifah or treif. For example, Beverly Hills and West Hollywood are completely surrounded by the City of Los Angeles except for a small border the two cities share. The laws of kashrut ("keeping kosher") are the Jewish dietary laws. The city boundaries are quite complicated.

Main article: Kashrut. The San Pedro/Harbor City area was annexed to the city of Los Angeles so the city could have access and control over the Port of Los Angeles and is only connected by a narrow Corridor with the rest of L.A, which follows the Harbor Freeway for the most part. Many Angelenos consider the Eastside to be the area east of the Los Angeles River, above Orange County. During the course of a year, the full Torah is read, and the cycle begins again every autumn during Simhat Torah (“rejoicing in the Torah”). Adjoining areas that are outside the actual city boundaries of the incorporated city of Los Angeles include the South Bay, the San Gabriel Valley and the Foothills. The core of festival and Sabbath prayer services is the public reading of the Torah, along with connected readings from the other books of the Jewish Bible, called Haftarah. (formerly known as South Central L.A.); and the San Pedro/Harbor City area. There are many minor holidays as well, including Purim, which celebrates the events told in the Biblical book of Esther, and Chanukkah, which is not established in the Bible but which celebrates the successful rebellion by the Maccabees against the Seleucid Empire. Some other areas of Los Angeles include the Westside; South L.A.

They are also pilgramage holidays, for which the Children of Israel would journey to Jerusalem to offer sacrifices to God in His Temple. Or, consider the San Fernando Valley: Lying north-northwest of Downtown L.A., "The Valley" is a 15 mile (24 km) wide basin ringed by mountains. They are also timed to coincide with important agricultural seasons. For example, Downtown Los Angeles is the area of Los Angeles roughly enclosed by three freeways and one river: the Harbor Freeway to the west, the Hollywood Freeway to the north, the Los Angeles River to the east, and the Santa Monica Freeway to the south. Three holidays celebrate revelation by commemorating different events in the passage of the Children of Israel out of slavery in Egypt to their return to the land of Canaan. Some areas are bounded by natural features such as mountains or the ocean; others are marked by city boundaries, freeways, or other constructed landmarks. Some holidays are also linked to the agricultural cycle. See also Bunker Hill, Los Angeles, California..

The Jewish holy days celebrate central themes in the relationship between God and the world, such as creation, revelation, and redemption. The Los Angeles Downtown News keeps a list of ongoing development projects, updated every quarter, here (http://www.downtownnews.com/development/). Main article: Jewish holidays. For example, Downtown Los Angeles is gaining more skyscrapers (some of which are residential towers), the office vacancy rate is decreasing, and the value of housing units and homes continues to rise. Some consider it the most important Jewish holiday. sprawl has reached its geographic limits around 2000 (future expansion of the sprawl will involve leapfrogging across whole mountain ranges), so these numbers are beginning to change as real estate investment becomes focused towards the central areas of the city. It plays an important role in Jewish practice and is the subject of a large body of religious law. However, the L.A.

Shabbat, the weekly day of rest lasting from Friday night to Saturday night, celebrates God's creation as a day of rest that commemorates God's day of rest upon the completion of creation. In contrast to this, the extent of the region's suburban sprawl has been so thoroughly cultivated so as to result in a greater metropolitan area with a relatively high density of 7,070 people per square mile (2,730/km²) according to the 2000 census. Main article: Shabbat. This decentralization has resulted in the city of Los Angeles having a very low population density compared to other large American cities (less than one-third the density of New York City, and nearly half the density of Chicago). The Jewish approach to prayer differs slightly between the various branches of Judaism, although all use the same set of prayers and texts, the frequency of prayer, the number of prayers recited at various religious events, and whether one prays in a particular liturgical language or the vernacular differs from denomination to denomination, with Conservative and Orthodox congregations using more traditional services, while Reform and Reconstructionist synagogues are more likely to incorporate translations, contemporary writings, and abbreviated services. Los Angeles became a real city as automobiles began to be mass-produced, and as a result it developed somewhat less densely. Phylacteries or tefillin, boxes containing the portions of the Torah mandating them, are also worn by religious Jews during weekday morning services. At the same time, the area's reputation for sprawl is more historic than real in today's terms.

A kippah or yarmulke (skullcap) is a head covering worn during prayer by most Jews, and at all times by more orthodox Jews — especially Ashkenazim. It is not always meaningful to refer to Los Angeles as a distinct city, but people outside of Southern California commonly refer to the entire region as "L.A.," even though there are five counties, more than 100 distinct municipalities, hundreds of neighborhoods and districts, and more people than any individual state except for Texas, New York, Florida, and, of course, California. The tallit is a Jewish prayer shawl. Greater Los Angeles (also referred to locally as "Southern California" or "The Southland") is such a sprawling area that residents refer to broad general sub-regions. There are a number of common Jewish religious objects used in prayer. A major stretch of Wilshire Boulevard has high-rises outside of Century City, such as in the Miracle Mile, Los Angeles, California and Mid-Wilshire. There are also prayers and benedictions recited throughout the day, such as those before eating or drinking. The area around LAX as well as the stretch of Century Boulevard to the direct east of LAX also makes a small, mid-rise skyline.

Most of the prayers in a traditional Jewish service can be said in solitary prayer, but Kaddish and Kedusha require a group of ten adult men (or men and women in some branches of Judaism) called a minyan (prayer quorum). Warner Center in the San Fernando Valley has a small skyline of commercial towers, with the tallest being around 25 stories. Encino, also in the San Fernando Valley, has many towers along Ventura Boulevard and nearby streets that have high-rises with story amounts in the 20's. Another key prayer in many services is the declaration of faith, the Shema which is recited at shacharit and maariv. Downtown has the tallest skyline, however, which mixes a few extremely tall high-rises with many lower high-rises (most around 12 stories) from the times when there was a low height limit. All services include a number of benedictions called the Amidah or the Shemonah Esrei ("eighteen"), which on weekdays consists of nineteen blessings (one was added in the time of the Mishna, but the name remains). Century City and the parts of Wilshire Boulevard through Westwood together form a rather busy skyline that is often confused with the downtown skyline. There are three main daily prayer services, named Shacharit, Mincha (literally: flour-offering) and Maariv or Arvit. The skyline of Los Angeles consists of several different clusters of high-rise buildings; most of these clusters are not directly connected to each other.

Main article: Jewish services. The recent "rise" of South Park, the low-rise district of downtown south of Bunker Hill (roughly south of 8th Street and north of the Santa Monica Freeway), is bringing skyscrapers that are high enough in quantity and height to create an extended downtown skyline within a few years from 2005. The main article Jewish views of religious pluralism describes how Judaism views other religions; it also describes how members of each of the Jewish religious denomination view the other denominations. This is a brief list, however, there are many more. Some European Karaites do not see themselves as part of the Jewish community, while most do. Some recent, new examples of skyscraper construction include:. The Karaites, or "Scripturalists," accept only the Hebrew bible and what they view as the Peshat/"Plain or Simple Meaning";, and do not accept non-biblical writings as authoritative. Hence, what the office tower rush in the 1970s and 1980s added to the skyline is now occuring again in the form of residential.

The followers of Karaism believe they are the remnants of the non-Rabbinic Jewish sects of the Second Temple period, such as the Saducees, though others contend they are a sect started in the 8th and 9th centuries. Many of the new skyscrapers are housing, especially in Downtown. Unlike the above denominations, which were ideological reactions that resulted from the exposure of traditional rabbinic Judaism to the radical changes of modern times, Karaite Judaism did not begin as a modern Jewish movement. The skyline has seen rapid growth due to improvements in building standards, which has made some buildings highly earthquake-resistant. The third group is the largest, and has been the most politically active since the early 1990s. Despite its relative decentralization, Los Angeles has one of the largest skylines in the United States. Haredi applies to a populace that can be roughly divided into three separate groups along both ethnic and ideological lines: (1) "Lithuanian" (non-hasidic) haredim of Ashkenazic origin; (2) Hasidic haredim of Ashkenazic origin; and (3) Sephardic haredim. See also: Los Angeles Basin, San Fernando Valley.

The former term includes what is called "Religious Zionism" or the "National Religious" community, as well as what has become known over the past decade or so as haredi-leumi (nationalist haredi), which combines a largely haredi lifestyle with nationist ideology. The major waterway of Los Angeles is the Los Angeles River. What would be called "Orthodox" in the diaspora includes what is commonly called dati (religious) or haredi (ultra-Orthodox) in Israel. Lukens. Various ways of measuring this percentage, each with its pros and cons, include the proportion of religiously observant Knesset members, the proportion of Jewish children enrolled in religious schools, and statistical studies on "identity". The highest point in Los Angeles is Sister Elsie Peak, 5,080 feet at the far reaches of the northeastern San Fernando Valley, part of Mt. The "Orthodox" spectrum in Israel is a far greater percentage of the Jewish population in Israel than in the diaspora, though how much greater is hotly debated. The total area is 5.86% water.

The term "Orthodox" (Ortodoxi) is unpopular in Israeli discourse (among both "secular" and "religious" alike). Nevertheless, the spectrum covered by "Orthodox" in the diaspora exists in Israel, again with some important variations. 1,214.9 km² (469.1 mi²) of it is land and 75.7 km² (29.2 mi²) of it is water. They often overlap, and they cover an extremely wide range in terms of ideology and religious observance. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1,290.6 km² (498.3 mi²). There is a great deal of ambiguity in the ways "secular" and "traditional" are used in Israel. The extreme north-south distance is 44 miles (71 km), the extreme east-west distance is 29 miles (47 km), and the length of the city boundary is 342 miles (550 km). This term, as commonly used, has nothing to do with the official Masorti (Conservative) movement. has a total area of 472.08 square miles (1,223 km²).

Middle East, Central Asia and North Africa). L.A. The term "traditional" (masorti) is most common among Israeli families of "eastern" origin (i.e. The city is situated in a semitropical Mediterranean climate zone. This portion of the population largely ignores organized religious life, be it of the official Israeli rabbinate (Orthodox) or of the liberal movements common to diaspora Judaism (Reform, Conservative). Main article: Geography of Los Angeles. "Secular," or non-observant, Judaism is more popular among Israeli families of western (European) origin, whose Jewish identity may be a very powerful force in their lives, but who see it as largely independent of traditional religious belief and practice. Notable sister cities include Athens, Jakarta, Berlin, Mumbai, Vancouver, Mexico City, Makati and St. Petersburg.

Most Jewish Israelis classify themselves as "secular" (hiloni), "traditional" (masorti), or Haredi. Los Angeles has 20 Sister Cities, more than any other municipality in California. Even though all of these denominations exist in Israel, Israelis tend to classify Jewish identity in ways that are different than diaspora Jewry. There are crime video games that take place in Los Angeles such as Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (which has a city named Los Santos which is based on Los Angeles) and True Crime: Streets of LA (which takes place in Los Angeles and is a close replica of the area). Any Jew who keeps at least those laws would be considered observant and religious). One interesting example is a report on ten freeway shootings within two months [3] (http://www.nbc4.tv/news/4449599/detail.html). According to most Orthodox Jews, Jewish people who do not keep the laws of Shabbat and Yom Tov (the holidays), Kashrut, and family purity are considered non-religious. Numerous instances of all these crimes are documented on the LAPD press release Web site [2] (http://www.lapdonline.org/press_releases/press_releases.htm).

Many religious Jews do not look at one's denomination as a valid way of designating Jews; instead they view Jews by the level of their religious observance. Other common crimes include: car-to-car shootings (see road rage), drive-by shootings, thrill killings, hit-and-run accidents, and carjackings. It would not be unusual for a Conservative Jew to attend either an Orthodox or Reform synagogue, for example. The city's complex freeway system makes it easier to go on for miles, while still remaining in the same general area. Unlike Christian denominations, these doctrinal differences have not fundamentally split Jewish denominations, which continue to overlap on many issues. In Los Angeles, car chases happen more often than in most major cities (sometimes a few times in one week). Over the past two centuries the Jewish community has divided into a number of Jewish denominations; each has a different understanding of what principles of belief a Jew should hold, and how one should live as a Jew. Every day, the middle pages of Los Angeles newspapers are packed with reports of violent crimes which would be front page news in almost any other city in the United States.

Main article: Jewish denominations. According to a May 2001 Drug Threat Assessment by the National Drug Intelligence Center[1] (http://www.usdoj.gov/ndic/pubs0/668/overview.htm), Los Angeles County is home to 152,000 gang members organized into 1,350 gangs. Major changes occurred in response to the enlightenment (late 1700s to early 1800s) leading to the post-Enlightenment Jewish philosophers, and then modern Jewish philosophers such as Martin Buber, Franz Rosenzweig, Mordecai Kaplan, Abraham Joshua Heschel, Will Herberg, Emmanuel Levinas, Richard Rubenstein, Emil Fackenheim, and Joseph Soloveitchik. As a result, people around the world know that the number 187 stands for murder in California. Major Jewish philosophers include Solomon ibn Gabirol, Saadia Gaon, Maimonides and Gersonides. Many movies and songs about Los Angeles depict the fact that the city is home to a large number of gangsters and professional criminals. Early Jewish philosophy was influenced by the philosophy of Plato, Aristotle and Islamic philosophy. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C.

Jewish philosophy refers to the conjunction between serious study of philosophy and Jewish theology. Of course, the court of last resort for both federal and state cases is the U.S. Main article: Jewish philosophy. Federal cases are appealed to the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, which hears them at its branch building in Pasadena. The question is far from settled and occasionally resurfaces in Israeli politics. State cases are appealed to the Court of Appeal for the Second Appellate District, which is also headquartered in the Civic Center, and then to the California Supreme Court, which is headquartered in San Francisco but also hears argument in Los Angeles (again, in the Civic Center). The question of what determines Jewish identity was given new impetus when, in the 1950s, David ben Gurion requested opinions on mihu Yehudi ("who is a Jew") from Jewish religious authorities and intellectuals worldwide. In 2003, the tabloid television show Extra (based in nearby Glendale) found itself running so many reports on the legal problems of local celebrities that it spun them off into a separate show, Celebrity Justice.

In the past, family and friends were said to often formally mourn for the person, though this is rarely done today. Simpson are frequently seen in Los Angeles courts. However, in the latter case, the person loses standing as a member of the Jewish community and becomes known as an apostate. Thanks to Hollywood, celebrities like O.J. A Jew who ceases to practice Judaism is still considered a Jew, as is a Jew who does not accept Jewish principles of faith and becomes an agnostic or an atheist; so too with a Jew who converts to another religion. As a result, both the county superior court and the federal district court are respectively the busiest courts of their type in the nation. (Recently, the American Reform and Reconstructionist movements have included those born of Jewish fathers and gentile mothers, if the children are raised practicing Judaism only.) All mainstream forms of Judaism today are open to sincere converts. Unlike the largest city in the United States, New York, all of the city of Los Angeles and most of its important suburbs are located within a single county.

According to Jewish law, someone is considered to be a Jew if he or she was born of a Jewish mother or converted in accord with Jewish Law. Both are headquartered in a large cluster of government buildings in the city's Civic Center. Main article: Who is a Jew. District Court for the Central District of California hears all federal cases. The literature of questions to rabbis, and their considered answers, is referred to as responsa (in Hebrew, '"Sheelot U-Teshuvot".) Over time, as practices develop, codes of Jewish law are written that are based on the responsa; the most important code, the Shulkhan Arukh, largely determines Jewish religious practice up till today. The Los Angeles County Superior Court has jurisdiction over all cases arising under state law, while the U.S. The Halakha has developed slowly, through a precedent-based system. See also: List of mayors of Los Angeles, California.

Halakha, the rabbinic Jewish way of life, then, is based on a combined reading of the Torah, and the oral tradition - the Mishnah, the halakhic Midrash, the Talmud and its commentaries. The first notable achievement of the neighborhood councils was their organized opposition in March 2004 to an 18% increase in water rates by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (a municipal monopoly), which led the city council to suspend the rate hike pending further study. These have been expounded by commentaries of various Torah scholars during the ages. These and other regulatory requirements have proven frustrating for activists unaccustomed to bureaucratic procedures. Over the next four centuries this law underwent discussion and debate in both of the world's major Jewish communities (in Israel and Babylon), and the commentaries on the Mishnah from each of these communities eventually came to be edited together into compilations known as the two Talmuds. Though the councils have little actual power, they are still official government bodies and so must abide by California's Brown Act that strictly governs the meetings of deliberative assemblies. By time of Rabbi Judah Ha-Nasi (200 CE), after the destruction of Jerusalem, much of this material was edited together into the Mishnah. More than 90 neighborhood councils have been formed and all stakeholders in a district may vote for council members.

This parallel set of material was originally transmitted orally, and came to be known as "the oral law". The councils cover districts which are not necessarily identical to the traditional neighborhoods of Los Angeles, the borders of which often reflect those of cities that were annexed to Los Angeles (see Communities, neighborhoods and districts below). oral, sources. These advisory councils were first proposed by city council member Joel Wachs in 1996 and were incorporated in the Charter Reform of 1999. To justify this viewpoint, Jews point to the text of the Torah, where many words are left undefined, and many procedures mentioned without explanation or instructions; this, they argue, means that the reader is assumed to be familiar with the details from other, i.e. To make the government more responsive and to help encourage the cohesiveness of neighborhood communities, the city council has promoted the formation of neighborhood councils. Rabbinic Judaism has always held that the books of the Tanakh (called the written law) have always been transmitted in parallel with an oral tradition. The main problem seems to be that the city administration in Downtown gives more priority to high-density neighborhoods like Mid-City and Downtown at the expense of its far-flung suburban neighborhoods.

These oral traditions originated in the Pharisee sect of ancient Judaism, and were latter recorded in written form and expanded upon by the Rabbis. The city government has been perceived as inefficient and ineffective by residents of some areas, which ultimately led to an unsuccessful secession movement by the San Fernando Valley and Hollywood in 2002. the Sadducees, the Karaites), most Jews believed in what they call the oral law. The district attorney, elected by the county voters, prosecutes misdemeanors in unincorporated areas and in 78 of the 88 cities in the county, as well as felonies everywhere in the county. While there have been Jewish groups which claimed to be based on the written text of the Torah alone (e.g. The city attorney prosecutes misdemeanors within the city limits. Many laws were only applicable when the Temple in Jerusalem existed, and fewer than 300 of these commandments are still applicable today. Other elected city officials include the city attorney, Rocky Delgadillo, and the city controller, Laura Chick.

Some of these laws are directed only to men or to women, some only to the ancient priestly groups, the Kohanim and Leviyim (members of the tribe of Levi), some only to those who practice farming within the land of Israel. There are 15 city council districts. According to rabbinic tradition there are 613 commandments in the Torah. The current mayor is James Hahn and the mayor-elect is Antonio Villaraigosa. The basis of Jewish law and tradition ("halakha") is the Torah (the five books of Moses). The city has a mayor-council system. Main article: Halakha. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department polices all unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County and some cities which have contracted for law enforcement services because they lack police departments of their own, including Calabasas, West Hollywood, and Compton.

Related Topics. The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) polices the city of Los Angeles. For more detail, see Rabbinic literature. Main article: Law and government of Los Angeles. The following is a basic, structured list of the central works of Jewish practice and thought. area, such as Caltech, see Los Angeles County, California#Colleges and universities. Jews are often called the "people of the book," and Judaism has an age-old intellectual tradition focusing on text-based Torah study. Note: For more colleges and universities in the L.A.

Generally, however, the thirteen principles of faith expressed by Maimonides are considered authorative descriptions of Jewish beliefs:. ++Los Angeles Community College District. A comparison of them demonstrates a wide array of tolerance for varying theological perspectives. Since then, the LAUSD has embarked on an aggressive school construction program to relieve overcrowding, and has developed high-quality magnet schools to nurture talented students and encourage them to remain within the public school system. Over the centuries, a number of clear formulations of Jewish principles of faith have appeared; most of them have much in common, yet they differ in certain details. Wealthy and upper-middle-class parents placed their children in elite private schools like Harvard-Westlake, Crossroads School, The Buckley School, Milken Community High School, Notre Dame High School, Brentwood School (Los Angeles), and Marlborough School, while middle-class families fled into suburban school districts beyond LAUSD boundaries. the Divine origin of the Torah) are considered important enough that public rebellion against them can put one in the category of "apikoros" (heretic). After Proposition 13 in 1978, urban school districts had considerable trouble with funding and LAUSD became known for its underfunded, overcrowded and poorly maintained campuses.

Despite the above, in Orthodox Judaism some principles (e.g. The primary school district that serves Los Angeles is the Los Angeles Unified School District. For example, the ancient historian Josephus emphasized practices and traditions rather than beliefs when he describes the characteristics of an apostate (a Jew who does not follow traditional customs) and the requirements for conversion to Judaism (circumcision, and adherence to traditional customs). Maharishi Mahesh Yogi founded the Transcendental Meditation movement in Los Angeles in the late 1950s. This approach to religious doctrine dates back at least two thousand years. Los Angeles has been a destination for Swamis and Gurus as early as 1900, including Paramahansa Yogananda (1920). With no central agreed-upon authority, no one formulation of Jewish principles of faith could take precedent over any other. Gene Scott was based near downtown.

While individual Jewish rabbis, or sometimes entire groups, at times agreed upon a firm dogma, other rabbis and groups disagreed. Until his death in 2005, Dr. It is difficult to generalize about Jewish theology because Judaism is non-creedal; that is, there is no agreed-upon dogma (set of orthodox beliefs) that most Jews believed were required of Jews. Billy Graham became a celebrity during a successful revival campaign in Los Angeles. While Judaism has always affirmed a number of Jewish principles of faith, it has never developed a fully binding "catechism". In the 1920s, Aimee Semple McPherson established a thriving evangelic ministry, with her Angelus Temple in Echo Park open to both black and white congregants. Main article: Jewish principles of faith. The city has also been home to some very colorful religious leaders and icons.

Modern scholars also suggest that the Torah consists of a variety of inconsistent texts that were edited together in a way that calls attention to divergent accounts (see Documentary hypothesis). One wing of the Theosophist movement is centered in Los Angeles, and another is set in neighboring Pasadena. This relationship is generally portrayed as contentious, as Jews struggle between their faith in God and their attraction for other gods, and as some Jews (most notably and directly, Abraham, Jacob -- later known as Israel—and Moses) struggle with God. Los Angeles is the home to a number of Neopagans, as well as adherents of various other mystical religions. 350 BCE). The Self-Realization Fellowship is also based in Hollywood and has a private park in Pacific Palisades. The subject of the Hebrew Bible is an account of the Israelites' (also called Hebrews) relationship with God as reflected in their history from the beginning of time until the building of the Second Temple (approx. Today, the Church of Scientology has a major presence in Hollywood.

The result is a set of beliefs and practices concerning both identity, ethics, one's relation to nature, and one's relation to God, that privilege "difference" -— the difference between Jews and non-Jews; the differences between locally variable ways of practicing Judaism; a close attention to different meanings of words when interpreting texts; attempts to encode different points of view within texts, and a relative indifference to creed and dogma. Immigrants from Asia, for example, have formed a number of significant Buddhist congregations. Jews began to grapple with the tension between the particularism of their claim that only Jews were required to obey the Torah, and the universalism of their claim that the Torah contained universal truths. Los Angeles's large multi-ethnic population has fostered some of the less common religions of North America. This attitude may reflect growing Gentile interest in Judaism (some Greeks and Romans considered the Jews a most "philosophical" people because of their belief in a God that cannot be represented visually), and growing Jewish interest in Greek philosophy, which sought to establish universal truths. The Azusa Street Revival (1906–1909) in Los Angeles was a key milestone in the history of the Pentecostal movement. But by the Hellenic period most Jews had come to believe that their God was the only God (and thus, the God of everyone), and that the record of His revelation (the Torah) contained within it universal truths. Los Angeles has the second-largest Jewish community in the United States, rivaled only by New York City.

However, they viewed their God as the Creator and the one that mankind was morally bound to worship alone. A major temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is situated in West Los Angeles. Although monotheism is fundamental to Rabbinic Judaism, according to many critical Bible scholars the Torah often implies that the early Israelites accepted the existence of other gods. Roger Cardinal Mahony oversaw construction of the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, completed in 2002 at the north end of downtown. However as the persecutions of the Jews increased and the details were in danger of being forgotten, rabbinic tradition holds that these oral laws were recorded in the Mishnah, and the Talmud, as well as other holy books. The Roman Catholic Archbishop of Los Angeles leads the largest archdiocese in the country. The details and interpretation of the law, which are called the Oral Torah or oral law were originally unwritten. Los Angeles is home to adherents of many religions.

Together with the books of the prophets is called the Written Torah. See: List of Los Angeles television stations. The Torah given on Mount Sinai was summarized in the five books of Moses. Examples include the Daily Breeze (serving the South Bay), and the Long Beach Press-Telegram. This is the state in which it is to remain until a descendant of David arises to restore the glory of Israel (the current existence of the Islamic Dome of the Rock is not relevent to the Rabbinical view.). Many cities adjacent to Los Angeles also have their own daily newspapers whose coverage and availability overlaps into certain Los Angeles neighborhoods. The Second Temple stood for 420 years after which it was destroyed by the Roman general (later emperor) Titus. It strongly supports lowering taxes.

David himself was not allowed to build the temple because he had been involved in many wars, making it inappropriate for him to build a temple representing peace. Wisteria has been known to grow to house-lot-size, and in Descanso Gardens, there are forests of camellia trees. As a reward for his actions, God promised David that he would allow his son to build the temple and the throne would never depart from his children. If there were no city here, flower-growing could still flourish as an industry, as it does in Lompoc. Once David was established as king, he told the prophet Nathan that he would like to build a permanent temple. There are many exotic flowers and flowering trees that are blooming year-round, with subtle colors, including the jacaranda, hibiscus, phlox, bougainvillea, coral tree blossoms and bird of paradise. When the people pressured Saul into going against a command conveyed to him by Samuel, God told Samuel to appoint David in his stead. Unfortunately, many native species are so rare as to be endangered, such as the Los Angeles sunflower.

God knew this was not best for the Jews, but acceded to this request and had Samuel appoint Saul, a great but very humble man, to be their king. Native plants include: California poppy, matilija poppy, toyon, coast live oak, giant wild rye grass, and hundreds of others. The people of Israel then told Samuel the prophet that they had reached the point where they needed a permanent king like other nations had, and described in the Books of Samuel. The largest area is coastal sage scrub, which covers the hillsides in combustible chaparral. As time went on, the spiritual level of the nation declined to the point that God allowed the Philistines to capture the tabernacle in Shiloh. With its beaches, dunes, wetlands, hills, mountains, and rivers, the area contains a number of important biological communities. This is described in the Book of Joshua and the Book of Judges. Los Angeles is remarkably rich in native plant species.

Once the Jews had settled in the land of Israel, the tabernacle was planted in the city of Shiloh for over 300 years during which time God provided great men, and occasionally women, to rally the nation against attacking enemies, some of which were sent by God as a punishment for the sins of the people. Across the county a great variety of outdoor activities are available, such as skiing, rock climbing, gold panning, hang gliding, and windsurfing. Numerous outdoor clubs serve these sports, including the Angeles Chapter of the Sierra Club, which annually leads over 4,000 outings in the area. They first officiated in the tabernacle (a portable house of worship), and later their descendants were in charge of worship in the Temple in Jerusalem. Los Angeles is perhaps the most mountainous metropolis in the world, with four mountain ranges partly inside city boundaries. Thousands of miles of trails crisscross the city and neighboring areas, providing exercise and wilderness access on foot, bike, or horse. God set the descendants of Aaron, Moses' brother, to be a priestly class within the Israelite community. Los Angeles has twice played host to the summer Olympic Games: in 1932 and in 1984. After the Exodus from Egypt, God led them to Mount Sinai and gave them the Torah, and eventually brought them to the land of Israel. Area beaches are popular with surfers, who have created their own subculture.

God sent the patriarch Jacob and his children to Egypt; after they eventually became enslaved, God sent Moses to redeem the Israelites from slavery. Beach volleyball and windsurfing were both invented in the area (though predecessors of both were first invented in some form by Duke Kahanamoku in Hawaii). Venice, also known as Dogtown, is credited with being the birthplace of skateboarding and the place where rollerblading first became popular. As a result, God promised he would have children. His first child was Ishmael and then he had Isaac, who God said would carry on his work and inherit the Land of Israel (then called Canaan) after having been exiled and redeemed. In late December 2004 the name was officially changed to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in order to associate with the larger city while still complying with contractual obligations. According to Orthodox Judaism and most religious Jews, the Biblical patriarch Abraham was the first Jew. Rabbinic literature records that he was the first to reject idolatry and preach monotheism. At various times in history, however, the Angels have been known as the Los Angeles Angels (1961-1965), the California Angels (1965-1997), and the Anaheim Angels (1997-2004); talks in 2004 suggested the team was considering returning to the original name, over loud protests from the Anaheim government. It has traditionally maintained that this is how the individual would merit rewards in the afterlife, called gan eden (Hebrew: "Garden of Eden") or olam haba ("World to Come"). Anaheim, about 25 miles (40 km) to the south-east, is home to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim hockey team and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim baseball team.

As a matter of practical worship (in comparison to other religions) Judaism seeks to elevate everyday life to the level of the ancient temples' worship by worshipping God through the spectrum of daily activites and actions. Los Angeles has been without an NFL franchise since 1995 despite being the second biggest television market in North America. The Children of Israel similarly had a Temple in Jerusalem, priests, and made sacrifices -— but these were not the sole means of worshiping God. Los Angeles is the home of the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team, the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers men's basketball teams, the Los Angeles Sparks women's basketball team, the Los Angeles Kings hockey team, the Club Deportivo Chivas USA and Los Angeles Galaxy soccer teams, and the Los Angeles Avengers arena football team. Other religions at the time were characterized by temples in which priests would worship their gods through sacrifice. See also: List of sites of interest in the Los Angeles area. The Hebrew Bible) specifies a number of laws, known as the 613 mitzvot, to be followed by the Children of Israel. The Main Library is located in downtown Los Angeles and has been recognized as a National Historic Site.

Second, the Torah (i.e. Residents of the unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County and various cities within the county are served by the County of Los Angeles Public Library The LAPL is funded by voter approved bond and tax levy packages. The significance of this idea lies in that Judaism holds that an omniscient and omnipotent God created humankind as recorded in the Book of Genesis, in the Creation according to Genesis starting with the very first verse of Genesis 1:1: "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." While in polytheistic religions, the gods are limited by the preoccupation of personal desires irrelevant to humankind, by limited powers, and by the interference of other powers, in Judaism, God is unlimited and fully available to care for Creation. Residents of the city of Los Angeles are served by the Los Angeles Public Library (LAPL) and its branch locations. The Jewish understanding of this is that:. For more criticism, see Arts and culture of Los Angeles: Criticism. I am God your Lord, a God who demands exclusive worship" [1] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ten_Commandments#Exodus_20.2FDeuteronomy_5). However, this culture has also inspired criticism that it is not really a unique culture at all.

Do not represent [such] gods by any carved statue or picture of anything in the heaven above, on the earth below, or in the water below the land. Do not bow down to [such gods] or worship them. As a major global metropolis, Los Angeles has evolved a unique culture that is well-portrayed in popular media. Do not have any other gods before Me. Despite its young age, Los Angeles is known as the world capital of motion picture production, and it is also an important center for music, art, and architecture. This notion is derived directly from the Torah (the Hebrew Bible) where God makes it part of the Ten Commandments: "...I am the Lord your God. Main article: Arts and culture of Los Angeles. The first characteristic is monotheism. riots, the Northridge earthquake was a severe emotional shock to Southern Californians, in addition to causing billions of dollars in physical damage. Other major earthquakes include the 1987 Whittier Narrows earthquake and the 1971 Sylmar earthquake.

According to both traditional Jews and critical historical scholars, a number of qualities distinguish Judaism from the other religions that existed when it first emerged. Coming less than two years after the L.A. Thus, Daniel Boyarin has argued that "Jewishness disrupts the very categories of identity, because it is not national, not genealogical, not religious, but all of these, in dialectical tension.". The most recent was the 1994 Northridge earthquake, which was centered in the northern San Fernando Valley. During this time, Jews have experienced slavery, anarchic self-government, theocratic self-government, conquest, occupation, and exile; they have been in contact, and have been influenced by ancient Egyptian, Babylonian, Persian, and Hellenic cultures, as well as modern movements such as the Enlightenment and the rise of nationalism. Like most areas of California, Los Angeles's history is punctuated with major earthquakes. This is because Jews understand Judaism in terms of its 4,000-year history. A city-wide vote on San Fernando Valley and Hollywood secession was defeated in 2002.

Judaism does not easily fit into common Western categories, such as religion, race, ethnicity, or culture. The XXIII Olympiad was successfully hosted in Los Angeles in 1984. The city was once again tested by the 1992 Los Angeles riots and the 1994 Northridge earthquake. For all of these reasons, Judaism has been a major force in shaping the world. The Watts riots in 1965 reminded the country of the deep divisions that even the nation's youngest city faced. The tenets and history of Judaism are the major part of the foundation of other Abrahamic religions religions, including Christianity and Islam. The postwar years saw an even greater boom as urban sprawl expanded into the San Fernando Valley. It is one of the first recorded monotheistic faiths and one of the oldest religious traditions still practiced today. This period also saw the arrival of the German Exiles, which included such notables as Thomas Mann, Bertolt Brecht, and Lion Feuchtwagner.

Judaism is the religious culture of the Jewish people. World War II brought new growth and prosperity to the city, although many of its Japanese-American residents were transported to internment camps for the duration of the war. Islam and anti-Semitism. The city was the proud host of the 1932 Summer Olympics. Similarities between the Bible and the Qur'an. In the 1920s the motion picture and aviation industries both flocked to Los Angeles and helped to further develop it. Cultural and historical background of Jesus. In 1913, William Mulholland completed the aqueduct that assured the city's growth and led to the annexation by the City of Los Angeles, starting in 1915, of dozens of neighboring communities without water supplies of their own.

Jewish view of Jesus. Even more important to the city's growth was water. Christianity and anti-Semitism. Oil was discovered in 1892, and by 1923, Los Angeles was supplying one-quarter of the world's petroleum. Judeo-Christian. Railroads arrived when the Southern Pacific completed its line to Los Angeles in 1876. Comparing and contrasting Judaism and Christianity. Los Angeles was incorporated as a city in 1850.

Either an expert in the laws of kashrut, or (generally) under the supervision of a rabbi who is expert in those laws. Yankees gained control after they flooded into California during the Gold Rush and secured the subsequent admission of California into the United States. Mashgiach over kosher products - supervises merchants and manufacturers of kosher food to ensure that the food is kosher. Mexican independence from Spain was achieved in the 1820s, but the greatest change took place in present day Montebello after the Battle of Rio San Gabriel in 1847, which decided the fate of Los Angeles. Mashgiach of a yeshiva - expert in mussar (ethics). Oversees the emotional and spiritual welfare of the students in a yeshiva, and gives lectures on mussar. It remained a small mission and ranch town for decades. Somebody who is an expert in delving into the depths of the Talmud, and lectures the highest class in a Yeshiva. On September 4, 1781, settlers from the San Gabriel Mission founded the town and named it El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Ángeles de la Porciúncula, "The Town of Our Lady Queen of the Angels of the Small Portion".

Rosh yeshivah - head of a yeshiva. In 1771, the Mission San Gabriel Arcángel was founded, thus establishing a permanent presence in the area and securing Spanish territory. Sofer (scribe) - Torah scrolls, tefillin (phylacteries), mezuzahs (scrolls put on doorposts), and gittin (bills of divorce) must be written by a sofer who is an expert in the laws of writing. In 1769, the Spanish returned to California to stay. In order for meat to be kosher, it must be slaughtered by a shochet who is expert in the laws and has received training from another shochet, as well as having regular contact with a rabbi and revising the relevant guidelines on a regular basis. The Spanish first arrived in 1542, when Juan Cabrillo visited the area. Shochet (ritual slaughterer) - slaughters all kosher meat. The Los Angeles coastal area was occupied by the Tongva, Chumash, and even earlier Native American peoples for thousands of years.

An expert in the laws of circumcision who has received training from a qualified mohel. Main Article: History of Los Angeles, California. Mohel - performs the brit milah (circumcision). See also: The Greater Los Angeles Area. A dayan always requires semicha. People are attracted to the city for its balmy weather, its vibrant lifestyle, and the opportunity to realize the "American Dream.". Dayan (judge) - expert in Jewish law who sits on a beth din (rabbinical court) for either monetary matters or for overseeing the giving of a bill of divorce. It is one of the largest entry points for immigrants to the United States, and it contains people from every nation, making it one of world's most culturally-rich places.

Gabbai (sexton) - Calls people up to the Torah, appoints the shatz for each prayer session if there is no standard shatz</