Temple Emanuel (Beverly Hills, California)
| Temple Emanuel | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Basic information | |
| Location | 8844 Burton Way, Beverly Hills, California |
| Geographic coordinates | 34°04′18″N 118°23′06″W / 34.0718°N 118.3851°W |
| Affiliation | Reform Judaism |
| Architectural description | |
| Architect(s) | Sidney Eisenshtat |
| Completed | 1953 |
Temple Emanuel is a Reform synagogue in Beverly Hills, California.
Location
It is located at 8844 Burton Way in Beverly Hills, California.[1][2][3]
History
The synagogue was founded in 1938.[4][5] The first rabbi, Ernest Trattner, served until 1947, when he left amid dissension among the congregation, culminating in litigation.[6]
The current building, completed in 1953, was the first religious building designed by architect Sidney Eisenshtat, who went on to become a noted designer of synagogues and Jewish academic buildings.[7] Built with red brick and concrete, it is considered an important example of modernist synagogue architecture.[8]
Inside, the Belle Chapel presents a permanent memorial to the victims of the Holocaust.[9] The sculpture inside the chapel was designed by Dr Eric May and donated by Nicolai Joffe.[9]
Isaiah Zeldin served as one of its rabbis from 1958 until he left to found Stephen S. Wise Temple in Bel Air in 1964.[10][11] Meanwhile, comedian Groucho Marx was a congregant.[12]
By 1993, the synagogue had a US$2-million debt.[2] One of the proposed solutions was to merge with the Wilshire Boulevard Temple, a large Reform synagogue located at Western and Vermont avenues in Koreatown.[13] However, Temple Emanuel's congregation narrowly voted to reject the merger, deciding that it would change the traditional culture of the synagogue too much.[2] Finances were stabilized by donations, and a capital campaign eventually yielded some $10 million.[14] The building underwent a substantial renovation in 2011, under the supervision of Rios Clementi Hale Studios.[8][15]
At present
Since 1994, Laura Geller has served as senior rabbi.[1] Geller was the first female graduate of the Reform movement's rabbinical school, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, to head a major metropolitan congregation.[16]
References
- 1 2 Official website: Homepage
- 1 2 3 Mathis Chazanov, Temple Emanuel Congregation Rejects Merger : Religion: Despite support by acting rabbi and board, members voted against joining Wilshire Boulevard Temple. Decision leaves a $2-million debt and squelches hopes of easy solution to finding a new rabbi., The Los Angeles Times, December 09, 1993
- ↑ Oded Rosen, The Encyclopedia of Jewish institutions: United States & Canada, Mosadot Publications, 1983, p. 18. .
- ↑ Marc Wanamaker, Beverly Hills:: 1930-2005, Arcadia Publishing, 2006
- ↑ Official website: About Temple Emanuel
- ↑ Westwood Temple v. Emanuel Center, 98 Cal.App.2d 755, 221 P.2d 146 (1950). Copy of opinion available here at Google Scholar.
- ↑ Samuel D. Gruber, "Sidney Eisenshtat, 90, Leading Synagogue Architect", Forward, April 1, 2005.
- 1 2 "Temple Emanuel", Los Angeles Conservancy (accessed 2014-10-06).
- 1 2 David M. Szonzyi, The Holocaust: An Annotated Bibliography and Resource Guide, KTAV Publishing House, Inc., 1985, pp. 278-279
- ↑ "Isaiah Zeldin, 1st Dean" at Hebrew Union College website (accessed March 21, 2010), archive.org copy here.
- ↑ Los Angeles, Jewish Virtual Library
- ↑ Charlotte Chandler, Hello, I Must Be Going: Groucho and His Friends, New York: Simon and Schuster, 2012
- ↑ Mathis Chazanov, "Wilshire Blvd., Emanuel Temples to Merge", Los Angeles Times, September 2, 1993.
- ↑ Ryan Torok, "Bruce Corwin can’t stop giving", The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles, November 6, 2013.
- ↑ Mayer Rus, "Back to Shul", Los Angeles Times Magazine, December 4, 2011, pp. 46-53.
- ↑ Karla Goldman, "Laura Geller", Jewish Women's Archive (accessed 2014-10-06).