# Pacific Jewish Center

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Orthodox synagogue in Venice, Los Angeles, California

Pacific Jewish Center The synagogue on the Venice Boardwalk, 2009 Religion Affiliation Orthodox Judaism Ecclesiastical or organizational status Synagogue Leadership Rabbi Shalom Rubanowitz Status Active Location Location 505 Ocean Front Walk, Venice, Los Angeles, California 90291 Country United States Location in western Los Angeles Coordinates 33°59′35″N 118°28′44″W / 33.993°N 118.479°W / 33.993; -118.479 Architecture Established c. 1940s (as Bay Cities Synagogue) Completed 1925 (power station completed) Website pjcenter.com

The **Pacific Jewish Center**, abbreviated as **PJC** and also known as the **Shul on the Beach**, is an [Orthodox](/source/Orthodox_Judaism) [Jewish](/source/Jewish) [synagogue](/source/Synagogue) located at 505 Ocean Front Walk, in [Venice](/source/Venice%2C_Los_Angeles), [Los Angeles](/source/Los_Angeles), [California](/source/California), in the United States. The synagogue is known for its outreach to unaffiliated and disconnected Jews.[1][2] The Shul remains the last of the synagogues built in Venice during the first part of the 20th century. Although an Orthodox synagogue,[3] worshippers who identify themselves as many different denominations are all welcomed when attending services and other events due to its location in an eclectic neighborhood.

The 1925 building, originally a [power station](/source/Power_station), was identified as a [City of Los Angeles](/source/City_of_Los_Angeles) landmark.[4]

## History

Pacific Jewish Center was established as Bay Cities Synagogue in the 1940s.[5] The congregation was one of several synagogues established in Venice Beach in the 1920s (two others also on the Venice boardwalk).[5] All except this one, and Mishkon Tefilo,[6] had disappeared by the late 1960s. The membership had gradually dwindled until there was hardly a [minyan](/source/Minyan) available. However in 1977, a group of young, Orthodox Jews led by [Michael Medved](/source/Michael_Medved) and [Rabbi Daniel Lapin](/source/Daniel_Lapin) re-established the community and it soon became the nexus of Orthodox outreach in Los Angeles for the next decade.[7] Lapin was the unpaid rabbi of the congregation from 1978 to 1992.[8]

The Bar Mitzvah of [Jason Gould](/source/Jason_Gould), son of [Barbra Streisand](/source/Barbra_Streisand) and [Elliott Gould](/source/Elliott_Gould), was held at the shul.[9]

## Controversy

An attempt led by the Pacific Jewish Center to construct an [eruv](/source/Eruv) in the Venice Beach neighborhood met with opposition from the Sierra Club and others concerned with impacts to birds or disruption to esthetics of the beach.[10] The [California Coastal Commission](/source/California_Coastal_Commission) conditionally approved the project in late 2006.[11]

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** Spence, Rebecca (September 26, 2007), ["Prayer Shawls, Flip-Flops Mingle at 'Shul on the Beach'"](http://www.forward.com/articles/11708/), *[The Forward](/source/The_Forward)*, retrieved November 2, 2012

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** Suman, Michael (1997). *Religion and Prime Time Television*. UCLA Center for Communication Policy, Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 116.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** Clark Roof, Wade, ed. (2007). "Religious pluralism and civil society". *Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science*. **612**. Sage Publications: 144. [ISBN](/source/ISBN_(identifier)) [978-1-4129-5987-2](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-4129-5987-2). ... the Pacific Jewish Center, an Orthodox synagogue in Venice Beach,…

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** ["Venice Community Plan"](https://web.archive.org/web/20130403112736/http://cityplanning.lacity.org/complan/pdf/vencptxt.pdf) (PDF). adopted. City of Los Angeles Department of City Planning. September 29, 2000. p. A-2. Archived from [the original](http://cityplanning.lacity.org/complan/pdf/vencptxt.pdf) (PDF) on April 3, 2013. Retrieved November 2, 2012.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-jewishjournal_5-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-jewishjournal_5-1) Wenig, Gaby (July 3, 2003). ["New Rabbi Hopes More Families Enjoy Sun, Surf, Shabbat at PJC"](http://www.jewishjournal.com/community/article/new_rabbi_hopes_more_families_enjoy_sun_surf_shabbat_at_pjc_20030704). *[The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles](/source/The_Jewish_Journal_of_Greater_Los_Angeles)*.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** ["Congregation Mishkon Tephilo Celebrates Diversity"](http://pacsw.uscj.org/new/december-2014/congregation-mishkon-tephilo-celebrates-diversity). *Kehilla*. Pacific Southwest Region, United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism. December 2014.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-nyt_7-0)** [Steinhauer, Jennifer](/source/Jennifer_Steinhauer) (July 20, 2008). ["At the Intersection of Synagogue and Boardwalk, a Feud"](https://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/20/us/20boardwalk.html). *[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)*. Retrieved November 2, 2012.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-8)** Formicola, Jo Renee; Morken, Hubert (2001). *Religious Leaders and Faith-based Politics: Ten Profiles*. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 98.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** Waldman, Allison J. (2001). *The Barbra Streisand Scrapbook*. Citadel Press. p. 26.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-10)** Myrow, Rachael (November 4, 2006). [*A Kosher Beach That's Not for the Birds*](https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6433995) (streaming audio). [National Public Radio](/source/National_Public_Radio).

1. **[^](#cite_ref-11)** Tugend, Tom (November 22, 2006). ["Carry On! Venice community gets an eruv approved"](http://www.jewishjournal.com/up_front/article/carry_on_venice_community_gets_an_eruv_approved_20061123/). *[The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles](/source/The_Jewish_Journal_of_Greater_Los_Angeles)*.

## Further reading

- Hill Shevitz, Amy (Summer 2001). ""Israel at the Shore of the Sea": Jewish Space and Place in Venice, California". *Southern California Quarterly*. **83** (2). University of California Press: 125–142. [doi](/source/Doi_(identifier)):[10.2307/41172067](https://doi.org/10.2307%2F41172067).

## External links

- [Official website](http://pjcenter.shulcloud.com/)

- [KCET Departures: Pacific Jewish Center](http://www.kcet.org/socal/departures/venice/community/pacific-jewish-center.html) further history of PJC and Los Angeles Jewish community

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Pacific Jewish Center](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacific_Jewish_Center) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacific_Jewish_Center?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.