About Us

MISSION STATEMENT

Congregation Mogen David is a modern Orthodox congregation that was established approximately 100 years ago with about 35 families.  It has evolved over the years from a purely Traditional Ashkenazi synagogue to a combination Ashkenazi and Sephardic shul.

Men and women are separated by a mechitzah during services, and most of our members are shomer shabbat. Our poskim are under the direction of Rabbi Josh Maslow for the Ashkenazim and Rabbi Yehuda Moses for the Sephardim.

Congregation Mogen David is located at 9717 W Pico Boulevard, is in the heart of the Pico Robertson area across from the Wiesenthal Center and YULA high school. The two and distinct styles of davening meet in separate locations situated within the shul building and combine for shul activities in show of achdut that encompasses the true ideals of Judaism.

Members of Congregation Mogen David serve as shlichei tzibbur, baalei keriah and deliver Divrei Torah each week during Seudah Shlishit. We house Shacharit, Mincha and Arvit services for both minyanim every day of the week.

We offer a Daf Yomi shiur, a weekly Gemara shiur, a weekly Torah class, and occasional seminars on salient topics in Modern Orthodoxy. Classes are open to men and women.We provide the most successful youth program, (under the leadership of Rabbi Yehuda Moses), “Avot U’Banim” for over 100 children every motzei Shabbat during the winter months.  Children learn with their parents and rebbies from their schools and receive prizes at its conclusion.

We hold regular Shabbatonim with invited scholars that attract people from a wide cross section of the local Jewish community.

We are committed to living a Torah lifestyle, at home and in the world around us. Mogen David is bound by halakha. As a community, we are united in our passionate belief in the value of a life guided by traditional Jewish practice and law. At the same time, our congregants embrace a philosophy of synthesizing Torah study and practice with life, study, and careers in the secular world. We believe that engagement with the secular world can enrich us as individual Jews and as a Jewish community.

We are committed to spiritual growth. Mogen David is dedicated to making the religious experiences of all its members meaningful. Within the boundaries set by halakha, we seek to involve all members in Mogen David’s tefillot, educational programs, divrei torah, and leadership structure.

We are committed to our children, teenagers, and young adults. Mogen David is an open and welcoming congregation for young families and provides programming, regularly on Shabbat and periodically at other times, for its younger members. There are approximately 75 children (high-school age or below) in the in our Shabbat Youth Program.

Nearly all the elementary and middle-school children attend Jewish day schools, A high priority for our congregation is to improve Jewish schooling options for our families at both the elementary and high school level.

We are committed to Israel. Our congregation is committed to the State of Israel, whose welfare we pray for each week. Many of our children have continued their studies in Israel, and we expect that many of the younger ones will follow suit.

We are committed to the larger Jewish community. Many of our members play active roles in Jewish communal activities, including the schools, social service agencies, Tomchei Shabbos, Bnei Akiva, NCSY, Agudah, the Jewish Community Center, and the Jewish Federation.

Our members play a major role in supporting the community’s Eruv.

CONGREGATIONAL GOALS

• Strengthen programming to develop a community still more committed to Torah learning, minyan, and spiritual growth (on-going) by teaching each other about our heritage encompassing the Ashkenazi and Sephardic styles of both.