Orange County, California Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ==Arts and culture== [[File:6505-Disneyland&Hotel.jpg|thumb|upright=1.25|1965 aerial photo of Anaheim [[Disneyland]], [[Disneyland Hotel (California)|Disneyland Hotel]] with its Monorail Station. The Disneyland Heliport, surrounding orange groves, Santa Ana Freeway (now I-5) and the Melodyland Theater "in the round," and part of the City of Anaheim. [[Anaheim Stadium]] can be seen under construction near the upper left.]] The area's warm [[Mediterranean climate]] and {{cvt|42|mi|km|0}} of year-round beaches attract millions of tourists annually. [[Huntington Beach]] is a hot spot for sunbathing and [[surfing]]; nicknamed "Surf City, U.S.A.", it is home to many surfing competitions. "[[The Wedge (surfing)|The Wedge]]", at the tip of The Balboa Peninsula in Newport Beach, is one of the most famous body surfing spots in the world. Southern California [[surf culture]] is prominent in Orange County's beach cities. Another one of these beach cities being Laguna Beach, just south of Newport Beach. A few popular beaches include A Thousand Steps on 9th Street, Main Street Beach, and The Montage. Other tourist destinations include the [[theme park]]s Disneyland Park and [[Disney California Adventure Park]] in Anaheim and Knott's Berry Farm in Buena Park. Due to the 2022 reopening of [[Wild Rivers (water park)|Wild Rivers]] in Irvine, the county is home to three [[water parks]] along with [[Knott's Soak City|Soak City]] in Buena Park and [[Great Wolf Lodge]] in Anaheim.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.greatwolf.com/southern-california?rd=true | title=Indoor Water Park & Resort | Anaheim Resort | Great Wolf Lodge }}</ref> The Anaheim Convention Center is the largest such facility on the West Coast. The [[Old Towne, Orange Historic District]] in the City of Orange (the traffic circle at the middle of Chapman Avenue at Glassell Street) still maintains its 1950s image, and appeared in the movie ''[[That Thing You Do!]]''. [[Little Saigon, Orange County|Little Saigon]] is another tourist destination, home to the largest concentration of [[Vietnamese people]] outside [[Vietnam]]. There are also sizable Taiwanese, Filipino, Chinese, and Korean communities, particularly in western Orange County. This is evident in several Asian-influenced shopping centers in Asian American hubs like Irvine. Popular food festival [[626 Night Market]] has a location at [[OC Fair & Event Center]] in Costa Mesa and is a popular attraction for Asian and fusion food, as well as an Art Walk and live entertainment.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.latimes.com/socal/daily-pilot/news/tn-dpt-me-night-market-20180519-story.html |title=OC Night Market stocks up on food, entertainment and more |date=May 19, 2018 |website=Daily Pilot |language=en-US |access-date=January 30, 2020 |archive-date=May 24, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180524234328/http://www.latimes.com/socal/daily-pilot/news/tn-dpt-me-night-market-20180519-story.html |url-status=live}}</ref> Historical points of interest include [[Mission San Juan Capistrano]], the renowned destination of migrating swallows. The [[Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum]] is in [[Yorba Linda]] and the [[Richard Nixon Birthplace]], on the grounds of the Library, is a [[National Historic Landmark]]. [[John Wayne]]'s yacht, the ''Wild Goose'' or [[USS YMS-328]], is in [[Newport Beach]]. Other notable structures include the home of Madame [[Helena Modjeska]], in [[Modjeska Canyon]] on [[Santiago Creek]]; [[Ronald Reagan Federal Building and Courthouse (California)|Ronald Reagan Federal Building and Courthouse]] in [[Santa Ana, California|Santa Ana]], the largest building in the county; the historic [[Balboa Pavilion]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.balboapavilion.com/history.html |title=History Of The Balboa Pavilion (Est |publisher=Balboapavilion.com |access-date=July 22, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110202211527/http://www.balboapavilion.com/history.html |archive-date=February 2, 2011}}</ref> in Newport Beach; and the Huntington Beach Pier. The county has nationally known centers of worship, such as [[Crystal Cathedral]] in [[Garden Grove, California|Garden Grove]], the largest house of worship in California; [[Saddleback Church]] in [[Lake Forest, California|Lake Forest]], one of the largest churches in the United States; and the [[Calvary Chapel]]. ===Religion=== In 2014, the county had 1,075 religious organizations, the sixth-highest total among all US counties (matching its status as the sixth-most-populous county in the US).<ref>{{cite web |title=Social Capital Variables Spreadsheet for 2014 |url=https://aese.psu.edu/nercrd/community/social-capital-resources/social-capital-variables-for-2014/social-capital-variables-spreadsheet-for-2014 |website=PennState College of Agricultural Sciences, Northeast Regional Center for Rural Development |date=December 8, 2017 |access-date=December 30, 2019 |archive-date=December 31, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191231001016/https://aese.psu.edu/nercrd/community/social-capital-resources/social-capital-variables-for-2014/social-capital-variables-spreadsheet-for-2014 |url-status=live}}</ref> Orange County is the base for several religious organizations: *The [[Newport Beach California Temple]], one of four temples operated by [[the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]] in Southern California. *[[Christ Cathedral (Garden Grove, California)|Christ Cathedral]] (formerly Reverend [[Robert Schuller]]'s Crystal Cathedral) is the [[cathedral]] of the [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange]], located in [[Garden Grove, California|Garden Grove]]. *University Synagogue, one of the world's largest [[Reconstructionist Judaism|Reconstructionist]] [[Jewish]] [[synagogue]]s located in [[Irvine, California|Irvine]] to serve the sizable Jewish community in the area, especially students at nearby [[University of California, Irvine]]. *Beth Jacob Congregation of Irvine, the largest [[Orthodox Jewish]] synagogue between [[Los Angeles]] and [[San Diego]], serving several thousand families. *Temple Beth El of South Orange County, located in [[Aliso Viejo]], and built in 2001 to serve the fast-growing Jewish community in Orange County, this {{cvt|65,000|ft2|m2}} synagogue can seat 1,400 congregants and is the largest by size in Orange County, and is one of the largest places of worship in the state in terms of size. Temple Beth El is affiliated with both the [[Reform Judaism|Reform]] and [[Conservative Judaism]] denominations.<ref name="LA Times Beth El">{{cite news |title=O.C.'s Largest Synagogue Set to Open |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2001-jul-23-me-25737-story.html |access-date=14 May 2022 |agency=LA Times |work=Los Angeles Times |archive-date=May 14, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220514160045/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2001-jul-23-me-25737-story.html |url-status=live}}</ref> *Temple Bat Yahm of Newport Beach, is the largest Reform synagogue in [[Newport Beach]] and serves more than 500 families. *[[Chabad|Chabad of Orange County]], serves more than 100,000 Jewish families at more than of a dozen of its synagogues and community centers located in Irvine, Laguna Woods, Newport Beach, Aliso Viejo, Mission Viejo, Rancho Santa Margarita, San Clemente, North Irvine, Laguna Niguel, Yorba Linda, Tustin, Dana Point, Huntington Beach and Laguna Beach. These synagogues adhere to the [[Chabad-Lubavitch]] school of [[Orthodox Judaism]], but all Jews are welcome to worship regardless of denomination or background.<ref name="JFedOC">{{cite web |title=Jewish Congregations in and around Orange County |url=https://jewishorangecounty.org/oc-congregations |website=Jewish Federation of Orange County |access-date=14 May 2022 |archive-date=May 20, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220520043930/https://www.jewishorangecounty.org/oc-congregations |url-status=live}}</ref> *Temple Beth Emet of Anaheim, is the only synagogue in [[Anaheim]] and was the first [[Conservative Jewish]] synagogue to open in Orange County back in 1955. *[[Islamic Center of Irvine]], which has raised over $5.5 million for its expansion project (as of October 2018).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.icoi.net/about/newsite-update/ |title=New Site Update - The Islamic Center of Irvine |website=Icoi.net |access-date=October 2, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181002215106/http://www.icoi.net/about/newsite-update/ |archive-date=October 2, 2018 |url-status=dead}}</ref> *Islamic Institute of Orange County, an Islamic Center in Orange County, located in [[Anaheim]] and founded in 1991.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.iioc.com/mission-vision/ |title=mission-vision β Islamic Institute of Orange County - Masjid Omar AlFarouk |website=Iioc.com |access-date=October 2, 2018 |archive-date=October 2, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181002214935/https://www.iioc.com/mission-vision/ |url-status=dead}}</ref> *The Islamic Society of Orange County in Garden Grove, established in 1976 and one of the largest [[mosques]] in the United States. *Islamic Center of Santa Ana (ICSA), which opened a new $2.6 million facility in 2017.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://icsamasjid.net/about/ |title=About Us β ICSA Masjid |website=icsamasjid.net |access-date=October 2, 2018 |archive-date=October 2, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181002215018/http://icsamasjid.net/about/ |url-status=live}}</ref> *Orange County Islamic Foundation, located in [[Mission Viejo]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ocif.org/the-organization/ |title=The Organization β Orange County Islamic Foundation |website=Ocif.org |access-date=October 2, 2018 |archive-date=October 2, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181002215222/http://www.ocif.org/the-organization/ |url-status=live}}</ref> *The Islamic Educational Center of Orange County (IECOC), located in [[Costa Mesa]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://iecoc.org/about-us/start-of-iecoc/ |title=Start of IECOC - IECOC - Islamic Educational Center of Orange County |website=Iecoc.org |access-date=October 2, 2018 |archive-date=October 2, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181002215249/http://iecoc.org/about-us/start-of-iecoc/ |url-status=live}}</ref> *Forty Martyrs Armenian Apostolic Church,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://40manoug.org/ |title=Forty Martyrs Armenian Apostolic Church |access-date=July 11, 2016 |archive-date=February 16, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160216015758/http://40manoug.org/ |url-status=live}}</ref> located in Santa Ana is one of two [[Armenian Apostolic Church]], otherwise referred to as "Armenian Orthodox Church" or "Gregorian Church" in Orange County. *St. Mary Armenian Church,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://stmaryarmenianchurch.com/ |title=stmaryarmenianchurch |access-date=May 17, 2019 |archive-date=May 17, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190517145712/https://stmaryarmenianchurch.com/ |url-status=live}}</ref> located in Costa Mesa is one of two [[Armenian Apostolic Church]], otherwise referred to as "Armenian Orthodox Church" or "Gregorian Church" in Orange County. *[[Family International]], also known as "The Children of God", was founded in 1968 in [[Huntington Beach]] by [[David Berg]]. *[[Chuck Smith (pastor)|Chuck Smith]], early leader in the [[Jesus movement|Jesus People movement]] and founder of [[Calvary Chapel]] in [[Costa Mesa]]. *[[Pao Fa Temple]] in Irvine is one of the largest [[Buddhist]] monasteries and temples in the United States. *''[[The Purpose Driven Life]]'' author [[Rick Warren]] and his [[Saddleback Church]] (the largest church in California) are in [[Lake Forest, California|Lake Forest]]. *The [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange]] headed by Bishop [[Kevin Vann]]. There are about 1.04 million Catholics in Orange County.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rcbo.org/site/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=20&Itemid=155 |title=The History of the Diocese of Orange County |publisher=The Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080915233240/http://www.rcbo.org/site/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=20&Itemid=155 |archive-date=September 15, 2008}}</ref> *[[Trinity Broadcasting Network]] began as Channel 40 in [[Tustin]], now in Costa Mesa. *Monasteries of the [[Vedanta Society of Southern California|Vedanta Society]] and [[St. Michael's Abbey (Orange County, California)|St. Michael's Abbey]] are located in [[Trabuco Canyon]]. *The [[Vineyard Christian Fellowship]] movement began in Orange County. *The [[Jain Center of Southern California]] in [[Buena Park]], largest center for followers of [[Jain]] faith, originally started by [[Jains]] from [[India]] *The [[Sikh]] Center of Orange County located in Santa Ana *The Sikh Center of Buena Park β [[Gurdwara]] Singh Sabha *Harvest Orange County in Irvine. Also holds the Harvest Crusades in Anaheim Stadium. *[[Living Stream Ministry]] is headquartered in Anaheim and hosts several Christian conferences a year. *Orange County Buddhist Center in Laguna Hills, part of the [[Soka Gakkai International]] Summary: Please note that all contributions to Christianpedia may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here. You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Christianpedia:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission! Cancel Editing help (opens in new window) Discuss this page