After the passing of the 1965 Immigration Act, more and more Copts were able to gain entry into the United States, in search of religious freedom, political stability, and economic opportunity. Copts who had migrated to Southern California found its climate to be similar to the one they left behind in Egypt, and thus encouraged more and more of their relatives to move there as well; as a result of this the number of Copts in Southern California jumped from just about 50 individuals in 1963, to being in the hundreds within the following years.[1] During these early years, there were no local churches or clergy in the region, and the Liturgy was held by visiting clergy once a year.