No local survey on the question exists,...

No local survey on the question exists, but the most frequent religion newsmaker in Southern California during 1989 was Roman Catholic Archbishop Roger M. Mahony of Los Angeles.

Mahony, 53, was in the news throughout the year--from the disclosure in February of a $395,000 jet helicopter donated for his use in the three-county archdiocese to his leadership role in a statement on AIDS that criticized condoms. The statement eventually was approved by the U.S. Catholic bishops in November.

Although in the news much less than Mahony over the course of the year, San Diego Bishop Leo T. Maher took on a high media profile late in 1989. Maher set off a storm of reaction by barring a Catholic parishioner, Democrat Assemblywoman Lucy Killea, from Communion in the midst of her campaign for a state Senate seat because of her pro-choice position on abortion.

Some political analysts--and Killea’s opponent--said Maher’s action might have, due to the publicity it generated, mobilized pro-choice forces and contributed to her election.

In what was a precursor to Maher’s action, Mahony stirred criticism on June 1 when he declared that all Catholic officeholders in government “have a positive moral obligation” to work for the repeal of laws permitting abortion. Mahony did not threaten church sanctions, however.

In other areas, Mahony’s protracted, losing battle with Catholic cemetery workers who voted to unionize led to strained relations in Los Angeles with organized labor leaders. But Mahony won praise in the civic arena for his efforts to help AIDS sufferers with hospices and to defend the rights of immigrants and refugees, as well as for serving on the city commission that wrote a wide-ranging ethics code for Los Angeles officials.

A year ago, the archbishop became chairman of the Catholic bishops’ International Policy Committee, making him the point man on policy statements on Vietnam and the Middle East and a spokesman for the bishops’ views on foreign affairs.

Merely being the spiritual and administrative leader of the nation’s most populous (now 3.4 million Catholics) archdiocese would seem to ensure automatic newsmaker status for the resident archbishop. But that hasn’t always been the case.

Mahony’s predecessor, publicity-shy Cardinal Timothy Manning, avoided the public spotlight. Manning, who learned early this year that he was suffering from cancer and died in June at 79, was in the news more in 1989 than he was during most of the 15 years he headed the archdiocese.

Other religion newsmakers in Southern California during the year included two Buddhists: the Dalai Lama, who won the Nobel Peace Prize during his second extended visit to this region, and U.S.-born Buddhist leader Osel Tendzin, who went into seclusion in La Jolla (later in Ojai) after leaders of his Tibetan sect accused him of not disclosing that he was infected with the AIDS virus while continuing to have homosexual relationships.

Also, the Rev. Fred Price of Crenshaw Christian Center opened the largest-capacity church in the country last September, his 10,145-seat FaithDome in South-Central Los Angeles. The same month, Bill Bright, founder-president of Campus Crusade for Christ, announced that the group’s headquarters will move from San Bernardino to Orlando, Fla., in a year or two.

* FLOAT

For the 39th year, a layman’s league affiliated with the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod will have a float in the Tournament of Roses Parade on Jan. 1 in Pasadena. The only religiously sponsored float amid 60 entries, it will feature a dove with outstretched wings that lower at key points along the parade.

* PEOPLE

The Rev. James Angell, former pastor (1969-87) of Claremont Presbyterian Church and now serving temporarily at St. Mark Presbyterian Church in Newport Beach, will serve as interim pastor, starting in March, at historic Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church in New York City. The Rev. David H. C. Read, who held forth at the Manhattan pulpit for 33 years, retired this month at 80.