Nearly two months after the outburst of...

Nearly two months after the outburst of rage and destruction, the Los Angeles riots are still very much on the minds of religious leaders in this city and elsewhere. Ecumenical activists are attempting to promote communal healing in a variety of ways:

* Chalice Press of St. Louis has rushed into print a slim volume entitled “Dreams on Fire/Embers of Hope: From the Pulpits of Los Angeles After the Riots.” The brainchild of the Rev. Ignacio Castuera, pastor of Hollywood United Methodist Church, it is a compilation of sermons delivered in Los Angeles right after the conflagration, with a foreword by theologian Harvey Cox.

When Castuera got the idea for the book, he phoned David Volk, a former classmate at the Claremont School of Theology who is editor of Chalice, the publishing arm of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). Volk had the book off the presses three weeks after receiving the manuscript.

“Los Angeles is only the tip of the iceberg of urban America,” Castuera said in an interview this week. “What happened here should sound a warning to everybody.” Yet, he emphasized, “these (sermons) are statements of hope.”

Included among the 17 sermons’ authors are Castuera; the Rev. Jesse Jackson, who preached at six churches here May 3; the Rev. Cecil (Chip) Murray, pastor of First African Methodist Episcopal Church, the largest African-American congregation in Los Angeles; the Rev. Paul Yung, one of 10 pastors of Young Nak Presbyterian Church, one of the largest Korean churches in the United States; the Rev. Robert A. Fambrini, pastor to many Central Americans at the Church of the Blessed Sacrament in Hollywood; the Rev. Linnea Juanita Pearson, pastor of the First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles in Koreatown; Rabbi Steven Jacobs, leader of Shir Chadash-The New Reform Congregation in Woodland Hills, and Havanpola Ratanassra, president of the American Buddhist Congress and Buddhist Sangha Council of Southern California.

Royalties from the paperback, which sells at religious bookstores for $10.95, go to the Interfaith Coalition to Heal L.A., created by the Interreligious Council of Southern California.

* The Interfaith Coalition is creating commissions to increase discussions and “covenant” relationships among religious, cultural and ethnic organizations; promote intercultural curricula in public, private and religious schools, and take positions on government policy when it bears on moral and ethical religious traditions, said Rabbi Harvey Fields, the group’s chairman. For more information, call (213) 388-2401.

* Ecumenical leaders from four continents will assemble here beginning Sunday to help local church officials sort out causes of the recent violence. Sponsored by the World Council of Churches and the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., the international delegation will include the general secretaries of four religious bodies: the Rev. Joan Brown Campbell of the National Council of Churches of Christ; the Rev. Emilio Castro, World Council of Churches; the Rev. Frank Chikane, South African Council of Churches, and the Rev. Kwon Ho-Kyung, National Council of Churches, Korea. They will be joined by the presidents of three of the bodies and 40 church leaders.

HONORS

Evangelical philosopher and theologian Richard J. Mouw has been appointed president of Fuller Theological Seminary effective July 1, 1993. He will succeed David Allan Hubbard, an internationally known biblical scholar.

Mouw will be the fourth president of the Pasadena seminary, which was founded in 1947. He is the author of eight books, including “Uncommon Decency,” which will be released next month. Since 1989 Mouw has served as provost and senior vice president of Fuller, which is the largest evangelical, multidenominational seminary in the world. He is also a professor of Christian philosophy and ethics.

On Monday, Father W.T. St. John Brown, former rector of St. Matthias Episcopal Church in Burbank, will be ordained a Catholic priest in Corpus Christi, Tex.. He will be ordained according to a 1980 Pastoral Provision by Pope John Paul II permitting former Episcopalians to enter the Catholic Church with some of their own customs, calendar and liturgy--known as Anglican Use. St. Matthias and two other parishes seceded from the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles in 1977 over church policies, including the ordination of women. Brown will be in charge of Anglican Use Roman Catholics in his Texas diocese.

CELEBRATIONS

A dedication ceremony for the new Jodo Shu Buddhist Temple will be held Sunday at 1 p.m. It will start with an Oneri parade, an ancient Buddhist tradition in which all of those participating in the service walk to the temple. The parade will be led by the chief abbot of the Grand Temple Zojoji of Tokyo. At 5 p.m., the festivities will continue with a banquet and the Shukubu, a dance of celebration, at the Los Angeles Hilton.

The teachings of the Jodo sect of Buddhism in Los Angeles began in 1936 with the founding of the original Jodo Shu Temple on 1st Street by the late Bishop Reikai Nozaki. In 1949, it was relocated to 2003 W. Jefferson Blvd. The new temple, at 422 E. 3rd St. in downtown Los Angeles, will be accessible to more of its members, said Bishop Satoru R. Kawai. For information, phone (213) 732-9273.

Muslims around the world will mark the Hijra, or beginning of the Islamic calendar year, on Thursday. Literally translated “migration,” the day recalls the journey of the prophet Muhammad in AD 622 from Mecca to Medina, to found the Islamic community of faith.

This will be the year 1413, according to the lunar-based calendar. Salam Al-Marayati, director of the Muslim Public Affairs Council in Los Angeles, says there are no special religious observances for the day.

EDUCATION

Loyola Marymount University Center Institute for Multicultural Pastoral Studies will offer religious workers and lay church professionals a three-week course on the spirituality of different cultures. Sessions are Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. July 13-31. Participants may attend one, two or three weeks of the institute. Tuition is $100 per week. The school is at 7101 W. 80th St., Los Angeles. For information, phone (310) 338-2799.

DATES

The Rt. Rev. Chester L. Talton, Suffragan Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles, will lead a contingent of more than 100 heterosexual and gay parishioners in the Christopher Street West Pride Parade on Sunday. It is the first time a mainline denomination will be represented by one of its highest-ranking officials, said Larkette Lein of Integrity, an organization of gay and lesbian Episcopalians.

The Rev. William McCord Thigpen, appointed liaison to the gay and lesbian community by Bishop Frederick H. Borsch, said: “There are many, many gay and lesbian people who have been spiritually damaged by their families and by the church who are in desperate need of knowing something of God’s incredible grace and love. I think that is what is motivating all of us to walk in this parade.”

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