MERGING SYNAGOGUES: The name Shomrei Torah Synagogue...

MERGING SYNAGOGUES: The name Shomrei Torah Synagogue was chosen by members of two Conservative Jewish congregations in the west San Fernando Valley who will mark their recently announced merger with an inaugural service Friday in West Hills.

The Hebrew name, which means “Guardians of the Torah,” was selected Thursday night in a joint membership meeting of Congregation Beth Kodesh of West Hills, which will serve as the main meeting place, and Temple Beth Ami of Reseda.

The 850-member congregation is affiliated with the Conservative branch of Judaism.

Rabbi Eli Schochet of Beth Kodesh will be the pulpit rabbi and Beth Ami’s Rabbi David Vorspan will become administrator of the congregation. Both rabbis and Cantor Avrum Schwartz will officiate in Friday’s special Family Shabbat service at 7:30 p.m.

The rites will feature symbolic elements of a Jewish wedding with Torah scrolls from both synagogues placed under a chupa , the traditional canopy under which Jewish brides and bridegrooms stand. Participants will sing and dance around the canopy.

Temple Beth Ami, which had been losing membership as the demographics of Reseda changed, is the older of the two, dating back 45 years. Beth Kodesh has been in existence 36 years.

PRESBYTERIAN MEETING: Reports on the recent national convention of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) will be made Tuesday at a meeting in Chatsworth by the Presbytery of San Fernando’s two voting delegates.

The 206th General Assembly in Wichita, Kan., was filled with bitter debate over Presbyterian involvement in a controversial feminist conference last November, but delegates ended the meeting last week with the surprise adoption, 516 to 4, of a report urging reconciliation of the opposing sides.

The 35-church presbytery, which will convene at 3 p.m. Tuesday at St. Stephen Presbyterian Church, 20101 Devonshire St., will hear from delegates Chuck Osborn, associate pastor of La Canada Presbyterian Church, and Helen Weaver, a member of La Crescenta Presbyterian Church.

JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR: Singer-producer Kevin George will star in a performance Sunday of the musical “Jesus Christ Superstar,” by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, at Glendale Presbyterian Church, 125 S. Louise St.

The performance, directed by Rudy Hovsepian, starts at 6 p.m. A donation of $15 is suggested. For information, call (818) 982-4355.

RADIO TUNES: Pop songs of the 1940s will be featured in the fourth annual summer pops concert Sunday at Glendale City Seventh-day Adventist, 610 E. California Ave.

The concert by the church’s Pops Chorale, directed by John T. Dennison, will begin at 5:30 p.m. Tickets cost $5.99 per person and include a light buffet in the price. For reservations and information, call (818) 244-7241.

News and announcements for this column may be sent to Religion Desk, Los Angeles Times, 20000 Prairie St., Chatsworth 91311.