The Buddhist Sangha Council of Southern California--an...

The Buddhist Sangha Council of Southern California--an organization of monks from the cultural traditions of Burma, Cambodia, China, Japan, Korea, Laos, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Tibet, the United States and Vietnam--will observe the 2,539th birthday of Siddhartha Gotama, better known as the Buddha, Sunday in Culver City.

Activities to take place from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Veterans Memorial Auditorium include the performance of ethnic dances by young people from several temples. Gongs will be struck and chants will be intoned, mostly in English.

“In the United States, we encourage all the different ethnic groups to get into the language of this country,” said the Venerable Havanpola Ratanasara, a monk who holds a doctorate in education from the University of London and is president of the College of Buddhist Studies in Los Angeles.

Ratanasara has extended an invitation to people of any religious tradition to observe or participate in the celebration. “Special guests representing Christianity, Judaism, Islam--and perhaps other religions--will be introduced during the ceremonies,” he said.

Speakers include Robert Thurman, a former Tibetan monk ordained by the Dalai Lama who is a translator of Buddhist texts and a professor of Indo-Tibetan studies at Columbia University.

Although the temples will also celebrate the holiday, called Vesak, individually, they are joining in the Sangha (Community of Monks) Council observance to strengthen communication and reinforce friendly ties among the ethnic branches, as well as to rejoice in the universality of the Buddha’s teaching, explained Ratanasara, who founded the monks’ council 15 years ago.

The council in turn created the College of Buddhist Studies to teach lay people about Buddhism and to offer training for monks in Buddhist philosophy, history, psychology and language--especially Pali, a language spoken in the 3rd Century B.C. in the northern Magadha region of India, and said to have been spoken by the Buddha.

Admission to the celebration is free and free parking is available. Veterans Memorial Auditorium is at 4117 Overland Ave. (213) 739-1270.

CELEBRATIONS

* Bethel Church of Christ (Holiness) in Los Angeles will celebrate 80 years of ministry Sunday with a homecoming and day of worship. Bishop Matthew N. Richardson, the church’s pastor, will welcome guest speakers the Rev. Henry Mitchell and Ella Mitchell of Atlanta. Services are at 11 a.m. and 4 p.m., with lunch following the early service. 1302 E. Adams Blvd. (213) 232-5463.

* On the occasion of his 50th anniversary of religious life, Msgr. Charles Fortier will celebrate a French-language Mass at 9:30 a.m. Sunday at St. Jean Marie Fianney Chapel, 229 S. Detroit, Los Angeles. Father Marcel Tillous, chaplain of the Basques in the United States, will deliver the homily. Afterward, participants are invited to bring picnic baskets to the garden of Monique Bach. (310) 394-5344.

* Sri Daya Mata, one of the first women in modern history to be appointed as the leader of a worldwide religious movement, recently celebrated her 40th anniversary as president of the Self-Realization Fellowship, the international society based in Los Angeles and founded by Paramahansa Yogananda.

* First Woman’s Church in the City of Angels recently celebrated its 10th anniversary.

* Also marking its first decade was the congregation of St. Andrew Church in Los Alamitos.

DATES

* A series of free talks for those caring for aging parents is offered this month at St. Mary Medical Center in Long Beach, in cooperation with the South Bay Ecumenical Council, Interfaith Action for Aging and other groups. All will be held Tuesdays from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Topics are “Legal Realities of Caring for Aging Parents” (May 9 by attorney Mason Kight); “Issues of Aging--Death and Dying” (May 16 by the Rev. Bill Hoy and counselor Judith A. Shultz), and “Where to Go for Help--Community Resources for Support” (May 23, speakers to be announced). 1050 Linden Ave. at 10th St. (310) 570-4012 or (310) 595-0268.

* A free introduction to Tensho-Kotai-Jingu-Kyo (Teachings of the Absolute God of the Universe) and a documentary film about the religion’s founder will be presented from 2 to 4 p.m. today at the Gardena Valley Japanese Cultural Institute. The religion, which teaches that peace spreads by the “rippling effect” of individuals on their families and communities, was founded in 1945 by the late Mrs. Sayo Kitamura, known by her followers as Ogamisama. 16215 S. Gramercy Place. (818) 444-0401.

* Columnist Robin Abcarian will speak on “Journalists: Heartless Creeps or Pursuers of Truth?” at 11 a.m. services Sunday at First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles, 2936 W. 8th St. (213) 389-1356.

* “African American Women as Providers of Liberating Care in the Church and the World” will be the focus of a course and public lecture May 18-21 by Toinette M. Eugene, a specialist in black feminist theology and the cultural and religious development of the African American family. For a complete schedule of events and registration information, contact the feminist spirituality program of the Immaculate Heart College Center in Los Angeles. (213) 386-3116.

* The Brandeis-Bardin Institute in the Simi Valley will hold its annual Festival of the Trees celebration on Mother’s Day, May 14, featuring picnics, Israeli folk dancing, hiking, sports and music. Reservations are $4 for adults, $2 for children 3 and older. 1101 Peppertree Lane, Brandeis. (818) 348-7201.

HONORS

* Fuller Theological Seminary has announced the endowment of the Lewis B. Smedes Chair of Christian Ethics in honor of the ethicist, theologian and author who has just retired from the classroom. Also at Fuller, Richard V. Peace has been appointed the Robert Boyd Munger Professor of Evangelism and Church Renewal, and Marianne Meye Thompson, associate professor of New Testament interpretation, has been selected as one of seven Henry Luce III Fellows in Theology for 1995-96.

* The president and CEO of St. John’s Hospital and Health Center in Santa Monica, Sister Marie Madeleine Shonka, was presented the “Duke” Special Service Award by the John Wayne Cancer Institute Auxiliary on April 8.

* The former rabbi of Temple Sinai of Glendale, Marvin Gross, took over in April as executive director of Union Station, a homeless shelter and social service agency in Pasadena. He succeeds Gloria Kunkel, who retired six months ago.

* The Congregational Church of the Good Shepherd in Covina this month renamed its fellowship hall to honor its first permanent pastor, the Rev. DeWitt Joseph Brady, who is now retired and living in Tucson.

* Recently installed as chaplain of Al Malaikah Shrine Temple in Los Angeles was Rabbi Sidney S. Guthman of Long Beach. A 33rd degree Mason, Guthman is also chaplain at the Long Beach Veterans Administration Medical Center.

* Rabbi Leonard J. Lewy, the first full-time Jewish hospice chaplain in the Los Angeles area, has been certified by the National Assn. of Jewish Chaplains. He now serves as the coordinator of chaplaincy services for the Yvette Luque Hospice Program of the Visiting Nurse Assn. of Los Angeles, which provides home health care.

* The Rev. Polly Hilsabeck, an Episcopal priest, has been named director of chaplain services at Childrens Hospital of Los Angeles. Trained in clinical pastoral education, she is the first staff chaplain in the hospital’s 95-year history. She previously served as a parish priest and school and jail chaplain.