ORDAINING PRIESTS: St. Joseph the Worker Church...
ORDAINING PRIESTS: St. Joseph the Worker Church in Canoga Park will be the site of this morning’s ordination of 13 new priests for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles. The group, one of the most culturally diverse classes of new priests, is the largest to be ordained since 1993. The Archdiocese ordained six men in 1995, 10 in 1994 and 15 in 1993.
Of the 13, two will be assigned to San Fernando Valley parishes. Charles Patrick Mayer, a 33-year-old native of Cleveland, will be an associate pastor at Our Lady of Lourdes parish in Northridge. Before entering St. John’s Seminary in Camarillo, Mayer earned a bachelor’s degree in human resource management and worked for a mortgage company.
The first priestly assignment for Chanh Van Nguyen will be at St. Joseph the Worker parish in Canoga Park. Born in Vietnam, Nguyen attended high school in Wichita, Kan., and has a bachelor’s degree in social science.
Also included in the class are two local residents: Olin William Mayfield, 27, of Santa Clarita, who will serve at St. Denis parish in Diamond Bar, and Michael John Sezzi, 31, of Glendale, who will be associate pastor at Holy Family parish in South Pasadena.
Others to be ordained are Albert Bahhuth, a 39-year-old native of Beirut; Stephen Vincent Davoren, 34, of Pasadena; Roberto Fabella Jaranilla, a 31-year-old native of Bacalod City, Philippines; Mark Andrew Martinez, 34, of Los Angeles; Daniel Guadalupe Perez, 29, of Pomona; Victor James Ruvalcaba, 38, of Los Angeles; Mario Alberto Torres, 28, of East Los Angeles; Mark Anthony Warnstedt, 38, of Santa Monica, and Valentine David Zdilla, 41, from Monessen, Pa.
The ceremony is being held at the Canoga Park parish because the Cathedral of St. Vibiana, the usual locale, is closed due to earthquake damage.
INTERFAITH FORUM: A variety of clergy and community members will gather June 15 at Temple Sinai of Glendale for an interfaith forum on the radical religious right. Featured speakers will include the Rev. Ed Bacon, senior pastor of All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena; Michael Shapiro, chairman of the American Jewish Congress Religious Right Response Project; Theodora Davitt-Cornyn of the Unitarian-Universalist Project Freedom, and Carol Sobel, senior counsel of the American Civil Liberties Union. The event is sponsored by Temple Sinai of Glendale, First United Methodist Church of Glendale, Unitarian-Universalist Church of Verdugo Hills, Burbank Temple Emanu El and the American Jewish Congress. The free seminar is planned from 3 to 5 p.m. at the synagogue at 1212 N. Pacific Ave., Glendale. (818) 246-8101.
GUEST PREACHER: The Rev. Marvin Abrams, pastor of the Native American United Methodist Church of Southern California, will be the guest preacher June 9 at St. Paul’s United Methodist Church, 5619 Lindley Ave., Tarzana. Abrams is the president of the National United Methodist Native American Center and Coordinator of the Native American Comprehensive Plan. (818) 708-3502.
CHRISTIAN LIVING: A 13-week program called “12 Steps for Christian Living” will begin Thursday at the Congregational Church of Northridge. The program is not about addiction. Participants will gather to informally discuss God’s intervention in their daily lives and how the traditional 12 steps can bring about a better understanding of the Christian faith. Meetings will be from 8 to 9:30 p.m. Thursdays at the church at 9659 Balboa Blvd. Admission is free. (818) 349-2400.
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