HEALING SERVICE: Tarzana’s Temple Judea will combine...
HEALING SERVICE: Tarzana’s Temple Judea will combine liturgy, poetry, music and meditation for its first “healing service” Thursday evening. The service will begin with hand washing, followed by a candle lighting and meditation. A series of healing prayers will be said and inspirational stories told. The service will include the reading of a poem by congregant Janet Pransky, who received two stem cell transplants while fighting cancer. A committee including Rabbi Donald Goor and Cantor Fran Lawson, along with lay congregants, developed the service that is being financed by one of five grants awarded to synagogues nationwide by the Central Conference of American Rabbis and funded by the Lilly Foundation. The service, open to the public, will begin at 7:30 p.m. at the synagogue, 5429 Lindley Ave. (818) 758-3800.
BUDDHIST FESTIVAL: The Katin religious festival, celebrating the end of an annual three-month retreat by Buddhist monks, will be held Sunday at Wat Thai in North Hollywood. Traditionally, the Buddha and his monks retired to their temples during the three-month rainy season in India because the flooded roads made it virtually impossible for them to travel the country and pursue their normal teaching. Now the monks of the Theravadan tradition, including monks at Wat Thai, retire to their temples for a period of reflection and meditation from late July to mid-October. The end of the retreat is marked by a weeklong celebration called Katin in which the laity make donations to the monks and the temple. The colorful celebration, including several exhibits and Thai food, will begin at 9:30 a.m. at the temple, 3225 Coldwater Canyon Ave. (818) 997-9657.
FALL CONCERT: Los Angeles Baptist High School’s music program will present a fall concert Friday featuring a variety of styles, from classical and romantic pieces to spirituals and gospel songs. Performing will be the LAB New Vision Choir and Reflections vocal ensembles and the school’s newest performing ensemble, the Knights Band. Admission is $3 per person. The concert is at 7:30 p.m. in the school’s gymnasium at 9825 Woodley Ave., North Hills. (818) 894-5742.
CHRISTMAS TREE FUND-RAISER: Local congregations can benefit from the San Fernando Valley Interfaith Council’s first fund-raising sale of Christmas trees this year. Orders are being taken for the 4- to 6-foot Oregon-grown trees that will be available for pick-up by Dec. 15 at the council’s administrative office in Chatsworth and elsewhere. For each $35 tree ordered through the council, the buyer’s congregation will receive $5 and the council will get $5. As a bonus, congregations that order 100 or more trees by Nov. 15 will get an additional $250. If the purchaser does not belong to a congregation, the council will receive $10. Orders may be paid by check or credit card. Funds raised by the council will be used to help troubled youth, frail elderly, homebound persons and the homeless. (818) 718-6460, Ext. 3002.
LUNCH AND LEARN: Following this morning’s Shabbat services at Temple Ramat Zion, Rabbi Steven Tucker will hold a “Lunch and Learn” discussion session on the topic “The Binding of Isaac--What Kind of God Is This?” Services begin at 9 a.m. and the lunch will start about noon at the synagogue, 17655 Devonshire St., Northridge. There is no charge and reservations are not required. (818) 360-1881.
ALL SAINTS SUNDAY: Church of the Foothills, formerly Lutheran Church of the Master, will host a special memorial service Sunday called “All Saints Sunday: Remembering Him/Remembering Her.” Those who attend are invited to bring photographs of their deceased loved ones. Their names will be included in prayers spoken at the altar, and persons attending will be given an opportunity to say something about their deceased loved one after the service, which begins at 9:30 a.m. at 13425 Glenoaks Blvd., Sylmar. (818) 362-7700.
REFLECTING: A reflection day led by Father John Coleman called “Praying With St. John of the Cross” will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday at Holy Spirit Retreat, 4316 Lanai Road, Encino. Cost is $20, which includes lunch. Registration: (818) 784-4515.
CONNECTED LIFE: A six-part course titled “Living the Connected Life” (Course II), based on Richard Foster’s “The Celebration of Discipline,” will begin Sunday at Woodland Hills Presbyterian Church. Anne Trenka Hilborn, director of Christian education at the church, will teach the first three sessions focusing on “Attaining the Connection.” The final three sessions, exploring “Sustaining the Connection,” will be taught by USC philosophy professor Dallas Willard. Classes will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. Sundays at the church, 5751 Platt Ave., Woodland Hills. Cost is $20 per person or $25 per couple. Advance registration is required. (818) 346-7894.
SPEAKER: The Rev. William L. Adams, a Redemptorist missionary priest, will speak on “The Coming Jubilee of the Year 2000” at a Catholic Community luncheon Wednesday. Fellowship will begin at 11:30 a.m., followed by lunch at noon at Barone’s restaurant, 10123 Riverside Drive, Toluca Lake. Cost is $9 per person. Reservations: (818) 784-1960.
JEWISH VETS: The Jewish War Veterans, West Valley Post No. 752, has moved to a new location at Shomrei Torah Synagogue, 7353 Valley Circle Blvd., Woodland Hills. The post is seeking new members who participated in World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War or the Gulf War. (818) 888-9100 or 341-5051.
News and announcements for this column can be sent to Religion Desk, Los Angeles Times, 20000 Prairie St., Chatsworth 91311.