Church Leader Arrives in Ojai

Johannes van Alphen, presiding bishop of the Liberal Catholic Church worldwide, has arrived in Ojai from Pretoria, South Africa, for a two-week stay.

He will celebrate pontifical high Masses at Our Lady and All Angels on Sunday and May 3. On May 2, he will preside over a synod to be attended by Liberal Catholic clergy from the western United States, many of whom will remain in Ojai for the following day’s Mass.

Van Alphen and his wife are staying at Ojai’s Krotona Institute. Van Alphen, like all Liberal Catholic clerics, is unpaid.

All Sunday Masses at the Ojai church begin at 10:30 a.m. The May 2 service will be followed by a healing service. The church also celebrates the benediction of the blessed sacrament on Wednesdays at 7 p.m.

The Liberal Catholic Church differs from the Roman Catholic Church mainly in allowing greater personal interpretation of the Bible and doctrine, said the local bishop, the Rev. Dr. Hein van Beusekom of Ojai.

He added that Van Alphen will visit a Spanish-language Liberal Catholic Church in Los Angeles.

Ojai’s Liberal Catholic Church is at 1502 E. Ojai Ave. For more information, call the church at 646-0570.

Ojai Church to Celebrate 40th

Ojai United Methodist Church will celebrate its 40th anniversary from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday on the church grounds.

Activities will include special music and speeches by former ministers.

For more information, call the church at 646-3528. The church is at 120 Church Road.

CLU Sunday to Be Celebrated

Cal Lutheran University’s annual CLU Sunday will be celebrated April 26. The 775 churches that make up the congregations of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, CLU’s constituency in the Southwest, will recognize the alliance between CLU and the churches.

CLU Sunday encourages churches to focus on Christian higher education and acquaint young people with Lutheran institutions and CLU, said the Rev. Reg Schultz-Akerson of the university.

Faculty members, alumni, administrators, students and regents will attend Lutheran churches throughout the Southwest and update congregations on developments at the university.

Schultz-Akerson said 1997-98 was a banner year for CLU, which placed in the top tier of Western regional colleges and universities in U. S. News and World Report’s guide on America’s best colleges. And it was included in the Templeton Foundation’s “Honor Roll for Character Building Colleges,” he said.

For information on CLU Sunday, call the church relations office at 493-3152.

New Semester at Jewish Academy

Spring semester classes at the Conejo Jewish Academy in Agoura Hills will begin next week. Now in its fourth year of providing adult education, the academy attracted more than 2,000 participants during its fall and winter semesters.

Courses on such subjects as living Judaism, the Talmud, Kabbalah and “Hebrew in five easy lessons” usually meet for four or eight weeks, often in the evening, and require a $10 registration fee.

To make course reservations or receive a brochure on classes, call (818) 991-0991. The academy is at 30345 Canwood St.

Workshop on ‘Empowerment’

The Westlake Church of Religious Science will present a workshop called “Steps to Spiritual Empowerment” with Father Leo Booth on Tuesday.

As parish priest of St. George’s Episcopal Church in Hawthorne, Booth conducts nondenominational spirituality services for people in recovery. He is a certified drug and alcohol counselor.

The public is welcome at the 7:30 p.m. workshop. There is no fee, although an offering will be taken. The church is at 2649 Townsgate Road, No. 500. To register, call 495-0105.

Unity Church Sponsors Series

Camarillo’s Unity Church of Ventura County will sponsor a six-week Wednesday series beginning this week titled “The Hero’s Journey Toward the Self.”

“Awaken the hero within by exploring the 12 powers of Christ and 12 archetypes,” said Nancy DeCandia of Unity Church.

The series will run Wednesdays from 7:30 to 9 p.m., and will be held at the Jewish Family Center, 4098 Calle Tesoro. For more information, call 658-1059 or 658-6993.

Church Celebrates Altar Window

Trinity Lutheran Church in Simi Valley will celebrate its new altar window with a dedication dinner at 7 p.m. Friday.

Members of the church spent two years raising funds for the brilliantly colored, faceted glass window that symbolizes Christian themes such as communion, baptism and scripture.

Trisagion, a youth musical group from San Jose, will entertain. Tickets for the dinner are $2. For more information, call the church office at 526-2429. It is at 2949 Alamo St.

Congregation’s Shabbat Dinner

Congregation Am Hayam of Oxnard will hold a Shabbat dinner honoring Israel’s 50th anniversary Friday evening at the Oxnard Monday Club.

The guest speaker will be Ori Nir, a correspondent for the Israel daily newspaper Ha’aretz.

The cost of the 6:30 p.m. dinner is $18 for adults. Shabbat services will follow dinner and the program.

The Oxnard Monday Club is at 1401 W. Gonzales Road. For more information, call 656-6634.

Church Plans Benefit Dinner

St. Paul’s United Methodist Church in Oxnard will put on its annual carne asada takeout dinner fund-raiser from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. May 2.

The $6 meal will include carne asada, beans, Spanish rice, salad, tortilla and salsa.

Call the church at 487-2711 for more information. St. Paul’s is at 1800 South C St.

Lecture on Wit of Martin Luther

Eric Gritsch, a scholar of the Reformation era, will lecture at Cal Lutheran University in Thousand Oaks on “Martin Luther, Court Jester: The Power of Wit and Witness.”

The title of Gritsch’s May 4 lecture refers to the critical component of humor in Luther’s life and thought. Gritsch founded the Institute for Luther Studies at Gettysburg Lutheran Seminary. He is the author and translator of more than 20 books about Luther.

Admission to the 10 a.m. lecture in Samuelson Chapel is free. For more information, contact the department of religion at 493-3151.

Cal Lutheran is at 60 W. Olsen Road.

Religion Briefs is a weekly listing that runs each Saturday. Please address items, with a publishable telephone number, to Religion Briefs, Los Angeles Times, 93 S. Chestnut St., Ventura 93001. Items may be faxed to The Times at 653-7576 or 653-7548.