Teenagers to Present Musicals

More than 200 teenagers in the Newbury Park stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will participate in six original one-act musicals at 7 p.m. today at the Newbury Park Center at 35 S. Wendy Drive, and the Westlake Village building at 32165 Watergate Road. Teens from Thousand Oaks, Agoura, Oak Park, Newbury Park and Westlake Village will take part.

The revues will feature acting, singing, dancing, costume and scenery design, music and lyric writing. The programs are fanciful and lighthearted, said Donee Robinson of the church. Everyone is welcome.

For information, call Robinson at 499-7631.

Hand Bell Choir and Chorale

* The Fresno Pacific University hand bell choir and women’s chorale will present a program tonight at Camarillo United Methodist Church. The 7 p.m. performance is open to the public.

The concert-level hand bell choir of 14 ringers will use five octaves of Malmark hand bells to perform music by Mozart, Bizet, Liszt and Payn. The 20-member women’s chorale will include songs by Handel, Leavitt, Sanborn and Rutter.

An offering will be asked to benefit Habitat for Humanity. Camarillo United Methodist is at 291 Anacapa Drive. For information on services, call church secretary Patricia Carroll at 482-4312.

Church to Offer Sermon in Song

* Camarillo United Methodist Church will present its first 1998 sermon in word and song, “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,” by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, on Sunday at 9 and 10:30 a.m.

Child care will be available and the public is welcome.

The scripture story in Genesis is the basis for the musical drama.

For information, call the church at 482-4312. The church is at 291 Anacapa Drive.

Lecture Focuses on Christian Unity

* Healing rifts within and between churches is the topic of a free Christian Science lecture Sunday in Westlake Village. Nathan Talbot of Boise, Idaho, will speak at 2 p.m. at the Hyatt Westlake Plaza Hotel.

Sponsored by the First Church of Christ, Scientist, of Thousand Oaks, the hourlong talk will be open to the public, and child care will be provided. For information, call 495-8202.

Gospel Singer at Ventura Church

* Gospel singer Marlene Elias, who traveled with Mother Teresa and wrote “Am I My Brother’s Keeper,” which was sung at her funeral, will perform at College United Methodist Church in Ventura at 4 p.m. Sunday.

The program, “An Hour of Song and Ministry for the Poor,” will be followed by a potluck dinner in the church’s Pruitt Hall.

Elias, of Newbury Park, has also written such songs as “Send Me” and “Angel on My Shoulder.”

The public is invited to the concert. A free-will offering will be taken for the poor of Ventura, said Karen Selander of the church.

For information, call College United at 642-3282. It is at 4300 Telegraph Road.

Model Matzo Bakery Offered

* Chabad of the Conejo and the Council on Jewish Life of the Jewish Federation Council will sponsor a model matzo bakery for local temples and schools. The hands-on experience allows children to bake their own Passover matzo.

The workshop will explain the significance of matzo and the process by which it is made. Holiday arts and crafts will also be featured.

The matzo bakery will be held Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Chabad center in Westlake Village, 741 Lakefield Road, No. D. For information, call (818) 991-0991.

Reservations Due for Seder

* Reservations are due Monday for a community Passover Seder to be offered by the Sisterhood of Temple Adat Elohim in Thousand Oaks on April 11.

Rabbi Alan Greenbaum and cantor Michael Anatole will lead the annual celebration.

A full-course catered dinner will be provided at $32 for adults and $18 for children at 6:30 p.m. in the temple’s new social hall.

Reservations are required at 497-7101.

Temple Adat Elohim is at 2420 E. Hillcrest Drive.

Temple Plans Community Seder

* Reservations are due Tuesday for a community Passover Seder planned by Temple Etz Chaim in Thousand Oaks for April 11.

“Usually the Passover Seder is held at home for the family,” said Rabbi Shimon Paskow. But because many people would like to have the Seder prepared for them, the temple will hold the special Seder at 6:30 p.m. Rabbi Paskow and hazan Jeff Cohen will conduct the service.

A five-course kosher meal of traditional foods will be served by Starlite Caterers.

The charge to adult temple members is $37 and $40 for nonmember adults. For children under 12, the cost is $30 and $32.

A holiday service will be held at 10 a.m. that morning. On Sunday morning, the second day of Passover, services will begin at 10.

The temple also will hold a puppet show and Passover service for children at 10:30 a.m. April 11 in the Winer chapel. There is no charge for the children’s service, and the community is invited.

The temple is at 1080 Janss Road. For information on community Seder reservations, call the temple office at 497-6891.

Church to Serve Fish Dinners

* A fish fry will be served each Friday evening of Lent at St. Anthony’s Church in Oxnard. Sponsored by the parents’ club, the fish fry will also include side dishes, punch and coffee for $5 a plate. Parishioners and friends are welcome to attend, and proceeds will benefit St. Anthony’s School.

Stations of the Cross will be on Lenten Fridays at 1:30 and 7 p.m. in English and 8 p.m. in Spanish. The dinners will be held from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Fridays through April 3 at 2511 South C St. For information, call 486-7301.

Musical Drama About Christ

* Calvary Community Church of Westlake Village will produce “The Power of His Love,” an original musical drama on the last week of Christ before the crucifixion, on April 3, 4 and 5.

The musical was written by David Fischette, John Gardella and Steve Moore, who also produced it. The Dove award-winning Sounds of Celebration Choir will sing.

Tickets are free, but reservations are necessary. The play will be performed at 7 p.m. April 3 and at 6 p.m. April 4. On April 5, performances will be staged at 9 a.m., 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. For ticket information, call the church office at 496-2101. Calvary Community is at 31293 Via Colinas.

Service Features Songs, Readings

* The Ventura Contemplative Community will hold a Taize ecumenical worship service of songs, readings and silent prayer at Trinity Lutheran Church on April 5.

The “sung prayer” or simple chants sung by worshipers inspire and focus devotion, said Cecil Hoffman of the society. Instrumental accompaniment will be led by Trinity Lutheran’s music minister, Ron Zell.

The Taize service will begin at 6:45 p.m. The church is at 196 N. Ashwood St. For information, call 647-6831 or 642-7785.

Center to Celebrate Holy Week

* The Center for Positive Living in Ventura will celebrate Holy Week beginning on Palm Sunday, April 5, at 1 p.m.

Laura Eaton of the center supervised the construction of a canvas labyrinth, measuring 35 feet by 35 feet, to portray Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem.

On Good Friday, April 12, a sacred arts concert and healing service at 7 p.m. will be followed by a second labyrinth event. The center is at 2646 Palma Drive, Building 250. For information, call 650-8711.

Remembering Holocaust Children

* In memory of the 1.2 million Jewish children who were killed in the Holocaust, the children of the Conejo Jewish Academy in Agoura invite the public to join them in “Remember the Children, Butterflies of the Holocaust.”

The students plan to help the Chabad Academy in South Carolina reach a goal of coloring 1.2 million paper butterflies and putting them on display April 23.

The butterflies should be cut out of white paper, 5 inches by 7 inches and colored with crayons. They should be mailed by April 7 to Chabad Academy, 2803 Oak St., Myrtle Beach, S.C. 29577

For more information, call Rabbi Yitzchak Sapochkinsky at the Conejo Jewish Academy at (818) 991-0991.

Lecture at Camarillo Center

* Father Leo Booth will speak on “Insight, Wisdom and Harmony” at the Pleasant Valley Center for Positive Living in Camarillo on April 8.

The public is welcome to the free 7:30 p.m. talk at 200 Daily Drive, Suite 1. For information, call the center at 482-4300.

Youths to Walk to Ventura Cross

* Religious youth groups from about 20 denominations will join on Good Friday, April 10, for a 13-mile walk from the parking lot of Oxnard’s Channel Islands Vineyard Christian Fellowship, down Oxnard’s main streets, through The Esplanade and Buenaventura malls, and down Ventura’s main streets to the cross on the hill above the city.

There is a 50-cent charge for parking. For information, call Rush at 485-0050.

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.