Economic Development Role to Be Studied

A coalition of churches, businesses and nonprofit organizations will be sponsoring the first Churches Workshops for Economic Development at USC’s Davidson Center on Wednesday and Thursday.

“Churches WED” will bring together prominent churches and financial companies such as Wells Fargo Bank and Merrill Lynch to assist pastors and church administrators in developing financial strategies and establishing economic development programs.

One of the primary goals of the conference is to establish economic development programs within churches in inner-city neighborhoods. Panels on job creation, fund-raising, business development, conflict resolution and the theological aspects of community development will be offered.

Conference participants will learn about economic development for the community a church serves, as well as the community the membership serves, according to the Rev. Mark Whitlock of First AME Church, one of the principal organizers of the event.

Other organizations collaborating in the event include Greater Bethany Community Church, Crenshaw Christian Center, West Angeles Church of God in Christ, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Habitat for Humanity and the USC Center for Religion and Civic Culture.

The Davidson Center is at Figueroa and Jefferson streets in Los Angeles. Panels will be from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; the cost is $90 for both days. Call (213) 731-6367.

MEETINGS / LECTURES

The Catholic Commission on Intellectual Life and Cultural Affairs will hold its national meeting at Loyola Marymount University, 7900 Loyola Blvd., Los Angeles, today from 8:45 a.m. to 5:15 p.m. The conference will feature discussions on how those who suffer can find deeper spiritual meaning in their experiences. Speakers will include Joseph Chinnici of the Franciscan School of Theology and Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley; Paul Mariani, professor of English at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst; and Sidney Callahan, author of “Suffering: The Moral Challenge.” Call (310) 338-7445.

* Temple Isaiah, 10345 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, will be offering a new series of programs, “Paths of Learning,” to explore Judaism’s traditions and teachings with rabbis and others from the city’s Jewish community. On Sunday the synagogue will host a session on “The Shema Prayer and Its Blessings: Judaism’s Heart and Soul,” from 10 to 11:15 a.m. Sessions are free and open to the public. Call (310) 277-2772.

* John Stott, evangelical writer and teacher, will present lectures at two separate venues. On Monday he will speak on contemporary challenges to today’s Christians in a lecture co-sponsored by the Mariners South Coast Church and St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church. He will appear at St. Andrew’s, 600 St. Andrews Road, Newport Beach, at 7:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. Call (949) 631-2880.

On Tuesday at 10 a.m., Stott will encourage young people to pursue service to God and put aside material trappings in a one-hour lecture entitled “Timothys for the Twenty-First Century,” at the First Congregational Church, 464 E. Walnut Ave., Pasadena. A discussion will follow. His appearance is sponsored by the Fuller Theological Seminary and is free and open to the public. Call (626) 584-5204.

* Muzammil H. Siddiqi, director of the Islamic Society of Orange County, will deliver the address at the 13th annual Ecumenical Lecture hosted by the Roman Catholic Diocesan Commission on Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs. He will speak on “Jesus and Mary in the New Testament and Koran” on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. at the Marywood Center, 2811 East Villa Real Drive, Orange. The lecture is open to the public. Call (714) 282-3020.

* “Love Without Honor,” a conference addressing issues of domestic violence and abuse for religious communities, will be held next Saturday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Mariners South Coast Church, 5001 Newport Coast Drive, Irvine. Speakers will include Tanya Brown, of the Nicole Brown Foundation, keynote speaker Catherine Clark Kroeger, author of “Women, Abuse and the Bible,” and Mariners’ Pastor Jim Gaffney. The $15 fee includes the book “The Verbally Abusive Relationship,” by Patricia Evans. Call (949) 854-7030, Ext. 534.

EVENTS

The Unitarian Universalist Community Church of Santa Monica, at 18th Street and Arizona Avenue, will make a portable labyrinth available to the public to experience a walking meditation next Saturday from 1 to 5 p.m. The labyrinth has been used throughout human history as a vehicle for spiritual understanding. This 36-foot-diameter labyrinth has the same pattern as that found in the labyrinth of the Chartres Cathedral in France, which dates to the 13th century. Georgiana Lofty will talk about the history and use of the labyrinth and suggest ways to utilize it. Registration begins at 12:30 p.m.; a donation of $15 is suggested. Call (310) 829-5436.

* The Holy Spirit Retreat Center, 4316 Lanai Road, Encino, will host a program on “Discerning God’s Will” from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday. Participants will reflect on the importance of living daily in the presence of God and learning to listen with one’s entire being. The process of discernment as a tool for making day-to-day individual and communal decisions will be explored. The day will conclude with the celebration of the Eucharist. The $25 fee includes lunch. Call (818) 784-4515.

* Angel books, crafts, lectures and collectibles will be among the offerings of the Angel Festival, marking its fifth year, today and Sunday at the New Church, 2057 New York Ave., La Crescenta. Speakers will include Nadia McCaffrey, president of the San Francisco chapter of the International Assn. of Near Death Studies, who will discuss her two near-death experiences. The festival is free and runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days. Call (626) 794-4458.

MUSIC

In celebration of the feast day of its patron day, St. John’s Episcopal Church, 514 West Adams Blvd., Los Angeles, will offer a musical program as part of its worship service on Sunday at 11 a.m. Guest organist Cherry Rhodes, adjunct professor of music at USC, will perform “Revelations of St. John the Divine for Organ and Electronic Tape,” a work composed by organist Larry King and dedicated to Rhodes. Call (213) 747-6285.

Notices may be mailed to Southern California File, c/o Nona Yates, Metro Section, L.A. Times, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles, 90053 or faxed to (213) 237-4712. Items should arrive at least three weeks in advance of event and should include pertinent details about the organization, address, phone number, date and time.