A Growing Congregation of Online Events and Services
The Internet continues to foster an international religious renaissance connecting congregations, starting dialogues and providing information on thousands of faiths to spiritual surfers and skeptics alike. Here are two sites of interest.
In what may be a virtual gathering to rival the number of Israelites at Mt. Sinai, scores of Jews are expected to come together on the Internet for the second annual Jewish Web Week. From Sunday through Friday, people visiting the home page of Jewish Web Week (https://www.jww.org) will be able to connect to one another and to several hundred other Web sites, discussions and online events. Highlights of the week include: an online “Concert for Peace” by Israeli and Arab musicians, singles parties at Hard Rock Cafes across the nation that will be cybercast on the Net, an online poetry slam, a teenagers’ scavenger hunt and chats with political figures.
Where’s the church? A new Web site listing more than 65,000 Christian churches and representing more than 120 denominations has the answer. The site called Houses of Worship can be found at https://www.hows.net and provides free Web pages on which churches can publish their own information. Individuals can search for a church by geographic location, denomination or needs such as child care or disaster relief. The group is working on a Spanish-language version and hopes to serve Latino churches in the United States and Mexico by next year.
URBAN MINISTRY
The Rev. H. George Anderson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, will be the keynote speaker at an all-day convocation on urban ministry to be held today and titled “In the City for Good.” The Lutheran initiative was adopted by the organization’s Churchwide Assembly in 1997 and focuses on the need to revive churches in urban areas. The convocation will be held at Holy Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, 9300 S. Crenshaw Blvd., Inglewood, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, call the church at (323) 757-1739.
HEALTHY SUNDAYS
They call it “health care with a higher calling.” In a marriage of church and medicine, St. Francis Medical Center has begun providing free health screenings, referrals and benefit information to local churches. On “Healthy Sundays,” the St. Francis Mobile Unit staff travels to parishes and administers care to churchgoers after Sunday services. Health screenings include tests for diabetes, blood pressure and cholesterol, plus body fat analysis. On Sunday, the mobile unit will be parked outside St. Lucy’s Church at 2344 Cola Ave., Long Beach, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. No appointment is necessary.
ART
Two noteworthy Israeli exhibits open in tandem at the Jewish Federation Valley Alliance in West Hills. The first, “Shalom Haver: 30 Artistic Responses to the Life & Tragic Death of Yitzhak Rabin,” features artists Peter Max, Rachel Timor and Menashe Kadishman in a mixed media show curated in collaboration with the Israeli leader’s widow, Leah Rabin. The title, “Shalom Haver,” which means “Goodbye, Friend,” recalls the words spoken by President Clinton in his farewell to Rabin. The exhibit is touring the United States under the auspices of the Project Judaica Foundation, based in Washington. West Hills is the show’s only Southern California stop.
* “Images of Israel” features works by photographers including Bill Aron, Micha Bar Am, Robert Cumins, Yoshi Hashimoto and Eric Lawton.
Both exhibits run from Sunday through April 4 in the Finegood Art Gallery at the Jewish Federation, 22622 Vanowen St., West Hills. For more information, call (818) 587-3200
MUSIC
Holman United Methodist Church presents the 40th annual Concert of Negro Spirituals, featuring the Holman Choir and the music of Jester Hairston and Moses Hogan. The concert is scheduled for next Saturday and Feb. 28 at 3 p.m. in the Holman Sanctuary, 3320 W. Adams Blvd., Los Angeles. Donations for tickets range from $10 to $50. For more information, call (213) 731-7285.
* St. Matthew’s Music Guild presents the second of a three-concert inaugural series showcasing the church’s new Franco-Flemish harpsichord by John Phillips. Deborah Buck, concertmaster of the St. Matthew’s Chamber Orchestra, will be featured in Vivaldi’s “The Four Seasons.” The harpsichord will be featured most prominently in Vivaldi’s Mandolin Concerto in D, a work made famous by its prominence in the feature film “A Room With a View.” Orchestra conductor and music director Thomas Neenan will be the harpsichord soloist in selected Vivaldi and Haydn pieces. The concert is scheduled for 8 p.m. Friday. St. Matthew’s Music Guild is at 1031 Bienveneda Ave., Pacific Palisades. Admission is $15 and tickets will be available at the door. For more concert information, call (310) 573-7787, Ext. 2.
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Notices may be mailed for consideration to Southern California File, c/o Religion Editor, Los Angeles Times, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles, CA 90053, or by fax to Southern California File at (213) 237-4712, or by e-mail to religion@latimes.com. Items should arrive two to three weeks before the event and should include pertinent details about the people and organizations with address, phone number, date and time.
