Archbishop of Managua to Visit Nicaraguan Immigrants in L.A.

The archbishop of Managua, Cardinal Miguel Obando y Bravo, visits Los Angeles this weekend, reuniting with the thousands of Nicaraguan immigrants who fled their homeland during the country’s civil war. The cardinal’s role as a mediator in the conflict between the Sandinista government and Contra rebel leaders earned him praise from Pope John Paul II and elevated his status as one of the most prominent clerics in Central America.

Angela Vanegas, founder of the Nicaraguan prayer group La Purisima, said the community had been trying to secure a Southern California visit from the cardinal for six years and finally received confirmation earlier this year.

The cardinal arrived Friday and will be honored by the Nicaraguan Consulate and various dignitaries tonight at a private dinner in La Mirada. On Sunday at 1 p.m., the cardinal will celebrate an outdoor Mass for the public at Lynwood Middle School Stadium, 12124 Bullis Road, Lynwood. City officials said a free trolley bus to the stadium will be running from Lynwood City Hall, at the intersection of Bullis Road and Martin Luther King Boulevard.

NATIONAL DAY OF PRAYER

Millions of Americans are expected to reflect and fast Thursday in observance of the 48th annual National Day of Prayer. This year, the National Religious Broadcasters Assn. has scheduled a Concert of Prayer to be broadcast live on radio, television and the Internet from Los Angeles, New York, Washington and Seattle. Participants include Jack Hayford of the Church on the Way in Van Nuys, Che Ahn of the Harvest Rock Church in Pasadena, U.S. Senate Chaplain Lloyd Ogilvie and Joni Eareckson Tada, founder and president of the Agoura Hills-based ministry for the disabled. Music will be provided by the Maranatha! Worship Band and singer Fernando Ortega.

EVENTS

The Black Church Initiative of the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice will sponsor the Western Regional Black Religious Summit on Sexuality on May 6-8. The meeting will present a spiritual forum for discussions on sexuality, teenage pregnancy and drug abuse. It will be held at the Congregational Church of Christian Fellowship, 2085 South Hobart Blvd. in Los Angeles. For more information, call (909) 484-1499 or contact the church at (323) 731-8869.

* Bethel Evangelical Lutheran Church will celebrate its 75th anniversary at 10 a.m. Sunday with guest preacher the Rev. Paul W. Egerston, bishop of the Southern California West Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The church was founded to help Lutherans worship in English instead of Swedish and began in a chapel at 8th Street and Wilton Drive. Today, the church is at 5750 West Olympic Blvd. in Los Angeles.

DOCUMENTARY

Israeli filmmaker Ruth Minster Tousson captures the unique experience of the Israeli immigration to Los Angeles in a documentary called “America, a Subtitled Life.” The 66-minute film follows the lives of three families and one single woman for four years and records their feelings about life in the United States. The documentary will be shown at the Sunset 5 Laemmle Movie Theater, 8000 Sunset Blvd., today and Sunday at noon.

DRAMA

The New Faith Players delve into hot topics that few churches dare address in a one-act performance called “Let’s Be Real.” The production will include dialogue on sex, relationships, adultery and homosexuality. The play is tonight at 7 at the Faithful Central Missionary Baptist Church, 321 N. Eucalyptus Ave., Inglewood. Admission is free. For additional information, call (310) 330-8000.

PEOPLE

At a Sabbath celebration Friday night, Rabbi Lawrence J. Goldmark marked his 20th anniversary of leadership at Temple Beth Ohr in La Mirada. The Reform congregation was founded in 1956 and serves the Jewish community primarily in La Mirada, Buena Park, La Habra, Brea, Whittier, Anaheim and Fullerton. Besides serving at Temple Beth Ohr, Goldmark is president of the Southern California Board of Rabbis.

* Scott McLaughlin will be consecrated a bishop in the Episcopal Orthodox Church today at a 1 p.m. service in St. Paul’s Church in Ventura. McLaughlin, originally from San Diego, will head the Missionary Diocese of the United States, with responsibility for parish and clergy development, and will be based in the church’s headquarters in Winston-Salem, N.C.

* Wilshire Boulevard Temple will honor music director and composer Charles Feldman for 42 years of service. A Shabbat concert will feature the music of Feldman performed by the Wilshire Boulevard Choir and Cantor Jonathan Grant of Temple Bat Yahm in Newport Beach. Also performing will be cantorial soloists Joel Pressman and Ellen Sugarman as well as organist Bill Beck. The concert is scheduled for Friday at 8 p.m. at the Wilshire Boulevard Temple, 3663 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles. 213-388-2401.

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