Prayer

Thomas Moran has been the principal at St. Francis High School in La Cañada for the last 18 years. Still, he can't help but get excited when the new school year arrives. "The last couple days [before school starts] are quiet, kind of like the calm before the storm," Moran said. "It's energizing to have more people here, especially when the students come back. " St. Francis, founded by the Capuchin Franciscan Friars in 1946, began classes Thursday for the 2010-11 school year looking to carry on a 64-year tradition.

Q. Christian and Jewish faithful will begin to observe their respective holy days, with observances of Lent, Purim and Passover taking place all over the world. What does the Bible teach us about entering these holy days with a sense of prayer? I hate to give the pat answer for this question, but believers of all faiths understand that prayer is a way of life, not just an act we perform while we are in church or sitting down to eat a meal, or even when trouble is on the horizon.

CNN reported last month that two Florida school administrators face contempt charges and possible prison time for saying a prayer at a school luncheon. They face a non-jury trial Sept. 17. Do you believe the court went too far in filing contempt charges against these two men for the ?simple? act of saying a prayer at a school luncheon? Or should these men be ?taught a lesson? on the separation of church and state by giving them jail time? ? Did District Judge Casey Rodgers go too far in filing contempt charges against Principal Frank Lay and Athletic Director Robert Freeman of Pace High School in Santa Rosa County, Florida?

Rabbi Shawn Fields-Meyer will speak on developing more meaningful prayer habits on Feb. 5 from 10:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Temple Sinai of Glendale, 1212 N. Pacific Ave. Rabbi Fields-Meyer will lead an interactive session exploring ways to strengthen own spirituality, as well as the "prayer muscles" within families. Rabbi Fields-Meyer is a professor of Bible Studies at the University of Judaism and received the Jewish Education Award for the Most Innovative Teacher in 2004.

The Christian Science Reading Room and Bookstore invites the community to pray with the congregation concerning terrorism. Prayer can be an effective tool in combating terrorism as the current issue of the church's weekly magazine, Christian Science Sentinel, "Counteracting Terrorism," demonstrates. This is part of an ongoing joint venture in conjunction with Sentinel Radio, which is heard on Sunday on KIRN 670 AM at 7 a.m. or 1520 AM at 9 a.m. and spirituality.com. Listeners will hear conversations with people who have used prayer in traveling safely and combating terrorism in their own thought.

A special morning of prayer led by Sister Rosemarie Tulacz, SND, of Notre Dame Creations in Thousand Oaks, will take place at St. Bede the Venerable Roman Catholic Church from 8:45 a.m. to noon on Monday, Jan. 9. The prayer will be held in the church's John XXIII Room. A Sister of Notre Dame for the past 27 years, Sister Rose Marie is an artist and photographer known as “The Nun with the Nikon.” “Photographing natural things is a way of being in touch with them and with oneself,” she says.

The Muslim holy month of fasting began Saturday and, for the first time, local followers of the faith have a nearby location to meet and practice their traditions together in what can otherwise be a lonely and challenging period of self-restraint, community leaders said. Muslims abstain from food, drink and sexual activity during daylight hours for the month of Ramadan, which follows the lunar calendar and will last until Sept. 19 this year. While local Muslims have either gone without attending traditional evening prayer services or have driven to other mosques in the past, this year will be different, said Mahmoud Nouh, spokesman for the Islamic Center of Glendale.

Light on the Corner church invites the community to a year-long study of the book of Revelations beginning Jan. 1 at the 10:45 a.m. service with Pastor Bryan Griem in the sanctuary, 1911 Waltonia Drive, Montrose. The church will mark its 65th anniversary in 2006. All year there will be an interactive, multi-faceted approach to the book of Revelations. There are weekly adult Sunday school sessions at 9:30 a.m., and on Wednesdays at 7 p.m. there is an ongoing study with discussion and video curriculum.

Last week, I was privileged to join the La Crescenta branch of Bahá?ís at the home of Lily and Shahrom Moghbel on Thursday night. Bahá?í Roberta Dowell invited me to the service last week, but not before she hung up on me before I had a chance to tell her that I was reporter for the Valley Sun, and that I wasn?t calling to sell her a subscription. As is common practice online to do so online when something funny is alluded to: LOL. The Bahá?í religion is considered to be the youngest of the world?

On Friday night friends, family and community members joined together at the Roger Barkley Community Center to celebrate Ramadan with the La Cañada Flintridge Islamic Congregation. From Sept. 13 to Oct. 12, Muslims of the Islamic faith recognize Ramadan by fasting from sunrise to sunset. It is a time of retrospect and life renewing for the faithful, a time to look inward to reevaluate how they are helping others. It is also a time to gather with friends and celebrate their faith.

A special morning of prayer led by Sister Rosemarie Tulacz, SND, of Notre Dame Creations in Thousand Oaks, will take place at St. Bede the Venerable Roman Catholic Church from 8:45 a.m. to noon on Monday, Jan. 9. The prayer will be held in the church's John XXIII Room. A Sister of Notre Dame for the past 27 years, Sister Rose Marie is an artist and photographer known as “The Nun with the Nikon.” “Photographing natural things is a way of being in touch with them and with oneself,” she says.

That old time religion was back in La Cañada Flintridge for the first time in four years Thursday, as the YMCA of the Foothills saw more than 350 attendees fill its gymnasium for its 18th Community Prayer Breakfast. The once-annual tradition that went on hiatus in 2007 will be back on the calendar next year and indefinitely after that, said Tyler Wright, president and chief executive and of the local Y organization. The near-capacity crowd of La Cañada residents and local clergy came together for a morning of prayer, song and a rousing speech from talk radio host Dennis Prager.

Thomas Moran has been the principal at St. Francis High School in La Cañada for the last 18 years. Still, he can't help but get excited when the new school year arrives. "The last couple days [before school starts] are quiet, kind of like the calm before the storm," Moran said. "It's energizing to have more people here, especially when the students come back. " St. Francis, founded by the Capuchin Franciscan Friars in 1946, began classes Thursday for the 2010-11 school year looking to carry on a 64-year tradition.

British theologian Daphne Hampson, author of "Theology and Feminism," argues that "religions have proved the ultimate weapon in keeping woman in her place. " How would you answer the question "Is religion bad for women?" Religious traditions are intimately tied to our social structure, and the place of women in society is much influenced in that way. I can understand how Daphne Hampson reached her conclusions with respect to women's rights, for example, that Christianity "is neither true nor moral," that there is "need for a paradigm shift in religion," even her decision to "discard Christianity," as she defines it. And yet she retains her deep conviction of God's existence.

Prayer is one of the most difficult, most intimate things you can do. You open yourself up and sometimes admit things about yourself to thin air that you wouldn’t tell anyone, not even your dog. It’s also one of the harder things to explain. I’ve already had to scrap twice what I had originally planned for this week’s column. I’ve had to consider all the questions: How do you pray? Why do you pray? When do you pray? With whom? Who prays more? Who prays less?

The Tidings (the official newspaper of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles) writer Anne Hansen last week wrote about a symposium held at Loyola Marymount University recently designed to encourage dialogue “among believers of many faiths.” The symposium focused on dialogue especially within the Catholic and Orthodox traditions. However, in the larger scheme of things, how important do you believe it is for brothers and sisters of other faith traditions to work together for unity?

A dozen Franciscan religious were joined Monday night by representatives from St. Francis High School, Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy, St. Bede?s Parish and the city of La Cañada for a 100th anniversary celebration of the Capuchin Franciscans Western America Province. ?We are so proud and so grateful to be here in La Cañada, and to be part of this community and to have the privilege to teach so many wonderful students,? said St. Francis President Fr. Tony Marti. ?We have a lot of great students, we have great parents and a great community that has always supported us.?