Religion Briefs
Choir fest includes Oct. 20 performance
The Oahu Church Choir Festival next week provides a clinic for church musicians and a treat for concertgoers who can hear the product of their work in a 200-voice choral concert Oct. 20."A Festival of Hymns & Sacred Music" is sponsored by the Hawaii chapters of the American Choral Directors Association and the American Guild of Organists.
Anton Armstrong, director of the St. Olaf Choir of Northfield, Minn., and John Ferguson, professor of organ and church music at St. Olaf College, will conduct the clinic rehearsals Thursday through next Saturday.
The choral group will perform at the Festival Concert at 4 p.m. Oct. 20 at Central Union Church. For information, call Dale Noble, 734-4144.
'Sacred Dance' lecture and workshop offered
Movement that enhances prayer and worship will be taught in a seminar next month by Stella Matsuda, choreographer and director of Alleluia Dance Theater of Thousand Oaks, Calif.Harris United Methodist Church will sponsor "Sacred Dance Experience," which will open with a lecture on "Sacred Dance in the Life of the Church" at 7 p.m. Nov. 15 at the church at 20 S. Vineyard Blvd. It is open to the public.
The workshop will be 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Nov. 16. Participants must be at least 15 years old. Matsuda and participants will dance at the 10:30 a.m. service at the church.
A free-will offering will be accepted. For information call Mel Billingsley, 395-6043 or Diane Matsuura, 395-8022.
World peace prayer set at Pearl City park
An Interfaith Prayer for World Peace will be held 4 to 6 p.m. Oct. 20 at Neal Blaisdell Park in Pearl City.The event is sponsored annually by the Hawaii Conference of Religions for Peace, a movement of the Rissho Koseikai Buddhist organization. It is open to the public.
For information, call the Rev. Yasuhiro Yano, Hawaii conference president, 621-6667.
Bible Institute holds annual family fun day
The Bible Institute of Hawaii invites its students and supporters to join in the annual "Walk in the Word" fund-raiser and family fun day next Saturday at Ala Moana Park.Participants will run or walk a 1.8-mile course around the park to earn the money pledged by contributors. Registration will be 7 a.m. at the McCoy Pavilion.
A party at the pavilion will continue until noon, featuring live entertainment, including local Christian band Seven Single Pieces and singer Jan Brenner. There will be prizes, games for children and refreshments at the event, co-sponsored by Christian radio station Fish 95.5 FM.
The event is staged annually to raise funds for the faculty of the Bible Institute of Hawaii, an interdenominational organization. Call 943-0833.
Shingon Mission hosts Open Table Pilgrimage
The Shingon Mission, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary in Hawaii this year, will host the Open Table Pilgrimage this month. The beliefs and rituals of this branch of Buddhism will be explained at a 4 p.m. Oct. 20 program at the historic temple at 915 Sheridan St. It is open to the public.The Open Table series visits a different church or temple each month. The ecumenical group also hosts a meeting at 7 a.m. the first Wednesday of each month at the United Church of Christ conference headquarters, 15 Craigside Place.
Labyrinth workshop set at Manoa school
The Church of Ke'auhou will present a workshop today on the labyrinth, a form of walking meditation. The meeting, 2 to 6 p.m. at the Manoa Japanese Language School, 2804 E. Manoa Road, is open to the public. A model of the labyrinth floor will be set up for use today and tomorrow after the 9:30 a.m. Sunday service.
Dress code status quo for Greek Orthodox
ATHENS, Greece >> Greece's Orthodox church has rejected a request from its clergy for an image change that would do away with their long black robes, beards and tall headgear.The church said Wednesday the dress code of the all-male Orthodox clergy will not change despite complaints that the long black robes and the tall caps were uncomfortable and far too hot in the scorching summer heat.
Some priests have also said their centuries-old dress is out of touch with the times, giving them a forbidding image rather than their role as a friend of the people. But the pleas fell on deaf ears.
"The Holy Synod has unanimously decided there is no issue regarding the change of clothing of our church's Orthodox priests," the church said in a statement.
Archbishop Christodoulos, a controversial figure in Greek social affairs, told the Holy Synod Monday, "The robe makes us responsible and protects us from any wrongdoing."
More than 95 percent of the 11 million Greeks are Christian Orthodox.
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