Summer's nearly over, school has begun and Catholic parishes throughout the Archdiocese of Los Angeles are launching their fall religious education, justice and service programs. Below is information on some of the larger events taking place in the archdiocesan community.

SCRC Catholic Renewal Convention: Sept. 1-3
The 35th annual SCRC Catholic Renewal Convention, "Strength for the Journey," will take place Labor Day weekend, Sept. 1-3, at the Anaheim Convention Center. More than 10,000 people are expected to participate in dozens of workshops, daily liturgies and Christian music concerts. Organized with families in mind, the weekend also features a young adult conference, teen conference, a children's program for elementary school grades first through sixth and a young family play area. For registration information, call SCRC at (818) 771-1361 or visit: www.scrc.org.

Prep Football: Sept. 1-2
The 2006 high school football season for many of the Southland's Catholic schools begins this weekend, the first of what they hope will be step one on the road to the CIF-Southern Section playoffs in November.

The Sept. 1 games include the following (all at 7 or 7:30 p.m.): St. Anthony at Cantwell-Sacred Heart; Riverside Poly at Damien; St. Genevieve at Sage Hill; Santa Clara at Hueneme; Long Beach Poly at Santa Margarita; St. Bonaventure at Hart; Nipomo at Bishop Diego; and Bishop Amat at St. Paul. On Sept. 2, games include Eagle Rock at La Salle (1:30 p.m.), and Bellarmine-Jefferson at Malibu (2 p.m.). On Sept. 7, St. Paul is at St. Bonaventure (7 p.m.).

Labor Day Mass: Sept 4
During the annual Labor Day Mass Sept. 4, Cardinal Roger Mahony will challenge the community to faithful citizenship in order to address contemporary labor issues like legalization for working immigrants and their families as well as the need for adequate healthcare for all. The liturgy --- during which the cardinal will bless workers and their tools --- begins at 10 a.m. at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels. For more information, call the archdiocesan Office of Justice and Peace at (213) 637-7690.

Whole Community Catechesis: Sept. 6
A day-long workshop on whole community catechesis takes place Sept. 6 at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels. Parish teams are welcomed to participate. The 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. day will include opportunities to see whole community catechesis in action, a session on incorporating liturgy and music, and a session on best practices. Simultaneous translation into Spanish will be offered for the entire event. There is no fee to attend. To register, call (213) 680-5200 or e-mail mmyouseff@la-archdiocese.org.

Politics and Spirituality Conference: Sept. 8-10
"Politics and Spirituality: Outer Witness, Inner Faith" --- a three-day conference to explore the connection between inner spiritual life and outer public witness --- will feature Franciscan Father Richard Rohr, Jim Wallis and author Anne Lamott. The conference is hosted by the Center for Action and Contemplation and Sojourners at the Civic Auditorium and Conference Center in Pasadena. Sponsors also include the archdiocesan Office of Religious Education. For registration, see www.cacradicalgrace.org.

Immigration Rally: Sept. 9
An immigration rally to urge passage of a comprehensive and humane immigration reform bill takes place Sept. 9 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. north of downtown Los Angeles. The rally is sponsored, in part, by the We Are America Coalition, an association of more than 100 religious, labor, business and immigrant advocacy organizations. The event will close the National Latino Congress on Public Policy and Political Participation and will include a variety of speakers and entertainment. Participants are encouraged to dress in white and bring U.S. flags. The event takes place at the park-property known as the Cornfield, near Chinatown. For more information, call the Central American Resource Center at (213) 385-7800, ext. 127.

Catechist Commissioning Ceremony: Sept. 10
The annual Prayer of Commissioning of catechists will take place at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels Sept. 10 at 3:30 p.m. Catechists completing basic and advanced formation will be commissioned during the ceremony and sent forth to teach religious education at parishes and schools.

A Faire of the Heart AIDS benefit: Sept. 10
A Faire of the Heart XVII, the annual benefit event of The Serra Project to provide homes for adults and children living with HIV/AIDS, takes place Sept. 10 at 4 p.m. at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. This year's benefit will feature the performance of Sheryl Lee Ralph and her one-woman show "Sometimes I Cry" about women who are infected and affected by AIDS. The benefit includes a silent auction, reception, performance and awards ceremony. The donation is $250 per person. For more information, call Jennifer Duke at (562) 424-4897.

Public Policy Breakfast: Sept. 13
Immigration trends and changing demographics is the theme of the 12th annual Public Policy Breakfast with Cardinal Roger Mahony Sept. 13. "Immigrants and Immigration: Opportunities and Challenges for Los Angeles" will feature guest speaker Ali Modares of the Institute of Public Affairs at Cal. State, Los Angeles. Panelist respondents include Ron Wilkins, African Studies professor at Cal. State, Dominguez Hills; Eunsook Lee, executive director of the National Korean American Service and Education Consortium; and Abel Valenzuela, Jr., director of the Center for Study of Urban Policy at UCLA. Serving as moderator is Angelica Salas, executive director of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles (CHIRLA).

The breakfast is sponsored by the Justice and Peace Commission of Archdiocese of Los Angeles. The event is "an excellent opportunity to engage in a positive way about such a critical present-day issue, and to really gain some significant information from experts so that we can move this discussion forward in a more helpful and positive manner," said Joan Harper, program coordinator for the archdiocesan Office of Justice and Peace.

The breakfast takes place Sept. 13 from 8-10 a.m. at St. Vincent School, 2333 S. Figueroa St., Los Angeles. The requested donation is $25. RSVP by Sept. 8 by calling (213) 637-7560.

Catechetical Sunday: Sept. 17
Catechetical Sunday, which is celebrated nationally, is an opportunity for parishes to commission and send forth their catechists. "Every parish is encouraged to have some kind of a ritual," said Religious Sister of Charity Edith Prendergast, archdiocesan director of the Office of Religious Education. "We recognize women and men who are involved in faith formation and we are sending them to continue that ministry of sharing the word and passing on the Catholic/Christian story and tradition."

Catholic Prayer Breakfast: Sept. 19
San Francisco Archbishop George Niederauer will be the guest speaker at the second annual Southern California Prayer Breakfast Sept. 19 at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels. Hosted and sponsored by the Southern California Prayer Breakfast committee, the event will open at 6:30 a.m. with Los Angeles' auxiliary bishops leading a public recitation of the rosary, followed by a concelebrated Mass with Cardinal Roger Mahony presiding. Breakfast will be held on the Cathedral Plaza immediately after the liturgy.

The prayer breakfast is expected to draw more than 1,000 participants. Area high schools are being invited and parishes are encouraged to support the event by reserving tables and/or sponsoring transportation. Ticket information is available at www.californiaprayerbreakfast.com.

Spirit and Law Convention: Sept. 22-30
This year's third annual Spirit and Law Convention will focus on biblical, liturgical, theological and ecumenical dimensions of cannon law with stress on its pastoral applications in today's church. Among the 11 all-day workshops being offered are workshops on "Gospel Values & Human Resources," "Canon Law Issues Related to Parish Council and Finance Council," and "Theology of Marriage and Marriage Nullity." Workshops also are available on preparing marriage nullity cases.

Each day begins with a continental breakfast at 8 a.m. and concludes with Mass at 6 p.m. followed by a reception. Workshops are $20 each or 3 for $55. An interfaith workshop that includes transportation to Jewish, Greek Orthodox, Islamic and Catholic religious places of worship is $40. For more information, call Therese Ivers at (213) 637-7296 or visit www.archdiocese.la/spiritandlaw

African-American and Latino Summit: Sept. 23
To heal the divide between Los Angeles County's African American and Latino communities, a task force of clergy, law enforcement, elected officials and civic leaders brought together by Sheriff Lee Baca will hold its fourth conference at University Southern California Sept. 23. The event will build on earlier conferences where as many as 700 civic leaders documented a core set of issues plaguing both communities like low voter turn-out, high unemployment, substandard education, inadequate health care and gang violence. This year's conference will focus on developing an action plan.

The summit takes place from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. (registration at 8 a.m.) at USC's Town & Gown Conference Center, 3415 S. Figueroa St. For more information, contact Scottie Gray, executive director of Hope for Life Foundation at (323) 753-4673.

Death penalty workshop: Sept. 30
St. Joseph of Carondelet Helen Prejean, author of "Dead Man Walking: An Eyewitness Account of the Death Penalty in the United States" which spawned an Oscar-winning movie, will discuss her ongoing work campaigning against the death penalty and counseling individual death row prisoners at the St. Joseph Center Auditorium in Orange Sept. 30. The 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. day, sponsored by the Center for Spiritual Development, will include an afternoon panel featuring a person wrongly convicted and a victim's relative. The $50 fee includes lunch. To register, call (714) 744-3175, x4409 or e-mail gscharff@csorange.org.