California

Calvary Chapel movement founder Chuck Smith will undergo radiation and chemotherapy treatment for his lung cancer sometime this week, announced Pastor Mike MacIntosh of Horizon Christian Fellowship in San Diego, Calif., via a post on his Facebook page this past Saturday.

Pastor Smith, 84, who was instrumental in starting the nation’s Jesus movement in the late 1960s, announced to his church congregation at Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa during Sunday services on New Year’s Day that he was diagnosed with lung cancer.

It was first announced that he would have surgery to remove the cancer. However, The Christian Post learned last week that further analysis of tests taken the week before were needed before a surgery date could be scheduled. more >>

The Calif. megachurch Crystal Cathedral on Saturday held a memorial for Fred Southard, the former chief financial officer who died of a heart attack at his home in the Newport Coast last Sunday. A close friend said Southard was shattered after he was asked to retire last January.

The bankrupt church in Garden Grove, Calif., whose board has approved the sale of its campus to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange County, held the memorial service for Southard, who had retired last January amid a financial crisis, Saturday morning.

The 75-year-old former CFO suffered a heart attack on Jan. 8 after he watched the Denver Broncos defeat the Pittsburgh Steelers at his home, according to The Orange County Register. He was pronounced dead after he was taken to the hospital. more >>

Pastor Rick Warren has helped more than 15,000 members of his Saddleback Church to collectively lose about 250,000 pounds through a fitness program he launched last January.

Members of Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif., on Saturday celebrated their success in losing extra weight at a rally to mark the first anniversary of the Daniel Plan, which Warren launched in collaboration with cardiac surgeon Dr. Mehmet Oz, brain expert Dr. Daniel Amen, and metabolism expert Dr. Mark Hyman in January 2011.

At the beginning of the program, the over 15,000 participants, including Warren, promised to avoid sugar, white bread, white rice, pastas, white and wheat flour, hydrogenated fats or oils, caffeine and processed food; the results were thrilling. more >>

LAKE FOREST, Calif. – A colorful and moving tribute to the life of Jessica Joy Rees, a 12-year-old Southern California girl who led a national campaign to help children suffering from cancer before she herself succumbed to brain tumors last week, was attended by thousands of people at Saddleback Church Wednesday evening.

More than 3,400 inside the Orange County church’s main worship center, hundreds more in two overflow venues on the church campus, and a live webcast audience size yet to be determined, shared tears with Jessica’s father, ministry pastor Erik Rees, as he led the service. Later, near the end of the service, lead pastor Rick Warren gave a message centered on Bible verse John 3:16.

Jessica began a tremendous following after being diagnosed with cancer 10 months ago and then, a few months later, launching her “Joy Jars” campaign aimed at bringing hope to children with cancer across the nation. more >>

A new law proposed in the California State Assembly would dispose of gender segregation in schools, allowing students to attend "elementary and secondary school classes and courses, including nonacademic and elective classes" and related facilities in accordance with their "gender identity."

The legislative piece, Assembly Bill 266, would require schools to allow students to play on sports teams according to their "gender identity" and not their biological sex. It would also provide them with access to necessary facilities, like locker rooms.

If the law, proposed by Assemblyman Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco), passes, a boy who claims a female "gender identity," for example, would have the right to try out for a girls sports team. The new law would require "that participation in a particular physical education activity or sport, if required of pupils of one sex, be available to pupils of each sex." The bill would also require "that a pupil be permitted to participate in sex-segregated school programs, activities, and facilities, including athletic teams and competitions, consistent with his or her gender identity, irrespective of the gender listed on the pupil’s records." more >>

A "celebration service" for the life of Jessica Joy Rees, a Southern California girl who spearheaded a national campaign to help children suffering from illness while she herself had inoperable brain tumors, is planned for Wednesday at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, Calif.

This past Thursday, Rees’ family announced that the 12-year-old had lost her nearly yearlong battle with cancer. On Facebook, they posted:

"Dear friends...we have prayed and prayed and prayed for sweet Jessie to be healed here on earth but God's plan was to use heaven for healing. Jessie earned her wings today and is with Jesus now!!! No pain..complete vision...spreading joy. Please pray for our family as we walk out of the valley of death and towards the mountain top … Please join us in carrying on her joyful spirit and Never Ever Give Up attitude." more >>