Ostensibly, the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress is a four-day training session for catechism teachers. But over the years, the event — which this year attracted nearly 40,000 conventioneers — has become one of the largest such gatherings of Catholics in the country.
It serves as a theological training center, a spiritual retreat and a makeshift bazaar for Catholic-oriented products. All at the same time.
“It’s become a smorgasbord” for anyone with an interest in the Catholic Church, said Tod Tamberg, spokesman for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. “People go to congress for different reasons . . . and that’s reflected in the wide variety of religious, spiritual and even philosophical offerings.”
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In LA, Thousands get a fresh look at Roman Catholicism
Ostensibly, the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress is a four-day training session for catechism teachers. But over the years, the event — which this year attracted nearly 40,000 conventioneers — has become one of the largest such gatherings of Catholics in the country.
It serves as a theological training center, a spiritual retreat and a makeshift bazaar for Catholic-oriented products. All at the same time.
“It’s become a smorgasbord” for anyone with an interest in the Catholic Church, said Tod Tamberg, spokesman for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. “People go to congress for different reasons . . . and that’s reflected in the wide variety of religious, spiritual and even philosophical offerings.”
Read it all.