I wrote a blog post on this theme a couple of months ago.
I figured I’d ape my posts about the most prestigious Sabbath invites in Orthodox Judaism in Los Angeles with one about Loma Linda University.
One problem — there are very few Sabbath invites in Loma Linda. It truly is the loneliest Adventist community in the world. And the most liberal.
I wonder if there’s a connection? There must be. Traditional Adventists will give you the shirt off their back. Liberal Adventists drown you in smoke from their Mercedes as they roar off to a restaurant after church Sabbath morning.
The new head of the Religion Department at Loma Linda came to town a few years ago and delivered the Sabbath morning sermon in the main church.
Now you have to remember that the Sabbath morning sermon is the most exciting part of the Adventist week (yeah, it’s a pretty bleak religion, good times are reserved for Heaven).
The bloke was a capable speaker but he didn’t score any lunch invites (until an accidental last minute one from a colleague).
I emailed a source at Loma Linda for info on the most prestigious Shabbos invites. She responded: “Reading your email, I realized I’ve only been invited to someone’s house for Sabbath dinner maybe three times since moving to Loma Linda many years ago. But oh … once you compile the list, I’d like to know, so I’ll know who I need to schmooze for a Sabbath invite.”
A friend says: “Many people like not hanging out with the same folks they work with all week. Remember Loma Linda is a company town.”
Geoff posts: “As a kid the most exciting part of my Adventist week was the countdown to sundown on Saturday nights. My observation is that the LL SDA’s I’ve known seem like a morbidly lonely lot every one.”
The Church sure knows how to use beautiful women to promote its theology.
Maranatha Hay (left), video production specialist, and Patricia Thio, associate director for public relations video, win LLU’s first Emmy Awards.
Loma Linda University sweeps its categories at Emmy Awards
Loma Linda University won three Emmys this Saturday evening, taking home an award for each of its nominated categories at the 36th Annual Pacific Southwest Emmy Awards in San Diego. The awards were for “Loma Linda 360°,” the university’s documentary-style broadcast show.
Each of the nominated stories features outreach programs of Loma Linda University Medical Center.
The story “Surgeons of Hope” won in the category of health/science program or special. Directed by first-time winner and second-time nominee Maranatha Hay, “Surgeons of Hope” tells the story of Holman Velasquez, a 14-year-old boy born with a fatal heart disease in Nicaragua. With no money to explore foreign options, Holman must undergo open-heart surgery in a country that is in the process of developing a successful pediatric heart surgery program. In order to have a chance at reaching adulthood, Holman and his mother must undergo a test of faith that nearly shatters their deep strength of spirit. Doctors from Loma Linda partner with Surgeons of Hope, a foundation devoted to bringing surgical care to indigent children in developing countries. This means survival for kids who wouldn’t have a chance otherwise.
