Lovely Catholic church in Los Angeles. Honestly, we enjoy visiting all the churches. Some are…read moremore welcoming than others. St. Anastasias Catholic Church parishioners seemed nice enough based on my first impression. Have no issues returning for masses in the future.

How do rate a church?? God was there, I was there and we had a great time…read more... Seriously, I enjoyed the mass..

Although I always preferred going to Mass at Huesman Chapel on Sunday nights, that was mainly…read morebecause the Mass there started super late and because it was cozier. They've since razed Huesman Hall and, thus, Huesman Chapel no longer exists. I do love Sacred Heart Chapel, though, and when I was feeling particular social, it was always so welcoming coming to Mass with my fellow students at eight p.m.--and even with newer and newer crops of students after I had graduated, although college students now look so young and make me feel so old. The Masses here are always beautiful, and the singing is wonderful. I don't know enough about sacred architecture to describe the church accurately, but I love spending time in this chapel, whether or not services are going on. The only part I don't like about the interior is the huge wooden panels way behind the altar. I understand that the chapel was constructed before Vatican II, so when they moved the altar to the crossing (i.e., the middle of the transept), there was no longer any real use for the intricately carved wood. It helps when they place a choir or other musical ensemble in front of the panels, but otherwise, they draw one's attention away from the altar. I also didn't like when the ceiling was painted baby blue with clouds, but I think that was only for a short time before I was a student but when my sister was. Like most ornate churches, especially those on Jesuit campuses, Sacred Heart Chapel has all kinds of interesting details, many of them highly symbolic. In each of the high stained-glass windows there's a saint and also the seal of a different Jesuit college in the United States. They're organized in order of the colleges' founding, so the older the college, the closer its seal is to the front of the church. There are currently 27 Jesuit colleges in this country. I can name them all. The 28th Jesuit college was Wheeling Jesuit University, which was founded after Sacred Heart Chapel was constructed, so its seal was (is still?) in the niche on the west side of the church that displays the seals of all the Marymount colleges in the US. Recently, the Jesuits disaffiliated with the West Virginia school, so it's now called just Wheeling University, and it's no longer Jesuit, though it remains Catholic. There's also a tiny chapel behind the wooden panels called Mary Chapel. It looks like they don't have daily Mass in that particular chapel anymore, but when I was an LMU student, I often came to 12:05 p.m. Mass here, especially during Lent. At the time, my dad's office was near LMU, so I would often run into him at Mass. The bell tower (officially the Regents Bell Tower) is iconic, and you'll find illustrations and photographs of it in all things LMU throughout the years, from the very oldest Loyola University brochures from the 1950s through to today. Most church bell towers sound fairly similar, but I can always pick out the hourly tolling of the hours from Sacred Heart's bells; I don't know whether it's the tone itself or just that I spent four years here and heard it from different directions throughout campus. The chapel is also beautiful as the figurative head of the campus itself. Before LMU bought the Raytheon building (University Hall) in 2000, the campus itself was cruciform, with the central open spaces between the academic and administrative buildings forming a gigantic cross. University Hall has really upset that design symbolism, because university life was previously centered, literally, among all the buildings that surrounded and made up that physical cross. Still, if you ignore University Hall and just focus on the central part of campus, Sacred Heart Chapel sits beautifully at the head of that cross, with Sunken Garden and its two massive palm trees inviting visitors to come and see.

I attended a wedding at the chapel over the weekend. This is an absolutely beautiful church. Very…read morelarge for a chapel, I thought. Beautiful stained glass and plenty of seating for the guests. The grounds are gorgeous as well. Spectacular view! My only complaint is that at the rehearsal on Friday the parking machine was not working and everyone received a $20 ticket. On Saturday parking was supposedly free and we did not receive a ticket.

I attended the blessing of animals with a friend today…read more It is a small and quaint church located within the westchester residential community. The priest was very nice and greeted everyone near the church door entrance for the blessing. I hear sometimes there are animals such as lizards, birds and hamsters who also attend the blessing. We only saw cats and dogs today but everyone had a good time. We all responded to Father's reading as a group on the church grass. It was a beautiful day with sunshine and a slight breeze. After the readings, we all got in line to get our animals blessed. My friends dog was perfect while my two boys were a bit all over the place.

This church really helps support the community and homeless. They work closely with grassroot…read moreneighbors. Wonderful meaning of love and community.

I was looking at my view and I had some spelling issues that the website would not let me edit. I…read morewas looking for a church my wife and I heard about visitation. Our first time there we were greeted right away, not only by the priest, but also the congregation. I was nervous at first cause it's been a while, but that went away almost immediately. They are very welcoming. They even ask who here is new or out of town.. I honestly felt like I was at home. I am so glad I found this church. My wife and I love it here if you want to reconnect with the church, I suggest strongly to try this place out. What do you have to lose? God bless.

Felt at home at Visitation Church in Los Angeles. This Catholic Church is located close to LAX…read more We always feel welcomed by the Priest and the Parishioners. Plenty of parking. Large church with lots of available seating. Pretty church both inside and outside. Terrific place of worship to pray.

This Church is amazing if you need to be rehabilitated so you can know the Love of Gods this is…read moredefinitely the place.

Smaller, intimate crazy diverse racially, culturally, age-wise. Good teaching, upbeat quality…read moreworship. Friendly people who are willing to do some hard stuff to make the inter-cultural thing work. Outstanding place for people with mixed marriages, and people of mixed racial backgrounds. You'll probably feel at home, here. If you feel comfortable in a predominantly white, big church, this may not be the place for you. Great place for strong women. The Evangelical Covenant denomination approves of women in leadership.

If anybody knows anything about me, you know I love God! There is absolutely nothing cooler than…read morethe love of Jesus Christ. On this Sabbath day I've landed at Calvary Chapel LAX for a very special celebration of life event . In honor of my beautiful friend Hazel Hernandez . Hazel was a phenomenal woman! Growing up Downey Hazel was one of those amazing mothers that always welcomed you in with a smile on her face. At the end of any evening you could catch her coming home from work and watering her plants. I've taken many walks around the block with her . Always prepared to hear the stories of each house and she's known for years. The best stories, and yet a wonderful listener. My favorite thing she would do was use a catchphrase that she borrowed from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and made it her own. It wasn't a visit with Hazel until she hit you with that Cowabunga or two . Raise her arms in the air with excitement, Cowabunga ! The best ! She never judged me even when she knew I wasn't making the best life choices. A single mother living the American dream, raising three boys on her own. Her face would shine so bright when she would look into the eyes of her Family. Just so much love . . I want to thank all three Hernandez brothers for sharing their beautiful mother with me. I love that house ! Mat would read me books David would drive me around and Jason would let me raid his CD Collection. It was a safe place for me growing up and I'm grateful . She raised true gentleman . I will hold her close to my heart forever . Hazel Hernandez you will be missed . I find comfort in knowing that we will meet again in heaven. Thank you to the Calvary Chapel LAX for making such a beautiful celebration of life event . The music and all the beautiful words were so perfect.

Wonderful Ministry! It has gone through some changes in 2019... with the Founding Pastor, Dan…read moreHeard-leaving to pursue other Ministry opportunities and the Assistant Pastor, Justin Beck being raised up as the new Senior Pastor. This awesome church did not skip a beat! That's a sign of a very healthy church! Still GREAT worship, solid verse by verse teaching and an extremely warm & friendly congregation! Definitely considering visiting and ultimately making CCLAX your new home church!

Love this church very peaceful and welcoming. Enjoy the mass given by father. Always look forward…read moreto coming back anytime.

When in the car with my parents going up and down "THE" 405, I'd see this edifice with geometries…read morefrom another era combining SoCal's newer built environment, imagery from "The Jetsons," and maybe even some mid-century modern cues. I knew it was a church and, without being sacrilegious, it even hearkened to those hexagonal or octagonal Van de Kamp's coffee shops (think Denny's, not Starbucks). It turned out to be St. Jerome's Catholic Church. As you "graduate" from the insular viewpoint and frame of reference of your local parish church and get a driver's license, the world gets bigger. I went off to high school, made friends (and acquaintances) from Ladera - meaning Ladera Heights - and ended up going to Mass here on occasion. The services were always restrained and slightly traditional, but never boring or imperious. Also, when smaller in stature, it seemed like such a big church! During my teenage years, this parish had more of a Ladera catchment area with "Brady looking" kids agreeably or begrudgingly in tow with their parents attending Mass. Some of these kids, owing to the elementary school here, ended up at the nearby Catholic high schools. I had gotten off "THE" 405 to go to Dollar Tree to get a 6-pack of bottled water and now know that they only have spring water but no purified water ... at least not in SoCal. I didn't buy any water but figured I'd photograph St. Jerome's on my way back and, surprisingly, was able to go inside. The church seemed smaller. I guess that's because I got bigger. You have to appreciate the openness, the light, and even the unconventional modern feel that, in my opinion, is more conducive to worshipping. Let's face it: a few churches run on the drab and dour side so you might need to work up more inspiration. A woman saw me taking photos and said something like 'oh, you're taking pictures ...' I thought this was going to be a "hall monitor" sort of exchange. It was anything but. It turned out to be a pleasant and informal little conversation about growing up Catholic on L.A.'s West Side. It was also a reminder that, thankfully, in freewheeling SoCal, there aren't that many tightly wound Catholics. Sure, St. Jerome's was and probably is symbiotic with Ladera Heights and what that has entailed. However, it's also close to West Inglewood and "East Westchester," if there is such a thing. Regardless, this has always been one of the nicer parishes on the West Side. And, even if you don't snap mackerel, it will always be at your side as you motor up and down "THE" 405.