For about 400 interfaith worshipers, the shoreline became a makeshift church as Catholics, Jews and Muslims gathered for an unusual "blessing of the waves." Although their faith traditions differ, those in attendance were bound by a reverence for the ocean and the peaceful place of prayer they find on its shores -- if not surfing its waves.
The service, sponsored by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange, was directed by a pair of surf-loving priests. Fathers Christian Mondor and Matt Munoz chose the Sunday after the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi -- the patron saint of ecology, as well as for animals -- for the event as a reminder that the ocean and its ecosystem must be protected.
The service, sponsored by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange, was directed by a pair of surf-loving priests. Fathers Christian Mondor and Matt Munoz chose the Sunday after the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi -- the patron saint of ecology, as well as for animals -- for the event as a reminder that the ocean and its ecosystem must be protected.
Rick Ischinger, a longtime surfer, blew on a conch shell, calling the gathering to order. Then, one by one, the representatives of different faiths stood to give a brief prayer.
"Some people pray by the oceans, others by the mountains," said Carol Weinfeld of Temple Beth David in Westminster. "Some people pray in forests and others by a calm cool lake. "We hope," she said, "that those voices will join together to thank God."
Fawad Yacoob of the Islamic Society of Orange County recited a verse from the Koran. The crowd was quiet as he sang the prayer.
When the prayers were finished, the Catholic priests took long stems of rosemary, dipped them in a large wooden bowl filled with holy water and sprinkled the crowd.
"Raise your hands over the water," Munoz told the crowd when they reached the beach. They lifted their hands, and he said a prayer. "May the gifts of creation not be something we feel entitled to ourselves as individuals," he said. "Let them be something we protect and cherish for everyone." Irma Fortin of Costa Mesa took the bowl of holy water and poured it into the ocean.
"Some people pray by the oceans, others by the mountains," said Carol Weinfeld of Temple Beth David in Westminster. "Some people pray in forests and others by a calm cool lake. "We hope," she said, "that those voices will join together to thank God."
Fawad Yacoob of the Islamic Society of Orange County recited a verse from the Koran. The crowd was quiet as he sang the prayer.
When the prayers were finished, the Catholic priests took long stems of rosemary, dipped them in a large wooden bowl filled with holy water and sprinkled the crowd.
"Raise your hands over the water," Munoz told the crowd when they reached the beach. They lifted their hands, and he said a prayer. "May the gifts of creation not be something we feel entitled to ourselves as individuals," he said. "Let them be something we protect and cherish for everyone." Irma Fortin of Costa Mesa took the bowl of holy water and poured it into the ocean.
.jpg)