A day of praise and lights

Tariq Malik

HUNTINGTON BEACH -- City leaders, faith organizers and thousands of

worshipers are expected to hit the beach Sunday afternoon, but not for

surf or sun.

The second annual Procession of Light, a religious gathering to

celebrate individual and community faith, is expected to draw more than

2,000 to Pier Plaza at 3 p.m. to kick off the first Sunday of the year

with a bang.

“It’s going to be a great day,” said Derek Anunciation, pastor of

Praise Christian Center on Beach Boulevard, and the chairman of the

event’s planning committee. “The main importance of the event is really

to pray . . . for blessings of the city, its children and leaders, as

well as our own personal beliefs.”

The afternoon gathering near the intersection of Main Street and

Pacific Coast Highway is a throwback to the religious revivals by

Methodists in the early 1900s and focuses on the importance of love for

one another, he added.

Last year’s procession attracted about 2,500 people from about 17

different religions or denominations. The event is the biggest put on

annually by the Greater Huntington Beach Interfaith Council, a group of

religious leaders and representatives from this city and surrounding

communities like Fountain Valley, Westminster and Garden Grove.

Father Christian Mondor of Sts. Simon & Jude Church, who helped

organize the event last year, said this year’s procession will bring

together 20 religious groups, some of which include the Islamic Society

of Orange County, the Baha’i Faith of Huntington Beach and Christian and

Catholic institutions within the city.

Among the new groups added this year are several that have

traditionally not participated in group faith events, Anunciation said.

The Procession of Lights also will feature choirs and musical

presentations from many of the participating groups, as well as time for

prayer and reflection. The event will end at sunset, about 5:30 p.m., as

religious leaders escort participants in procession up and down the

Huntington Pier, carrying glow sticks which can be purchased for a small

donation of a few dollars.

“We have a lot of traditions in our city and country, and this is the

second year of a brand new one,” said City Councilman Dave Garofalo, who

worked with other city leaders last year to put on the event. “Here we

have religious groups from truly both ends of the spectrum all coming to

celebrate together regardless of their specific beliefs . . . I hope this

year breaks all records.”

FYI

For more information about the Procession of Lights 2001, call Praise

Christian Center at (714) 593-3277.