The Orange County Register
People Groups congregate at churches, vigils and other gatherings to cry, find comfort.
September 14, 2001
It's this
generation's time. Forrest Reinhard, assistant pastor at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, said
Thursday that every generation in times of crisis has turned its attention to
God.
``It's our generation's turn,'' he said, ``to seek courage for the challenge
before us.''
Part of that courage came Thursday from banding together in prayer and
candlelight.
Across Orange County, people prayed at vigils and services. More than 50 at
Newport Harbor Lutheran Church. About 150 at Woodbridge Lake in Irvine. Some 500
at St. Angela Merici Catholic Church in Brea. Among others were these:
Santa Ana
They came wearing T-shirts, and they came wearing ties. They showed up with
wheelchairs, baby strollers and a determination to be strong in the wake of
sorrow.
Nearly 500 people came to a candlelight vigil Thursday night at Santa Ana
College.
``It's the least we could do,'' said Erica Banda, 18.
Thoughts were with the victims' families -- including the children whose
parents are never coming home.
``They hit the heart of the nation, and we felt this wave of sorrow,'' said
Ismael Mojarra, 20. ``This evening we weep, we strive to understand, and we struggle,'' said Rita
Cepeda, college president. People wrote messages of prayer and patriotism on white paper banners. With
candles illuminating their faces, the participants rose to sing ``God Bless
America.'' San Clemente St. Clement's Episcopal Church in San Clemente held its third
prayer vigil of the week Thursday night, led by Assistant Pastor Packard Okie.
About 30 people attended the half-hour service, where participants read from the
Book of Common Prayer. ``The situation, they make me very angry because I don't understand why
people have to go through so much pain,'' Grace Curiel said. ``I'm working on my
anger. That's why I'm here praying for all these innocent people.'' Seal Beach Pastors at Grace Community Church read Bible passages and prayed with about
250 worshippers. Vere Reynolds of Anaheim found comfort in joining a large group of people. ``I can pray, and at least in spirit, be with those who are no longer with
us,'' she said. Westminster More than 2,000 people -- Jews and Muslims, Buddhists and Christians --
packed the Westminster Civic Center to listen to uplifting words, and bagpipes. ``I'm not afraid because I've already survived a war,'' said Tam Ngoc Tran,
61, of Westminster, who remembered fleeing from bombs overhead in Vietnam. ``But
I can understand the suffering of the victims' families.'' Register staff writers Binh Ha Hong, Fermin Leal Jr., Jessica Peralta and
Debbie Talanian contributed to this report.