Preparing to pray for the world

Young Chang

The nation, the poor, the suffering, global injustice. With prayer

topics as heavy as these, it makes sense to pray in numbers, local

religious leaders say.

That’s why next Thursday, people in Newport Beach and Costa Mesa will

gather and pray with fellow congregants, even of different religions, for

the National Day of Prayer.

Don Baldwin, interim pastor at Newport Mesa Christian Center in Costa

Mesa, said his congregation will join the center’s Spanish-speaking

community to pray in Spanish. There will be some translation but everyone

will pray for one thing. One big thing, actually: the world.

“It’s important to pray together because Christianity is not a Lone

Ranger religion,” he said. “It is a corporate religion and we are all the

body of Christ, and so we’re linked to every other Christian in the

world, and so we need corporate prayers rather than individual prayers on

a day like that.”

At 5:30 a.m., about 15 or 16 early risers -- though Baldwin hopes for

more -- will enter a sanctuary that currently displays pictures of the

center’s 102 missionaries working around the world. Congregants will pray

for these missionaries as they serve the poor in areas including Mexico,

El Salvador, Argentina and South Africa.

The Newport Mesa Irvine Interfaith Council will also pray early in the

morning on Thursday. Their National Day of Prayer Interfaith Breakfast

will start at 7:15 a.m. with a medley of religions represented.

“The mayors are coming to pray together, and people from all different

religions are gonna be there,” said Dennis Short, a pastor at Harbor

Christian Church in Newport Beach.

James L. Doti, the president of Chapman University, will be the

breakfast’s keynote speaker. Newport Beach Mayor Gary Adams, Costa Mesa

Mayor Libby Cowan, pastors, rabbis, representatives from the Islamic

Society of Orange County and other speakers will also lead prayers or

read scripture from their respective books.

“We all pray for similar things,” said Jim de Boom, a secretary and

executive director for the Interfaith Council and a Daily Pilot

columnist. “We all want peace and harmony and the best for ourselves and

for each other.”

In Costa Mesa, the Presbyterian Church of the Covenant will hold an

evening prayer service with four or five other area churches. The choirs

of the different congregations will also come together, and prayer topics

will include the nation, its leaders and its people. Elected officials

from Costa Mesa, Huntington Beach and Fountain Valley will be invited.

“I think prayer is important any time, whether it’s with one

individual or if it’s a group,” said Laurann Cook, councilwoman for

Fountain Valley and a member of the church. “But by praying in numbers

and together, you have a concentrated focus.”

FYI

WHAT: Prayer meeting at the Newport Mesa Christian Center

WHEN: 5:30 to 6:30 a.m. Thursday

WHERE: 2599 Newport Blvd., Costa Mesa

COST: Free

CALL: (714) 966-0454

WHAT: National Day of Prayer Interfaith Breakfast

WHEN: 7:15 to 8:45 a.m. Thursday

WHERE: Hilton Hotel, 18800 MacArthur Blvd., Irvine

COST: $15

CALL: (949) 660-8665

WHAT: Communal prayer at Presbyterian Church of the Covenant

WHEN: 7 p.m. Thursday

WHERE: 2850 Fairview Road, Costa Mesa.

COST: Free

CALL: (714) 557-3340.