‘Blessing of the waves’

Father Mondor carries Father Munoz’s surfboard, which bears an image of the Virgin Mary, along the beach after the “blessing of the waves” ceremony.  (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Rick Ischinger, a longtime surfer and surf instructor who holds Lutheran and Buddhist beliefs, blows a conch shell to call the gathering to order.  (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Mondor, left, greets Fawad Yacoob of the Islamic Society of Orange County, who recited a verse from the Koran at the service. “In the name of God, the compassionate, the merciful,” he said, “It is he who subjected the sea to you, that you may eat of its fresh fish, and take forth from it ornaments to wear.”  (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Father Matt Munoz of St. Irenaeus Catholic Church in Cypress carries his surfboard, which bears the image of the Virgin Mary, and his wetsuit to the water. The priest with long auburn hair says jokingly, “I’m not Jesus. I need a surf board to walk on water.”  (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Father Mondor, 83, says he has been body surfing since he was a 10-year-old growing up in Westwood and is still drawn to the sea. “You’re out there on the water, between waves, and you feel the swell under you and you look up and see palm trees and mountains in the distance,” he says. “You’re so close to nature. It’s so quiet out there.”  (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Surfer Joey Hawkins of Huntington Beach is blessed with a large tube ride. A snapshot-ready Southern California scene provided the backdrop for the “blessing of the waves,” with sunny skies and a building ocean swell of 6- to 10-foot waves.  (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)