PORT TOWNSEND – North Beach is closed to shellfish harvesting because of possible pollution. But on Saturday, the waters that roll ashore on its sands were sanctified.
So felt the people who faced the wind and waves crashing ashore to bear quiet witness to the one who calms the storm.
“It was beautiful,” said Beverly Davis.
Davis and her husband, Jeremiah, came from Port Angeles on Saturday to attend the Blessing of the Waters at North Beach.
An annual observance of St. Herman’s Orthodox Christian Church, the religious ceremony drew several dozen people to watch the waters of the Strait of Juan de Fuca being blessed and by connection, the waters of the Pacific Ocean and beyond.
“Today the water of the world is sanctified,” liturgist Christopher Lewis said.
The act of blessing the water is part of Theophany, a feast day in the Orthodox calendar which marks the baptism of Christ in the Jordan River.
At St. Herman’s, services start with a vigil at the onion-domed church the night before the feast day, Jan. 6.
The next morning, congregants meet again at the church to sing, read scripture and receive communion, then carpool to North Beach.
In warmer climes, the blessing is done by throwing a cross into the water, which is then retrieved by swimmers.
In colder areas, however, the priest goes down to the shore and dips a cross into the water.
As sea gulls rode the gray waves at North Beach, Father Nicholas, wearing boots under his robes, carried a wooden cross down to the water and dipped it three times, invoking the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Choir director Macrina Lewis led chants, and Christopher Lewis read Bible passages reminding listeners of the source of the water of salvation.
“The Lord is my light and my salvation,” the people sang in response. “Who then shall I fear?”
