Easter celebrated at sunrise on Daytona Beach, despite wind, rain, high tides

Jim Abbott, The Daytona Beach News-Journal
·1 min read
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Despite winds and sprinkling rain, hundreds of worshippers gathered on Sunday for the traditional Easter sunrise service at the Daytona Beach Bandshell along the shores of the World’s Most Famous Beach.

Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church Father Phil Egitto conducts Easter sunrise service at the Bandshell in Daytona Beach. The daybreak service is typically held on the sands of Daytona Beach, but the high tide had other plans on this Easter Sunday.
Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church Father Phil Egitto conducts Easter sunrise service at the Bandshell in Daytona Beach. The daybreak service is typically held on the sands of Daytona Beach, but the high tide had other plans on this Easter Sunday.

Easter, or Resurrection Sunday, is a Christian festival commemorating the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead as recounted in the New Testament. According to the Bible, Jesus Christ rose on the third day of his burial following his crucifixion.

Despite winds and sprinkling rain, hundreds of worshippers attended Easter Sunrise service at the Daytona Beach Bandshell. The sunrise gathering is typically held on the sands of the beach, but high tide required moving the service to the Bandshell.
Despite winds and sprinkling rain, hundreds of worshippers attended Easter Sunrise service at the Daytona Beach Bandshell. The sunrise gathering is typically held on the sands of the beach, but high tide required moving the service to the Bandshell.

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The annual “Easter At the Beach” services, presented by Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church in Daytona Beach, featured a 7:30 a.m. gathering that is typically held on the sand followed by a 9:30 a.m. service at the Bandshell. This year, however, both services were held at the Bandshell due to high tides that restricted beach access.

Both offered worshippers the chance to listen to the gospel, pray, sing praises and participate in Communion.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Easter sunrise services celebrate the holy day on Daytona Beach