PRICE — As Thursday night's incident at the mine was unfolding, just a few blocks away from the Castleview Hospital emergency room, a special Mass was under way to bless the rescuers for their safety.

At the Notre Dame de Lourdes Church in Price, a prayer service was held for the six missing miners, their families and the rescuers putting their lives on the line to find their comrades. The prayer service was organized at the request of members of the family of trapped miner Manuel Sanchez. The Mass was not publicly advertised but passed along by word-of-mouth by the miners.

About 100 people crammed into the tiny church. The congregation was dominantly people of Hispanic descent, although there were some non-Spanish speaking people in the congregation. Father Don Hope delivered his sermon in both Spanish and English.

The sermon started with a traditional Spanish hymn accompanied by guitars. A prayer was delivered in Spanish in which each name of the missing miners was read. Father Hope then blessed some oil and invited all miners, whether they were Catholic or not, to come forward to receive a holy anointment and also a special medal to be worn while working in the mines.

The medal was of Saint Barbara, the patron saint of mining. Father Hope explained to the congregation that Barbara was born in 300 AD. She converted from pagan beliefs to Christianity without her aristocratic father's knowledge. Once her father found out, however, she was beheaded. Shortly after Barbara was killed, according to the legend, her father was struck by lightning and killed, Father Hope said.

In later years in Poland and Spain, she became the patron saint of miners, or the person miners ask for protection inside the mines and specifically against mine collapses, Father Hope said.

The tradition in Poland soon spread throughout the world. At the start of each day, miners would pray to Barbara saying, "As I now descend into the dark bowels of the Earth, I beseech thee, sweet Barbara, that I be kept from harm, for it liketh me not that I rush unbidden into God's presence."

About 20 miners stood in line to receive the charm as Father Hope prayed for "the Lord's richest blessing on all miners."

"May all blessed with this oil be blessed with safety and health," he said.

As each miner was blessed and given the Saint Barbara medal, Father Hope recited the words, "May the Lord strengthen and protect you, grant you peace and safety, guide you by the power of his holy spirit."

A sacrament was then served and another Spanish hymn sung. By then, many miners in the congregation left the service responding to a sudden barrage of phone calls.

A similar service was held earlier in the day for a small group of miners who could not attend the service because they were scheduled to be at work, helping with the continuous effort to find the trapped miners.

In Salt Lake City, a vigil was held at the Latino Community Center Thursday night.

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E-mail: preavy@desnews.com