Garden of Gods isn't pushing service

Gazette, The (Colorado Springs), Mar 18, 2004 by PAUL ASAY THE GAZETTE

The sun will rise Easter morning above Garden of the Gods, and the faithful will come to the park to celebrate Christianity's holiest day.

But the formal Easter sunrise service, which started in the 1920s and attracted 5,000 worshippers in recent years, is no more.

There was no official sunrise service last year, either, but that didn't stop worshippers from coming. There was a lowkey service led by New Life Church's College Pastor Aaron Stern. Several other small groups spent time walking through and praying in the park.

Many expect unofficial Easter " celebrations" to continue this year.

"The Garden of the Gods is open for anyone to pray," said Jaan Heinmets, executive director of a church coalition called The Net, which helped organize recent services.

The park opens at 5 a.m. Easter morning, April 11. Park officials, however, aren't encouraging large numbers of people to gather.

Kurt Schroeder, the Trails and Open Space Division's manager of park maintenance, said small groups can expand quickly. Last Easter, some worshippers broke park rules, walking off designated paths and parking cars in bike lanes.

"That's why we're very cautious and concerned about how many people may show up," he said.

Groups of more than 50 must apply for a permit to spend time in the park legally. Schroeder said it will be virtually impossible to get a permit approved in time for Easter.

Many churches might not be too upset that the focus of Easter in Colorado Springs has returned to local sanctuaries.

"Most of our churches want to have Easter services in their own church," Heinmets said.

Church attendance spikes Easter Sunday, and Easter is an opportunity to introduce people to churches, he said.

This year, the holiday could take on greater significance in the wake of Mel Gibson's movie "The Passion of the Christ," he said.

The movie, about the 12 hours leading to Jesus' crucifixion, has generated a lot of questions, Heinmets said, and the sunrise service isn't a good venue for serious discussion.

"It's great to come and pray and to celebrate, but at a church, they'll have a chance to ask questions," Heinmets said.

The sunrise service's popularity was a strain on organizers. The event required portable toilets, medical personnel, buses, a sound system, elaborate parking schemes, marketing plans and volunteers. The event cost about $24,000, Heinmets said.

"It was much, much more than people realize," he said.

The service was hard on the park, too. Moving services to the parking lot a few years ago kept the land and foliage from being trampled, but parking problems grew. Eventually, Heinmets said, the event "became too taxing."