Grace Cathedral Episcopal Church, perched atop a wind-swept Nob Hill in downtown San Francisco, proved an ethereal and somber setting for what the church described as "an interfaith vigil for peace and remembrance of all the dead on the 5th anniversary of the War in Iraq."

Approximately 200 to 300 mourners huddled together before the Cathedral's gothic facade on Wednesday evening, softly singing as the names of dead Iraqi civilians and U.S. soldiers were read aloud.

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Shoes of the civilian dead lined the steps and surrounded the Cathedral, while inside boots of fallen soldiers from California adorned the labyrinth, each one with a tag detailing the soldier's name, rank and hometown. Over 400 pairs of shoes were used for the vigil.

"One of the ways that we can, I think, stand for justice is to stand in solidarity" said Pastor Adam Blons of First Congregational Church in Berkeley, which helped to co-sponsor the vigil.

"I can't be in Iraq," he added, "but I can be here and remember that the pain and destruction of war touches me, as well as—so devastatingly— many other people."