A man remains missing after he was swept out to sea Sunday morning during a California baptism ceremony.

Mauro Cervantes, the pastor of Santa Maria Church of Jesus Christ Light of the Sky, said the 43-year-old man and two others were swept out into the Pacific Ocean just before 10 a.m. at the Rancho Guadalupe Dunes Preserve.

The two others returned safely to shore, Cervantes told the Santa Maria Times.

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The pastor said about 25 people attended the ceremony, which the church performs two or three times a year.

Firefighters and the U.S. Coast Guard searched for the missing man, whose name has not been released.

[Image: White cross that has been wash up on a beach via Shutterstock]