EDITORIAL : REJOICE, L.A. RESIDENTS' SPIRIT MAKES A REAL DIFFERENCE IN COMMUNITIES.

Yes, there still is a holiday spirit capable of stirring people to acts of peace and goodwill, even in the sometimes-mean streets of Los Angeles.

After robbers stole Christmas shopping money belonging to patients at a Sylmar mental rehabilitation center, generous people in the community were moved by the injustice and dug into their own pockets to replace the funds.

After thieves broke into the Hollenbeck Youth Center and stole toys intended as holiday gifts for underprivileged children, the community responded again and donated toys and money to make up the loss.

The community's spirit also is apparent in another way. It was evident in the posada - a Christmas festival marked by a candlelight procession, traditional in Spanish-speaking countries - on Blythe Street in Panorama City, once known as one of the toughest streets in the San Fernando Valley.

A posada also is taking place in the 23rd Street neighborhood, south of the Santa Monica Freeway near the Convention Center. That neighborhood, in a gritty locale that has seen better days, now is holding its first posada as a natural outgrowth of the residents' efforts to become unified and improve conditions. They accomplished that by adopting organizing methods modeled on ones which proved successful earlier on Blythe Street.

A posada, anywhere, is a wonderful sign of the human spirit during a holiday season dedicated to peace and goodwill toward man. Surely its impact and significance multiply dramatically when the participants are walking through their own urban neighborhoods at night on avenues they successfully reclaimed from gangs and street criminals.

That's a watershed event, a tangible indication that the indomitable human spirit is no longer hibernating behind burglar bars. Instead, it's bursting forth in a rebirth of hope, goodwill and joy.

Taking back a neighborhood invariably requires determination and dedication by residents and community-minded leaders. Once they've achieved that, it truly is something to celebrate. What better way than to go caroling in the traditional eight-night Latino celebration of posada.

Moreover, these events are instructive for the entire city, not just a few neighborhoods. They are evidence that the forces of good are successfully resisting the forces of evil.

These local successes provide good reason for rejoicing. Just imagine the joy that would result if the same indomitable spirit grows stronger in every neighborhood of L.A., spreading peace and goodwill on every block.