Central Union Church and the ‘Iolani Guild of the Episcopal Diocese of Hawaii will observe Lent — the 40-day period of penance for Christians in preparation for Easter — with a labyrinth program and a retreat in Waialua. Read more
Over the past four decades, the Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii has recognized more than 190 men and women as “Living Treasures of Hawai‘i” for their sustained contributions to enriching society. Read more
Pope Francis has changed church regulations to explicitly allow women and girls to participate in the Easter Week foot-washing ritual, after having shocked many Catholics by performing the rite on women and Muslims just weeks after he was elected. Read more
The 24th annual Ho‘okuikahi Service, which celebrates Queen Liliuokalani’s legacy of peace and nonviolence, will be held next week at Harris United Methodist Church, 20 S. Vineyard Blvd. Read more
They’re described by friends as a “power couple” for their years of public advocacy and ability to complement each other on community and social justice work, including reforms tied to environmental matters and prison-related issues. Read more
Hawaiian sovereignty and the management of Mauna Kea — where a group of activists has opposed construction of the $1.4 billion Thirty Meter Telescope — will be among issues discussed by clergy and lay leaders at an upcoming conference. Read more
Work is underway on the first of three new buildings slated for Damien Memorial School in the largest expansion project in the school’s 53-year history. Read more
Blue Christmas services will be held next week at the Cathedral of St. Andrew in downtown Honolulu and at Windward United Church of Christ in Kailua. Read more
Hawaii participants have contributed some 42,000 shoe boxes filled with holiday goodies for children in need overseas through this year’s Operation Christmas Child, an international gift-giving program. Read more
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Rosanne K. Goo’s great-grandmother was a victim of Hansen’s disease and exiled to the leprosy settlement in Kalaupapa, Molokai, in 1889. Fortunately, Goo said, it was a year after Mother Marianne Cope and six St. Francis sisters arrived at the isolated peninsula and vastly improved deplorable conditions. Read more
Catholic parishes with predominantly Filipino members will celebrate the customary Misa de Gallo at dawn each of the nine days preceding Christmas Day. Misa de Gallo, or “Mass of the Rooster,” is a tradition made popular in the Philippines for farmers and laborers who wanted to pray before the start of the workday. Read more
Nine of 24 retired St. Francis nuns are too medically fragile for the forced relocation in the works to a Pearl City retirement home from their Manoa convent, says Sister Alicia DamienLau, a health care consultant and longtime nurse. Read more
Registration is underway for a three-day workshop tailored for teachers, parents and social service providers who teach sex education to high school students. Scheduled for Jan. 8-10, the workshop will use the “Our Whole Lives: Sexuality Education” curriculum, which is geared toward junior and senior high school students. Read more
About two dozen retired St. Francis sisters are heartbroken that in three months they will be moved to Pearl City — out of the Manoa convent that has long been their home. Read more
