The Villager Voice
Photographs of peacocks, volcanos, banyan trees and the vast expanse of ocean that are popping up in my photo memories these days are warm reminders of last year’s sabbatical to Oceana that began just a year ago last Friday. My thoughts on these icy winter days (that have interrupted our weekly worship two weeks in a row now) have naturally been tuned in to our weeks in Hawai’i: the visit to Titus Coan’s church and gravesite in Hilo, swimming and snorkeling among the turtles and tropical fish off the coasts of Kona and East Waikiki, and of course the historic sites we visited and the congregations we worshiped with while there.
I checked in with our Hawai’ian UCC partners earlier this week to see what’s been going on, and was greeted by the annual celebration of Henry Opukahaiah Sunday last week; it was Henry’s conversion to Christianity, you may recall, that proved the impetus for the Congregational outreach to the islands in the early 1800s. The Hawai’i Conference is also celebrating Black History month by honoring Betsy Stockton, a black woman who was born into slavery, and, when granted her freedom, joined the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions and went to Lahaina as a missionary in 1823. Stockton subsequently founded the Lahainaluna school, Maui’s first school for “the common people.” It is now the Lahainaluna High School.
Finally, the Conference offers this thoughtful reflection which I think transcends Conference boundaries and interests and speaks to the church as a whole: “Successful churches are experiencing a shift toward community engagement and social impact. They are becoming hubs for community support, social webbing and outreach programs. This approach addresses local needs and attracts a diverse worshipping congregation that values active participation with issues that impact their community.” Hmmm, that sounds more than a little familiar…
Here are the links to Sunday’s bulletin and service: