January certainly lives up to its name. We inherited the word from the ancient Romans who started the calendar year commemorating Janus, a mythological fellow depicted as having two faces since he looked to the past and to the future. He was the god of transitions, presiding over the beginning and ending of conflict.
That unique concept of double vision played out this month on so many fronts, spiritual and political and personal, whether it was diplomats edging toward mending historical rifts or just a lone human facing up to past mistakes and vowing reform in the New Year.
It’s a brilliant coincidence that we honor the great American prophet Martin Luther King Jr. in January. Hurrah for the civil rights laws that are the legacy of his 1960s struggles and the topic of decades of speeches on his national birthday holiday. But if there’s ever an issue that calls for never losing sight of past evil but continuing the mission vision into the future, this is one.
Looking back while facing forward was the bittersweet mood at the annual Ho’oku’ikahi — reconciliation service — Jan. 17 at St. Andrew’s Cathedral. Bitter because it is the date of the overthrow of Queen Liliuokalani in 1893, an event which has been observed with anger and angst by sovereignty activists in the past.
A tone of forgiveness and peace — and yes, sadness — prevailed in readings and songs in the words of the late queen at the evening service attended by an interfaith crowd of about 130.
Hawaiian religious leader Kaleo Patterson decided to accentuate the positive when he launched the reconciliation service 21 years ago. That was the 100th anniversary of the nonviolent coup engineered by American businessmen. Two organizations not known for admitting their errors finally apologized for their roles in ousting the Hawaiian monarch.
Then-President Bill Clinton signed the 1993 apology from the United States to the Hawaiian people, a Congressional resolution authored by former U.S. Senators Daniel Inouye and Daniel Akaka.
Earlier that year, the national leadership of the United Church of Christ made headlines with an apology for the role taken in the overthrow by its members, and for not recognizing native Hawaiian spirituality. The denomination that sent the first Christian missionaries to Hawaii also pledged redress, which eventually came in the form of monetary support of many historic Hawaiian churches.
Portions of those documents were read at the evening reconciliation service at the Episcopal cathedral, the latest of several churches to host a service in which the Christian emphasis on forgiveness is entwined with the historical event.
“Reconciliation will come, not with a formal apology,” said Episcopal Bishop Robert Fitzpatrick. “Reconciliation isn’t easy. Does it mean forgiving what we cannot forget? It means living in a new way.”
The bishop told the interfaith crowd “Wouldn’t it be awful to be back here 40 years from now reading the apologies again.”
Fitzpatrick said in an interview later “My question is: do you continue to commemorate apologies without making changes in behavior and relationships? True reconciliation comes not only with acknowledging a wrong, but when something happens.
“Forgiveness does require two parties. Through the process of forgiveness … you remember the past in a new way.” He pointed to the change from a racially divided society to democracy in South Africa which has taken two generations as “reappropriating history and finding a new way forward.”
Reconciling historical injustices here calls for “some kind of recognition, some autonomy of the Hawaiian people,” he said. “With that comes issues of economic justice. We are still caught in the plight of homelessness, helplessness and joblessness, not only among Hawaiians but other Pacific islanders … and the widening separation of the very rich and not only the very poor but from the middle working class. The real call for reconciliation is on the next generation.”
Hawaiian alii, including the queen, left money to care for future generations of Hawaiians, a mixed blessing as the bishop sees it. “The wealthy trusts, such as Kamehameha Schools, create an illusion that there are huge pools of money and that someone is going to take care of everything.”
Patterson said the process of reconciliation is moving forward in demonstrable ways. “We remember transforming events, but we don’t want to just focus on the tragedy and loss. The apologies are affirmation of Hawaiian identity that was denied in the past. We want to build on things that are healing.”
Moving forward into practical activism has involved work with Hawaiian prison inmates, whose right to observe native Hawaiian spiritual practices was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court and expedited by United Church of Christ members. The rebirth of the Hawaiian language, fostered by charter schools, is another forward step. Working with homeless people and fighting evictions in Waianae and Chinatown were collaborative efforts with several churches involved, said Patterson, a founder of the Pacific Justice and Reconciliation Center. Educational initiatives are on the agenda, through Hawaiian history for Hawaii schools, the tourist industry, the military.
Fitzpatrick evoked the Queen’s presence in an anecdote. She regularly attended services at the cathedral next door to her Washington Place home and sat in the second pew, under the pulpit. A story recorded by Bishop Henry Restarick is part of cathedral lore. “A guest preacher at a Thanksgiving Day service preached about the overthrow and how thankful they should be under the protection of the United States. She listened, and after church, greeted the person without comment. Then she graciously accepted the apologies of the cathedral staff, recognizing that it was someone who did not understand the situation and was foolish. It was a wonderful moment of true forgiveness in a bad situation.”
Orthodox Christian Bishop Randolph Sykes, in the final benediction, called on the Holy Spirit to “Fill us with hunger for justice and mercy; bring us health and strength to reconcile our differences with each other.”
That, finally, is where we Catholics come into this story. There wasn’t a designated Catholic representative at the event, not unusual at interfaith events. There is one Catholic priest on the Hawaii Reconciliation Committee formed last year to launch future collaborations.
You can’t blame us for backpedaling away from the sticky issues of sovereignty and homelands distribution. Those chapters of Hawaiian history mostly played out on other people’s courts. If you are not Hawaiian, you probably do as I do and silence yourself on certain subjects in certain company. It is really difficult to be mute on the loathsome concept of “entitlements” — ah, don’t get me started.
But how can any people, whatever pew we’re in, close our eyes to the malfunctions of our community. People are starving, homeless, disenfranchised from education, employment, a voice to their government. What Hawaii is in the future is not a Hawaiian problem. We need to see ourselves as part of the whole community, not only the Catholic slice of society.
Queen Liliuokalani wrote, “I could not turn back the time for political change but there is still time to save our heritage. You must remember never to cease to act because you fear you may fail.” She wrote these remarks in 1917, the year of her death.
Her words were read by Esther Kiaaina, and sung by the combined choirs of Pearl City Community Church and Nu’u Lotu Congregational Church.
Her deep spirituality and commitment to reconciliation are reflected in “The Queen’s Prayer,” which is heard regularly in Protestant services and occasionally in a Catholic church.
In translation, the prayer goes: “Your loving mercy is as high as heaven, and your truth so perfect. I live in sorrow, imprisoned. You are my light. Your glory, my support. Behold not with malevolence the sins of man, but forgive and cleanse.
“And so, O Lord, protect us beneath your wings and let peace be our portion, now and forever more.”
