Above, Edwin Damien Conselva prostrates himself at the altar during the Litany of Supplication. (HCH photo | Darlene Dela Cruz)
Bishop Larry Silva lays his hands on the head of Edwin Damien Conselva ordaining him a priest Jan. 3 at St. Joseph Church in Waipahu. Conselva, 49, is a Waipahu native who became the first man from Hawaii to become a priest for the Philippine province of the Missionaries of Our Lady of La Salette. (HCH photo by Darlene Dela Cruz)
At 7 a.m. on Jan. 3, a rainbow arced across the blue sky above St. Joseph Church in Waipahu. The storm the night before had given way to a morning of light and rejoicing, as folks gathered early at the parish to celebrate a milestone of faith for one of its native sons.
In an ancient and solemn rite, Bishop Larry Silva ordained Edwin Damien Conselva of Waipahu a priest for the Missionaries of Our Lady of La Salette. Conselva, 49, became the first man from Hawaii ordained for the order’s Philippine province. He grew up attending St. Joseph Church, which has long been administered by La Salette priests.
His homecoming after years of seminary studies in the Philippines was an exciting occasion for the St. Joseph community. At least 700 people filled the church for the ordination Mass, many of them arriving more than two hours before its scheduled 9 a.m. start.
Conselva’s ordination was scheduled to take place on the 175th anniversary of the birth of St. Damien de Veuster. At the Mass, a painting of St. Damien was placed in the sanctuary with a statue of Our Lady of La Salette.
La Salette Father Efren Tomas, St. Joseph’s pastor, introduced the liturgy by explaining the Sacrament of Holy Orders. The ordination rite, he told the congregation, is intended to impart on the candidate the “threefold mission of a priest” — a shepherd, evangelizer and teacher of God’s people.
The entrance procession opened with a Hawaiian “oli,” or chanted prayer. A unit of Knights of Columbus walked ahead of Bishop Silva, the liturgy’s presider, to the altar. Concelebrating with the bishop were about 30 priests. Several deacons assisted.
Visiting clergy included La Salette provincial superior Father Rosanno Soriano and La Salette priests from the Philippines. La Salette Father Joven “JoJo” Junio, a former pastor of St. Joseph and a close friend of Conselva, flew in from California for the ceremony as well.
The ordination rite began after the Liturgy of the Word, with Bishop Silva calling Conselva forward as a candidate for the priesthood. The congregation assented to his worthiness for ordination by responding, “Thanks be to God.”
In his homily, Bishop Silva spoke about Conselva’s “new identity” as a priest. His duty, the bishop noted, will be to “lay down his life at the altar,” just as Jesus did for his people.
St. Damien, the bishop said, exemplified that kind of selfless priestly service. He gave his life to the patients suffering from leprosy in Kalaupapa, ultimately dying from the disease himself.
“Damien served the most lonely and brokenhearted,” Bishop Silva said. In his vocation, Father Conselva too, “will bring healing and glad tidings” to those entrusted to his care.
La Salette Father Efren Tomas, pastor of St. Joseph Church in Waipahu, greets the newly ordained Father Conselva. (HCH photo | Darlene Dela Cruz)
After the homily, Conselva was called forward to formally pledge his resolve to accept the responsibilities of priesthood. He responded assertively, “I do,” to five questions asked by Bishop Silva.
Conselva then prostrated himself before the altar. La Salette Father Joseph Christian Pilotin, associate pastor of Christ the King Church in Kahului, Maui, intoned the Litany of Supplication. With the congregation, he called for the intercession of the saints upon the priesthood candidate.
Following the litany, Conselva knelt before Bishop Silva. The bishop silently placed his hands on Conselva’s head, invoking the Holy Spirit to raise him to the order of priesthood. Each of the priests then repeated the bishop’s gesture, approaching one-by-one to lay hands and pray over Conselva.
The new priest afterward was vested with a stole and chasuble. Father Conselva later went to the altar, where the bishop anointed his hands with the sacred chrism. Bread and wine were then brought in the offertory procession to the bishop, who in turn handed them to the newly ordained man for the Liturgy of the Eucharist.
Father Conselva was welcomed into the priesthood by his brother clergy with the “fraternal sign of peace” — an embrace often accompanied by personal words of encouragement. He blinked back tears as the congregation greeted him with applause at the end of the ordination rite.
After Communion, Father Conselva gave his first priestly blessings to Bishop Silva and La Salette provincial superior Father Soriano. He thanked everyone who made his ordination possible, particularly his late parents Frank Conselva and Flavia Salvador, as well as his extended family, parish ohana and brother La Salette priests.
He also expressed gratitude to co-workers from his previous job at Hawaiian Airlines and to friends from his hula halau.
“I just feel so blessed right now just to see you all here,” Father Conselva said. “This truly is a gift from (God).”
Father Conselva noted that Father Henry Sabog, who concelebrated the Mass, is the brother-in-law of his godmother. Father Sabog was ordained at St. Joseph Church about 50 years ago.
Shortly after his ordination, Father Conselva returned to the Philippines to complete his theology degree. He is scheduled to graduate from San Carlos Seminary in Manila in March. His first assignment as a La Salette priest will be determined following the completion of his studies.
