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The bishop asked the priest candidates if they were worthy. Assured that they were, he said, “Relying on the help of the Lord God and our Savior Jesus Christ, we choose Ahn and Romple, our brothers, for the order of the priesthood.”
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Bishop Silva then anointed their hands with holy Chrism, carried in a calabash carved from the wood of the Islands’ first kiawe tree, planted by Hawaii’s first Catholic missionaries.
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The bishop then passed to the new priests the bread and wine that would be used for the Mass, symbolizing their authority to celebrate the Eucharist.
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The symbolic rituals of ordination completed, the bishop sealed the rite with the fraternal kiss of peace, a full two-armed embrace of each, to another round of applause and cheering. The concelebrating priests followed suit, some exchanging smiles and brief words, some kissing the new priests’ hands.