Father William Kunisch
By Patrick Downes
Hawaii Catholic Herald
Bishop Larry Silva has named Father William Kunisch II, pastor of Resurrection of the Lord Church, Waipio, as the new diocesan ecumenical/interfaith officer. He started April 21.
Father Kunisch succeeds the late Father Jack Ryan who died Dec. 7, 2020.
It is a post he held once before, from 2007-2010.
He will continue to serve as pastor of Resurrection Parish, and as vicar forane of Central Oahu-Molokai.
“I do have a natural interest in this ministry as I grew up in the Lutheran tradition and came into Full Communion with the Catholic Church in 1994 at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace, Honolulu,” he said.
Father Kunisch sees the work of his office as promoting dialogue with other Christian communities (ecumenism) and with non-Christian religions (interfaith).
“While ecumenical work has become more difficult in recent years as Christian denominations have tended to be more internally focused,” he said, “we have to remember that unity was Jesus’ idea.”
“On the night before he died, he prayed ‘that all may be one’ and so it must be our prayer too,” Father Kunisch said.
“Because of our island culture and the religious diversity in Hawaii, our diocese has a strong and beautiful history of working with those across the religious spectrum,” he said.
“We are family, friends, co-workers, and neighbors to each other. It only makes sense that we find ways to support what is good, true, and beautiful in the other and come together to promote shared interests, protect religious freedom, and work for the common good,” Father Kunisch said.
Father Kunisch was ordained a priest for the Diocese of Honolulu in 2002.
He has served as parochial vicar at St. Anthony, Kailua, as administrator of Maria Lanakila Church in Lahaina, Maui, and as rector of the Co-Cathedral of St. Theresa, Honolulu.