A rainbow arches over Sacred Heart Church in Pahoa on the Big Island. (Photo courtesy of Sacred Heart Parish)
By Janan Malinowski
Special to the Herald
Throughout June, Sacred Heart Parish in Pahoa on the Big Island is celebrating the 125th anniversary of its founding and the 94th anniversary of the dedication of its current church.
The Puna area around Pahoa was first proselytized by missionaries of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, including St. Damien de Veuster, between 1841 and 1944. Maryknoll missionaries then took over the parish until about 1992, and since then priests from Hawaii, Ireland, Samoa and the Philippines have served the people of the Pahoa area.
For much of that time the parish served two churches: Star of the Sea in Kalapana and Sacred Heart in Pahoa, until the former was moved from the path of a 1990 lava flow and later became a chapel where Mass is celebrated once a month. The parish has faced the challenges of eruptions from 1955 to 2018. Throughout it all the parish has remained a beacon of hope and help to our community.
Members of the Big Island Catholic Community and the Pahoa Community are welcome to join the parishioners of Sacred Heart in anniversary events, both liturgical and social.
In addition to the regular weekday and Sunday Masses, there will be special celebrations as follows:
- June 9, 11 a.m., Mass to commemorate the 94th year of the church.
- June 16, 11 a.m., Missa Cantata: Traditional Latin Mass to celebrate the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
- June 24, 4 p.m. Confirmation and first holy Communion Mass with Bishop Larry Silva.
- June 25, 7:30 a.m., 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., Sunday Masses celebrating the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
The social events included a family picnic and talent show and a community lunch for the unsheltered of Pahoa which took place earlier.
Other events include a scavenger hunt throughout the month with clues posted in the bulletin and on the church website, www.pahoasacredheart.com.
- Friday, June 9, 6 p.m., dance night with food and beer for purchase.
- Saturday, June 10, 6:30 p.m., movie night, “Father Damien of Molokai” with popcorn, cotton candy and hot dogs for purchase.
- Saturday, June 17, 6:30 p.m., bingo and spaghetti night, $5 at door, one bingo card for food pantry donation or baked goods for prizes.
- Saturday, June 24, 6 p.m., parish potluck dinner with the bishop after Confirmation and first holy Communion.
- Sunday, June 25, noon, parish potluck luncheon and the announcement of winners of the talent contest, and hana hou performances, and scavenger hunt.
All these activities have been lovingly planned by a committee chaired by Ilyn Narciso, and including Ana Aiu, Patrick Aniban, Harry Baquial, Sally Ganiron, Tom Higgins, Maila Naiga, Laurie Ramos, Tom Sorcy, Lisa Tekurio, Robert Torres, Bernice Walker and Joe Wirtz.
