Special to the Herald
Bishop Larry Silva was the recipient of an honorary doctor of letters degree May 9 during Chaminade University of Honolulu’s 68th commencement ceremony at the Waikiki Shell.
Chaminade President Lynn Babington introduced Silva during the ceremony and presented him with the degree and hood.
“Bishop Larry has been a partner and good friend of Chaminade University for many years,” Babington said. “Since 2010, Chaminade University has provided academic formation for men preparing for ordination to the permanent diaconate, along with their wives.”
A few days earlier on May 7, Bishop Silva presided over Chaminade’s commencement Mass and blessing of graduates at Mystical Rose Oratory on campus. During his homily, he shared reflections on growth, change and enduring love. He spoke about how people evolve throughout their lives, often becoming very different from who they once were in earlier chapters of life.
Using the example of a couple happily married for 60 years, he described how the husband continued falling in love with his wife through every stage of her life — as a carefree young woman, a mother, a professional, someone navigating middle age and eventually a senior.
Bishop Silva noted that authentic love means embracing the person someone becomes over time, even as life changes them in expected and unexpected ways. He encouraged graduates to remain open to transformation in their own lives and to recognize that growth, maturity and new experiences will continue shaping who they are long after graduation.
The message resonated with graduates preparing to begin new careers, continue their education or embark on other life paths beyond Chaminade. His reflections underscored the importance of faith, compassion and openness to change as students move into new chapters of adulthood as he and the congregation blessed the graduates.
The commencement Mass, a spiritual and communal tradition at Chaminade, offers graduates an opportunity to pause and reflect before officially crossing the commencement stage.
Rooted in Catholic Marianist values, the celebration emphasizes gratitude, faith, service and community — ideals that graduates carry forward in their personal and professional lives.
Above: Bishop Larry Silva took a photo with graduating Chaminade students whom he blessed at the university’s commencement Mass May 7 at Mystical Rose Oratory on campus. (Courtesy Chaminade University of Honolulu)