Hawaii Catholic Herald

Newspaper of the Diocese of Honolulu

Father William J. Byron, SJ: A father for those who need one

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About 40 years ago I was able to offer pastoral assistance to a young woman who lost her husband, a former student of mine, in a fatal car crash. She was left with a 5-year-old daughter and relatively few friends in Pennsylvania, far from her native Midwestern home. I celebrated the funeral Mass, took care […]

Kathleen T. Choi: Body and soul

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I got my Christmas present early this year. My grandson and his girlfriend came for a visit. It was a blessing, first, because they’re good company. Second, their presence forced me to put up Christmas decorations. I’ve gotten lazy in my old age, and, last year, the only sign of the season at our house […]

Kathleen T. Choi: It’s tempting

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We’ve had several burglaries recently in our neighborhood. The neighborhood watch committee has urged residents to keep our doors locked even when we’re home and windows latched whenever we’re away. The committee’s messages have persuaded me that we all have an obligation to make this neighborhood a less tempting target. Perhaps potential thieves will try […]

Mary Adamski: ‘Assignment: Advent’

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Advent always feels a little like the end of the semester, when the deadline for the final term paper is looming and the final exam is ahead and you’ve schluffed off on the required reading and the homework, and you start hyperventilating about what it’s going to mean to your GPA. No matter how many […]

Manaolana | Christina Capecchi: Light the candles, pour the wine

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Grace Osterbauer was a 24-year-old bride-to-be when she took her first cake-decorating class, and the impulse compelling the Texas beauty to make that $35 investment remains today, now a 40-year-old mother of eight. “I wanted to make the Catholic events of our lives super special,” she said. Grace and her husband, Paul, are both frugal, […]

Father Kenneth Doyle: ‘What are the functions of a deacon?’

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 Q: Often, I have been at a Mass where the deacon reads the Gospel, which is fine. But then, sometimes, the deacon goes on to give the homily while the priest watches. This disappoints me and makes me feel that the deacon is overstepping his bounds. Why should a deacon, rather than the priest, comment […]