View from the Pew
A look inside Hawaii's houses of worshipBy Mary Adamski
Saturday, September 22, 2001
THE VIEW PLANE has been full and blurred with tears during the past 11 days. Houses of worship throw
open their doors as different
faiths join in solidarityThere was the subdued cluster of mostly senior citizens at Harris United Methodist Church seeking solace just hours after tragedy enveloped us all.
Kawaiahao Church was the stage of the first ecumenical prayer program that evening. The Rev. James Fung invited the Rev. Joseph A. Grimaldi of the Catholic diocese to join United Church of Christ ministers in "a time of prayer for our country."
The hymn menu included "My Country 'Tis of Thee," a patriotic trend not likely to fade anytime soon no matter what pew you're in.
Ecumenism shone in a broader spectrum than ever seen here at the Sept. 13 service that drew more than 1,500 people to the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Punchbowl. Flags and candles were dispensed, and a Hawaiian chant led readings and prayers by representatives of Buddhist, Catholic, different flavors of Protestant, Bahai, Jewish and Islamic faiths.
By the time President Bush called for a Day of Prayer and Remembrance, hundreds of island churches had already responded to people's needs to be comforted, to find meaning in or to turn away from the horror of televised images of tragedy.
Church doors were opened day and night; different congregations combined plans and drew comfort from sharing refuge. Others supported each other in pacing around the university campus or standing together in the state Capitol courtyard.
The healthiest and most helpful events came when a clergyman relinquished the microphone and exhorted us to listen to each other.
Harris Methodist pastor Gary Barbaree's flock was shy to share aloud, but their notes, pinned to a screen in the sanctuary, reflected the feelings of us all: "Immeasurable sadness" and "Why do we hate one another, why?"
Temple Emanu-El Rabbi Avi Magid uncorked a flood of emotional expressions at the Friday Shabat service. He predicted that Rosh Hashanah -- New Year -- reflections this week would continue in the same vein. There, too, the evening ended with a patriotic song.
If that was the healthiest, then without doubt the unhealthiest, least compassionate, most unreligious vision came from those self-proclaimed national prophets Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson, who saw an angry, vengeful God using terrorists to punish a sinful nation. They have their echoes here, too, but not in a pew I've sought to occupy.
Condemnation of terrorism also was the theme when isle Muslims gathered at a small mosque.
It was a new venue for ecumenism for the followers of Islam and their visitors, who showed solidarity and understanding in a place not usually shared.
This week, in a sunrise Mass at Kalaupapa with just 11 soft voices joined in "America, the Beautiful," it sounded like a prayer: "America, America, God shed his grace on thee; and crown thy good with brotherhood, from sea to shining sea."
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Mary Adamski covers religion for the Star-Bulletin.
Email her at madamski@starbulletin.com.
