St. Augustine parish’s monthly spiritual renewal program will have its next gathering at 7 p.m. Monday, May 21, in the Damien Meeting Room. We will reflect on Chapter 9 of the book, “A Tree Full of Angels” by Macrina Wiederkehr. Wiederkehr’s book is a personalized invitation to listen for God in the here and now — to look at the little things in life and see how they can bring us closer to God. Our time together is led by Fr. Ken Templin SM. All are welcome to join us. It is not necessary to have taken part in discussions of previous chap-ters, each of the chapters stands alone.
The St. Augustine soup kitchen served 1,190 hot meals to the hungry in our community in April, the highest number of monthly meals so far this year. Some days in April, more than 75 meals were served between 11 a.m. and noon. Through your donations to the Soup Kitchen you are a part of this ministry and our Gospel call to help those who need our assistance.
A dozen youth and young adults from the Tongan Community helped this past week with the Family Promise minis-try by cleaning the Makai House at Holy Trinity in preparation for this week, when that parish will host four homeless families for a week.
St. Augustine is partnering with Holy Trinity in helping to provide for these families, who are housed by many churches on the island while they look for permanent housing and are also provided with budgeting and other skills. The youths cleaned the kitchen, bedrooms, bathrooms, washed windows, sorted bath and bed linens, vacuumed and dusted.
On Sunday, May 20, several of our parishioners will be providing a meal for the families. Mahalo to all those who are helping.
If you would like to help in our next Family Ministry weeks this year (in August and November), please call the parish office.
Have you been thinking about doing something for the Church besides coming to Mass every Sunday? Well, joining the Altar Rosary Society will help you decide. The all-woman Catholic group actively engages in service at St. Augustine — cleaning the church, arranging flowers, visiting the sick and home bound, fundraising, running the thrift shop, volunteering at the Heritage Center gift shop, or staffing the hospitality table on first Sundays. For more information, call Margaret at 732-7372 or Helen at 732-2576.
As part of our outreach to minister to those who are homeless, our parish is collecting personal hygiene products now through the month of June. We need soap, combs, dental floss, towels, body lotion, brushes, toothpaste, lip balm, shampoo, conditioner, toothbrushes, hand sanitizers, mouth-wash, shaving cream, deodorant (non-aerosol), feminine products. All donated items must be new and unopened. The drop-off box is on the Ohua side of the church.
Some of the words in our daily and weekend Scripture readers are difficult to pronounce – but one great resource for the proper pronunciation of biblical names or other words is www.howjsay.com. Simply type in the word you need to hear pronounced, and mouse over to hear it pronounced.
The bishops of the United States have called upon the Catholic faithful, and all people of faith, throughout our country to join in prayer and penance for our leaders and for the restoration of our First Freedom – religious liberty – which is not only protected in the laws and customs of our great Nation, but rooted in the teachings of our great Tradition. Prayer is the ultimate source of our strength – for without God we can do nothing; but with God, all things are possible.
Homelessness can seem like an overwhelming problem. Many people wonder what one person or congregation can do to make a difference. Family Promise of Hawaii provides a way for churches to work together to help homeless families. Holy Trinity Parish in Kuliouou is one of network of Hawaii congregations participating in Family Promise by providing overnight lodging and meals for three to five families for a week every quarter. St. Augustine will be assisting Holy Trinity by providing a meal the evening of Sunday, May 20.
You can help by preparing a dish for that evening, offering financial assistance toward the cost of the meal or providing supplies such as toiletries, garbage bags, dish soap, etc.
If you would like to be part of this ministry, please call the parish office at 923-7024 and leave your name and contact information and indicate how you would like to help.
Homelessness can seem like an overwhelming problem. Many people wonder what one person or congregation can do to make a difference. Family Promise of Hawaii provides a way for churches to work together to help homeless families. Holy Trinity Parish in Kuliouou is one of network of Hawaii congregations participating in Family Promise by providing overnight lodging and meals for three to five families for a week every quarter. St. Augustine will be assisting Holy Trinity next month by providing a meal the evening of Sunday, May 20.
You can help by preparing a dish for that evening, offering financial assistance toward the cost of the meal or providing supplies such as toiletries, garbage bags, dish soap, etc.
More than 3,500 congregations from many denominations participate in Family Promise nationwide. The program works because it enables congregations to meet the basic needs of homeless families, giving them the time to regain their independence and learn basic life skills, and transition into permanent housing. If you would like to be part of this ministry, please call the parish office at 923-7024 by April 26 and leave your name and contact information and indicate how you would like to help.
Beginning this weekend, children from the Religious Education program and their parents will bring the gifts to the altar at the offertory at the 8 a.m. Mass the first Sundays of March, April and May.