On Oct. 11, Hawaii's Father Damien Will Be Elevated To Sainthood

By Mary Kay Ritz | Honolulu Advertiser | February 22, 2009

On Oct. 11, Father Damien de Veuster, who ministered to the ill of Kalaupapa when no one else would, will join those in the hallowed ranks bearing the title of "Saint."   Only eight such people who did their good works on American soil have been so honored by the Roman Catholic Church, and it's the first time any of Hawai'i's good souls will have earned the title.

For Bishop Larry Silva, the news means a time of rejoicing. "It is upon us. Thanks be to God," he declared, just a few minutes after hearing the news in Rome from Pope Benedict XVI himself......
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On the Canonization of Blessed Damien

By Bishop Larry Silva | Hawaii Catholic Herald | July 29, 2008

We thank God that on July 3, the Holy Father signed a decree confirming that the healing of Audrey Toguchi from cancer was indeed a miracle performed by God through the intercession of Father Damien. In effect, this means that Father Damien will be canonized, that is, declared a saint to be venerated perpetually by the universal Church. The only formalities that remain are a consistory of the cardinals (perhaps in February?) at which the Pope will formally declare before them his intention to canonize Father Damien; and, of course, the actual Canonization .....
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Isle parish plans $3 million church for Father Damien

By Eloise Aguiar | Honolulu Advertiser | July 28, 2008

When Holly Lenart of Pierpont, Ohio, decided on a pilgrimage to Moloka'i, her first stop when she got off the ferry was to pray to Father Damien at St. Sophia Church, a tiny, termite-damaged chapel in Kaunakakai.

The old wooden plantation-style church is often the first stop for pilgrims seeking to connect with Damien, who ministered to those banished to an isolated peninsula on Moloka'i because they suffered from Hansen's disease .....
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New assignments have Sacred Hearts Fathers administering all of Molokai

By Patrick Downes | Hawaii Catholic Herald | June 29, 2007

After 30 years, a Sacred Hearts priest will again be a pastor on topside Molokai. Along with the Kalaupapa parish of St. Francis, which the Sacred Hearts Congregation has administered since its founding a century ago, the order will begin serving the entire island on July 1.

Bishop Larry Silva approved the appointments of Sacred Hearts Father Clyde Guerreiro as pastor of the Molokai Catholic Community beginning next month and Sacred Hearts Father Felix Vandebroek as pastor of St. Francis Church starting .....
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