This is now my regular parish - it just happens to be close to my current home. I wasn't baptized…read moreor confirmed here, but I still feel welcomed! I really like the big screens that show the songs at appropriate times - this eliminates the need for hymnals and thus being better for the environment! I also enjoy the air conditioning - the two churches that I visit in town do not have a/c. Sometimes I see coworkers at mass - it kinds strange seeing them outside of work - like...hey!! what are you doing here? Oh, yeah - you have a life, too! Father Herman is a good guy. He's humble and down-to-earth. It's easy to understand his homilies - which is important for me. I had met him in person as I went to a class at St. Ann's with my co-worker, called "Catholics Returning Home". We both learned a lot. I never went to Sunday School because my elementary and high schools were Catholic. Recently, I had an emergency & I needed a place to go have a good cry. It was not during regular church hours, but I tried the door of the chapel... it was open! I spent a few minutes by myself in the presence of the Lord, reflecting on the meaning of life and pondered the mystery of death and why my friend, Lucille, was taken from this earth in such a strange fashion. I was able to compose myself and write a few lines in the Book of Special Intentions near the door of the chapel. I felt at peace and that my prayers would be answered... Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May Lucille's soul and all the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen!

IMHO, it's the parishoners that make a particular church succeed. When there are people…read moreenthusiastic about their faith, then it makes the service a whole lot more entertaining than mundane. St. Ann's is a perfect example. Granted Fr. Herman is awesome, but I think it's because he is a true local guy. He went to Damien for high school! Not to say that priests from outside the state aren't great, but being effective at connecting with the local people is a great help. That's one of the main reasons why I give this place 5 stars. St. Ann's is a newer built church so it has the ac and projector screens etc. I do find the ac on the cooler side, so I try to have sleeves or a sweater on. This makes me think of the churches in Italy where it's required to have your shoulders covered when you enter. Parking in the lot is adequate, but be prepared to wait to exit after Mass. If you need to be somewhere in a hurry, park on haikū road, but careful crossing the street if you're on the mall side.

My family and I came here for Saturday mass in honor of my aunties 2nd year death anniversary…read more Coming from Ewa beach, it was a bit of a drive but well worth it. This church is beautiful. Not the biggest church but you can tell it is very well taken care of. As someone who hasn't attended mass in awhile, I like that they had laminated sheets so you know what to respond with so you don't feel an out of place.

Now, my home parish after weeks of trying different Catholic Churches. Here's why:…read more 1) Franciscan spirituality: a true holy man resides here as our beloved pastor. He is a Capuchin Franciscan who is the model priest. Firm and no nonsense (which I love) but with the compassion and kindness of Christ. Franciscans celebrate the presence of God in all of His creations: animals, plants, sun, moon, stars... yes even rainbows! Father's homilies might run a tad long, but they are jam packed with rich poignant truth-based concepts grounded in natural law and Christian "bedrock". I wouldn't wish one word less...every word of his helps me defuse the confusion of Christianity and I always come away enlightened. 2) adherence to the truth: so many times we gravitate to that which we want to hear versus what we need to hear. How many times do we "google" a topic but only chose to read the posts we happen to agree with, while dismissing the rest, regardless if they are more truthful than our previously adopted biases? That's not helping us to fully use the gifts of logic and reason God gave us. What personal growth is there in only listening to our own self centered egos and only those thoughts that seem to validate our conceits? In a world full of anger and shouting and hate and political correctness, and euphemism....it's nice to hear the unvarnished truth. I welcome truth the same way a poor, naked man welcomes warm clothes in the middle of a blizzard. 3) Aloha: I'm aware that this word may not mean today what it meant years ago, but in general (aside from the occasional curmudgeon like myself), the people here are warm, friendly, and try their best to imitate Christ. Do we fail? You bet. Several times a day... but we are called to "press on til the end"... and so we try. Most everyone here radiates Aloha. 4) Keeps traditions alive: while we all need to do a better job liturgically in some areas of tradition (as spelled out clearly in Sacrosanctum Concillium), we are one of the few churches that celebrates one Sunday Mass each month in the Hawaiian language. Come join us the third Sunday of the month to experience this. It is both amazing and inspirational. 5) History and Architecture: we are one of the few churches on island that did not jump on the 70s/80s/90s bandwagon of architecture revolution and renovate to a circular design (which is actually paganesque and not Christian). Our architecture reflects centuries of Catholic imagery... we have a proper Nave, Sanctuary, Altar and Tabernacle that is the central focus of our liturgy since everything visually in our architecture points to Christ as the center of our worship, and the presence of Christ in our midst. Our church was first established in 1840 as a result of the then persecution that drove the move of the faithful from Honolulu to the Windward side. Saint Father Damien of Molokai visited and said Mass here! The original wooden church structure burned down in a fire back in 1937. By 1939, a new block constructed church was built (which is the current one today). Our bell in our tower was a gift from the kind people of Nantes, France, and has a dedication and year marking on the bell that shows it was cast in 1845! There is something about the sanctity and feel of a church where so many generations of Hawaiians have worshipped in and prayed. It gives the church, a peaceful holy feel. If you are looking for a place to worship, you might like this parish. In any case, peace and goodness to you all... or in the words of St Francis d'Assisi: "Pax et Bonum ". Mahalo for reading my review.

The church is great. However, the dirty looks from fellow parishioners is reprehensible…read more I challenge you to read the Bible and have a consistent concise understanding of Catholicism. Leave your dirty looks at home . I'm John Lambertson and I approve this message

I was recently in Kailua and had the opportunity to go to Mass at St. John Vianney. I felt welcomed…read morefrom the moment I entered the church. The usher asked if I would be willing to take up the gifts and felt honored to do so. I will cherish the rosary given to me as a first time visitor. Mahalo nui loa. The church itself provided a very nice atmosphere. The Deacon gave an outstanding homily. I certainly will return on my next visit.

3 years later we returned. My son called the church and explained who he was and that 10 days is a…read morelong time to go without practice. He asked if he could rehearse during the week in exchange for an music offering at Sunday service. They remembered him! They were so kind. After service we were invited for fellowship and conversed with the regular members. There was a guest pastor, as they were in "new search" mode. The guest pastor was great, gave an interesting, engaging sermon. I hope they found a new pastor. It's a sweet church in a nice location. I think I may miss them this next trip due to time constraints, but will look them up again next time my son travels with me to Oahu.

Please read my earlier review, for my original impressions of this church…read more After several months, I am back on Oahu and visited this church again. In the intervening time I have attended many, many other supposedly Christian churches. Kailua Christian Church is one of the rare churches where Jesus would walk in the door, get a warm welcome, and in fact recognize that the people are living his teachings, 2000 years later. (I don't think Jesus would really recognize...or approve of... a lot of the wealthy...hateful... or just plain ignorant people that loudly proclaim themselves as "Christians" today). Kailua Christian Church is "the real deal." Not fancy... modest... but very cool. Trying to be better people, help each other and the community, through tolerance, love, and service. This Sunday, the Pastor's message to the kids was about how our favorite superheros are really people who serve others, not themselves... who dedicate their superpowers to making the world a better place. Then in his adult sermon, he talked about using Jesus as a mirror to really see yourself, and what you need to improve before you walk out the door into your community. I thought it was a great message. If you could just stand in front of Jesus, and look at him, and him look at you, without saying anything, what would you see in yourself and realize you need to change? Their music program has evolved since my last visits... I was pleased to hear a really good anthem from their (new?) choir. (the only thing I still don't care for, is the screen that comes down over the altar for lyrics... at least they roll it back up when not in use... if you're going to project the words, I wish they would also project the notes... how else are people going to learn to sing and read music ??) In addition, they are apparently excellent detectives.... despite my using a pseudonym and a profile picture of my dog, they figured out my identity as their previous positive reviewer!!! The ladies of Kailua Christian Church solve the case of the mystery reviewer! LOL. You should attend a service! Finally I would like to see them study and adopt an Open and Affirming resolution http://www.ucc.org/lgbt/ona.html#FAQ_about_ONA . They would join rare company as I believe only one other UCC church on Oahu is ONA, and only 2 at this time in the whole state of Hawaii ! To me it is a real symbol of saying "you know what, we want to be ahead of the curve on civil rights issues... and recognize and fight discrimination EARLY rather than look back decades later and say "how could they not see?" Adopting this ONA resolution is often a challenging process for a church, but hey, as I heard in a recent sermon at another UCC church... "Christianity is not for wimps."

We've been going to St. George's Midnight Mass for the past two years. It's a beautiful mass, with…read morethe most beautiful voices singing the hymns. The Parishioners are very warm...lots of smiles. :) when you go, be sure to walk through the Garden of Saints. Beautiful!

A warm vibrant Catholic community situated in Waimanalo under the shadow of the edge of the Ko'olau…read morerange. I've been here for Mass many times and have fond memories of the late great Father Scott Bush who was pastor here for years. Father Bush was an exceptional homilist and true holy man... we miss him very much. The church contains several marvelous examples of local art to include a lovely local rendition of the Last Supper (located above the choir loft) and a wrought iron crucifix. Architecturally it's one of the few modern era churches that was designed and sited traditionally with the altar facing "ad orientum" (east) so that the rising sun shines through the atrium to illuminate the altar. There are other examples of local art through the church and in all the times I've come here, I found tremendous peace and ease of falling into deep contemplative prayer. I would often come here after hiking Kokohead just to spend time with my Lord and God. I like that the Saturday evening Mass is offered in the Hawaiian language and it's quite beautiful and moving. Check the parish website for details and updates. Mahalo for reading my review.

We had our ceremony of matrimony (outside the mass) at St. Anthony of Padua Church in March 2024,…read moreand it was absolutely perfect! My husband's family is from Oahu, and we currently live in Oregon, so coordinating from afar could have been challenging, but working with the parish and their front office made everything smooth and simple. The ceremony was beautiful, and Kepa was incredibly accommodating with the music. The homily was heartfelt, and we felt so welcomed despite my husband's family not being Catholic. It was an intimate, unifying experience, and we're forever thankful for the church's generosity in allowing us to get married there. We couldn't have asked for a better setting for such an important day. Thank you, St. Anthony of Padua Church, for making our ceremony so special!

OK let's start off with the facilities beautiful immaculate, very nice very very nice. The. The…read morefather that I spoke to very nice.. little bit of background I go to ST. JOHN Vianney I was thinking about possibly moving to Saint Anthony's of Padua however, after the smirking of the offering collectors at me comments from them under their breath as they give $100 to their offering ask anybody at St. John Vianney how generous John L is. And Saint Anthony's of Padua will know what they lost . I will pray for this church . It's the only time I ever felt like beating the crap out of somebody in the middle of a church.

Memorial Service for my cousin's daughter, Robin Yee (granddaughter of the late Wally Yee, carnival…read moreentrepreneur)... St. Patrick Church - in Kaimuki, Honolulu, Hawaii - was the chosen site to Bless the ashes of my cousin, Robin, because she had attended the attached Elementary School and had gone to mass here with her parents and siblings. It was the best setting because St. Patrick Church is the home parish for my cousin's family. The free parking lot, historical architecture - including grand archways colorful stained glass windows, excellent acoustics (the soloist: Robin's younger sister, the readers: Robin's mom and elder sister, the pianist, and the harpist sounded heavenly), and solid marble foundation - were much appreciated! There was no air conditioning. I sat near the open doors at the back of the church. The cool April morning breeze was sufficient. I saw electric fans along the walls which are probably used in the summer. The restrooms were outside and to the left. I didn't use the facilities and didn't hear of any complaints. Father Clyde presided over the Prayer Service. He was efficient and personable. He had listened to Robin's husband's eulogy and made appropriate comments about the sweet, young couples' partnership in his Homily! I had met Father when he signed the Guest Book. He welcomed us (there were four of us at the Reception Table) and kindly asked if we needed anything. Outside, on the covered walkway, a table was set up for each guest to take a bento lunch home. The tradewinds were gentle and the sunshine was warm. It was a beautiful day at a wonderful place which held many memories for my cousin, her classmates, coworkers, friends, and family!

This was my 1st visit to the church during Sunday mass. My previous visit was for a wedding many…read moreyears ago, My family and in-laws were here for my nephew's baptism. We sat on the pews which faced the altar. The baptism had a candle lighting that was done by the god mother of my nephew. The father read from his handbook about for the spiritual message and process. Some people were hot because there were not enough windows inside so air can come nor any electric fans. People had to use a manual fan. Anyways, Samoa church choir sang in English. I thought there was a certain dress code that people needed to follow. Some people wore jeans and slippers. Overall, there were nice stained glasses.

In visiting my sister here in Hawaii, I joined her in watching the sermon online. The church only…read moremeets in person on the second and fourth Sunday's. All the services are distributed online every Sunday regardless. There were a few points in the message I didn't agree with, but it wasn't anything of serious consequence. Next Sunday we are planning on attending in person. I did visit this particular church in September of 2019 when I was here the last time. They positively impressed me so much, I wanted to make sure I connect to and plugged in with this body of believers. Check out this church!

True bible based wisdom is found here amongst authentic loving people who have Jesus in their…read morehearts. Highly recommend this beautiful place of fellowship, worship and "meat" of the word lessons