Tuesday within the Second Week of Advent (V48)
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The group from Hawaii included young people and chaperones from St. Catherine of Alexandria Church in Kapaa, Kauai; Saint Louis School in Honolulu; Our Lady of Sorrows Church in Wahiawa, Oahu; and St. Damien of Molokai Church in Kaunakakai, Molokai. (Courtesy Lisa Gomes)

By Lisa Dahm
Hawaii Catholic Herald

A group of Hawaii youth and their chaperones joined thousands of other young people last month for the annual National Catholic Youth Conference, which welcomes teenage faithful to come together for prayer, catechesis and community.

This year, with 16,000 people in attendance in Indianapolis, Indiana, Hawaii teen Micah Alcisto had the honor of being one of five students invited to ask Pope Leo XIV a question during a first-ever digital encounter in Lucas Oil Stadium Nov. 21.

Standing center stage in a semicircle with the other youth, the senior at Saint Louis School in Honolulu asked the U.S.-born pope about relying on artificial intelligence to assist in finding solutions to things such as schoolwork and using it as a tool or resource to find answers. Read more...

(YegoroV / Shutterstock.com)

From the Office for Social Ministry

“When Jesus looked up, he saw some wealthy people putting their offerings into the treasury, and he noticed a poor widow putting in two small coins. He said, I tell you truly, this poor widow put in more than all the rest; for those others have all made offerings from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has offered her whole livelihood.” Luke 21:1–4

Every year, as the holidays approach, we hear that familiar phrase “the season of giving.” The Christmas season provides the opportunity to reflect on the meaning of “giving”, including almsgiving or “charity” from a Christian perspective. In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus notices a poor widow quietly dropping two small coins into the temple treasury. Her gift is tiny, yet her offering is huge. Jesus tells His disciples she has given more than anyone else — because she gave all she had humbly and wholeheartedly. Her offering may be small in monetary value, but it is immeasurable in love.This is the wholehearted almsgiving or charity that a prayerful Advent and the Christmas season can inspire. Read more...

(DC Studio / Shutterstock.com)

From the Office for Social Ministry

Hawaiʻi Foodbank is committed to providing safe food access to everyone who needs it. You may be eligible for federally funded programs like The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP), or you may just need temporary food assistance until you get back on your feet. Additionally, other food pantries and food distribution sites remain open across the state. With more than 250 hunger relief partners across Oʻahu and Kauaʻi, help is likely available in or near your neighborhood.

If you live on Oʻahu, use the interactive map on the Hawai’i Food Bank website Homepage - Hawaiʻi Foodbank to find a food pantry or ʻOhana Produce Plus distribution near you. Food Assistance handouts are also available for Oʻahu and Kauaʻi, as well as links to our partners on the neighbor islands. Read more...

Sunday, December 21, 2025 at 2:00 - 4:30 p.m.
St. Stephen Diocesan Center, Kaneohe

For many years, Bishop Larry Silva has been collecting Nativity sets of all kinds from all over the world. There are currently close to 300. All are invited to an Open House to see them on Sunday, December 21, 2025, from 2:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. They are displayed in the library (just off the cobblestone courtyard) at St. Stephen Diocesan Center, 6301 Pali Highway, Kaneohe, HI 96744. Refreshments will be served. Bishop Silva and some of our seminarians will welcome you!

This year Bishop Larry Silva has scheduled six early morning Misa de Gallo Masses and three evening Simbang Gabi Masses from December 16th through December 24th on Oahu and Maui. All throughout the diocese are warmly welcomed to experience and become part of this great tradition. Please contact the parishes for more information.

Misa de Gallo

• Tuesday, Dec. 16, 5:00 am, St. Elizabeth, Aiea
• Wednesday, Dec. 17, 5:00 am, Co-Cathedral of St. Theresa
• Friday, Dec. 19, 5:00 am, St. John Apostle & Evangelist, Mililani
• Sunday, Dec. 21,  5:00 am, St. Joseph, Makawao
• Monday, Dec. 22, 5:00 am, Our Lady of Sorrows, Wahiawa
• Wednesday, Dec. 24, 4:30 am, St. Joseph, Waipahu

Simbang Gabi Mass

• Thursday, Dec. 18, 7:00 pm, St. Jude, Kapolei
• Saturday, Dec. 20, 7:00 pm, St. Anthony, Wailuku
• Tuesday, Dec. 23, 6:00 pm, St. Philomena, Honolulu

(Kara Gebhardt / Shutterstock.com)

From the Hawaii Catholic Herald

SECOND WEEK

Two candles are lighted on the second Sunday by the oldest child and allowed to burn as before. The prayer for the second week is:

Leader: Let us pray. O Lord, stir up our hearts that we may prepare for your only begotten Son, that through his coming we may be made worthy to serve you with pure souls. Through Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns for ever and ever.

All: Amen.

Leave two candles burning during the evening meal, at family prayers, or before bedtime.

(Beskova Ekaterina / Shutterstock.com)

Beginning the Church's liturgical year, Advent (from, "ad-venire" in Latin or "to come to") is the season encompassing the four Sundays (and weekdays) leading up to the celebration of Christmas.

The Advent season is a time of preparation that directs our hearts and minds to Christ’s second coming at the end of time and also to the anniversary of the Lord’s birth on Christmas.

• Advent Calendar for 2025
• Blessing of an Advent Wreath
• The "O Antiphons" of Advent
• Blessing of a Christmas Manger or Nativity Scene
• Blessing of a Christmas Tree
• Commentary on the Proper Prayers of Advent from the Roman Missal
• Festival of Lessons and Carols
• Lectio Divina for Advent

Flyer available HERE.

Saturday, December 13, 2025 at 10:00 a.m.
St. Anthony Retreat Center, Honolulu

Join the Hawaii Catholic Charismatic Renewal Services for their Statewide Advent Prayer Meeting. Praise and Worship will be held at 10:00 a.m. and will be followed by a talk "The Beauty of Advent" with Fr. Adondee Arellano, MS.

Flyer available HERE.

Saturday, December 20, 2025 at 8:30 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
St. Stephen Diocesan Center, Kaneohe

As we bring the Jubilee Year to a close, this Advent retreat invites you to pause, reflect, and rejoice. Led by Bro. Alphonse “Al” Vu, SDB, we will explore how true joy flows from our hope in the Lord and how we are called to carry that joy into the world as Pilgrims of Hope, Bearers of Joy. Come encounter Christ’s presence in prayer, community, and reflection.

RSVP at https://adventretreat.eventbrite.com.

Flyer available HERE.

Called to lead? Called to serve? Join the GIVEN Leadership Program! Apply before December 31, 2025.

The GIVEN Institute’s Catholic Young Women’s Leadership Program offers leadership development, faith formation, and dedicated mentorship for Catholic young women ages 21-35 seeking to live out their unique vocation and mission. Women accepted to the program participate in The Leadership Forum from June 24-28, 2026 at The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, and are then paired with an established Catholic female leader for 1-on-1 mentorship and support to develop and launch an Action Plan – a new initiative activating personal gifts in service to others. GIVEN is also accepting applications from lay and consecrated women (ages 36+) who would like to serve as mentors or volunteer at the 2026 Forum. All women are encouraged to become part of GIVEN!

To learn more and apply for the 2026 Cohort, please visit: https://giveninstitute.com/leadership-program/.

The diocese has had a few young women participate in this program. If you are a young woman interested in this and would like to talk with someone locally about this program, please email oyyam@rcchawaii.org.

Flyer available HERE.

Save the date!

Saint Marianne Cope Feast Day Celebration

Friday, January 23, 2025
Mass: 6 p.m.
Celebrant: Most Rev. Larry Silva
Co-Cathedral of St. Theresa
712 North School Street, Honolulu

“I am not afraid of any disease; hence it would be my greatest delight even to minister to the abandoned.” (St. Marianne Cope)

Mother Marianne Cope with six other Franciscan Sisters of Syracuse arrived in Honolulu in 1883 at the request of the Hawaiian Kingdom to care for its citizens with leprosy.

Bringing with her experience in nursing and hospital administration, she served the most desolate of outcasts. Giving herself generously and heroically to the victims of leprosy, she alleviated their physical and spiritual sufferings.

She spent 30 years in Kalaupapa, Molokai, caring for the patients there. She exemplified the ideals lived by St Francis of Assisi, an all-embracing compassion, an enduring selflessness and a deep love of Christ.

In gratitude, the Hawaiian government awarded her the Royal Order of Kapiolani and Robert Louis Stevenson honored her in a poem.
Her legacy in medicine and education left no Hawaiian island untouched.

A model of grace, service, kindness, and love, Mother Marianne was beatified in 2005, and canonized at the Vatican on October 21, 2012, by Pope Benedict XVI.

Her spirit of selfless service continues today in Kalaupapa and in the St. Francis Healthcare System of Hawaii.

Come and celebrate her gift to Hawaii.

Word of Life is a monthly resource from the USCCB's Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities. Each month includes resources for print and are adaptable for digital efforts including Feature of the Month, Intercessions for Life, Bulletin Quotes, and Bulletin Art. Learn more at www.respectlife.org.

Available in English: PDF | Word

Immaculate Conception
c. 15 BC
Solemnity - December 8

In 1854, Pope Pius IX issued an apostolic constitution called Ineffabilis Deus by which he declared the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary to be a dogma of faith. This definition was a response to the longstanding devotion and theological consensus that had built up over the centuries. By declaring a dogma of faith, the Holy Father used his highest papal teaching authority, binding every Catholic to accept this teaching. Read more...

(Image: Peter Paul Rubens, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons) Copyright © 2025 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission. www.mycatholic.life

Support your local parish online! You can give directly to your parish on the Diocese of Honolulu's Offertory page at www.catholichawaii.org/offertory.

On behalf of the parishes in the Diocese of Honolulu, thank you for your gift of support. Mahalo nui loa!

DECEMBER

Women's Advent Reflection "Mary, Bearer of Christ's Light," Dec 12

HCCRS Advent Statewide Prayer Meeting, Dec 13

Misa de Gallo at St. Elizabeth, Aiea, Dec 16

Misa de Gallo at the Co-Cathedral of St. Theresa, Dec. 17

Simbang Gabi Mass at St. Jude, Kapolei, Dec. 18

Misa de Gallo at St. John Apostle & Evangelist, Mililani, Dec 19

Jubilee Year Advent Retreat, Dec 20

Simbang Gabi Mass at St. Anthony, Wailuku, Dec. 20

Misa de Gallo at Our Lady of Sorrows, Wahiawa, Dec. 22

Simbang Gabi Mass at St. Philomena, Honolulu, Dec. 23

Misa de Gallo at St. Joseph, Waipahu, Dec. 24

Christmas Eve Holiday, Dec 24

Christmas Day Holiday, Dec 25

New Year's Eve Holiday, Dec 31

NEWS

For our most recent news, visit www.catholichawaii.org.

Bishop's Homily for the First Sunday of Advent

Experts Lay Out Facts, Ethics of Fertility Treatments

Wholehearted Giving Brings Christ to Life at Christmas

Find Food Assistance Across Hawaiʻi

Saint of the Week - Nicholas

Diocesan Guidelines for Speaker Approval

How to Order a Papal Blessing?

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