Gratitude amid the storms

Bishop Michael T.T. Castori, SJ, has been traveling to the neighbor islands to celebrate Masses of thanksgiving following his July 28 ordination as the sixth bishop of Honolulu. Because limited space at the Co-Cathedral of St. Theresa prevented many parishioners from attending the ceremony, the bishop began visiting various pastoral communities to express his gratitude.

The travel schedule faced several delays due to hurricane season. Masses originally planned for August 14–15 for the Hawaii island vicariates were postponed because of Hurricane Lala. While the bishop celebrated a scheduled Mass at St. Theresa Church in Kihei, Maui, on August 22, his visits to Hawaii island were pushed to late September.

Bishop Castori visited the West Hawaii Vicariate on September 23 at St. Michael the Archangel Church in Kailua-Kona, narrowly avoiding Hurricane Lowell. During the liturgy, he noted the difficulty of facing consecutive storms, including the then-approaching Hurricane Nolo. He completed his visits to the East Hawaii Vicariate parishes the following day, celebrating Mass at St. Joseph.