St. Michael the Archangel Church - Kailua-Kona, Hawaii Island, HI
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denben
N 19° 38.218 W 155° 59.472
5Q E 186282 N 2174062
St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church is located at 75-5769 Ali'i Drive in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii Island, Hawaii.
Waymark Code: WMR5Y6
Location: Hawaii, United States
Date Posted: 05/14/2016
Views: 4
A mission named after Saint Michael the Archangel was founded in Kailua-Kona in 1840, the first Catholic Church on the island of Hawaii. The first services were in a small grass hut. Governor John Adams Kussakini gave the land South of Moku'aikaua Church to the Catholic mission in 1841. A church was completed in 1850 under Father Joachim Merechel. He was buried inside the church in 1859. In 1940 Father Benno Evers constructed a grotto of coral from Kailua Bay over the site of the original well.
The church building was forced to close on September 2007, due to lingering damage from the 2006 earthquake. The parish continued to hold Mass in a tent on the site. In 2009, the parish announced the church would be demolished in November 2009. A nearby building that served as a convent has also been demolished. Construction on a new church began in early 2013.
The newly rebuilt St. Michael the Archangel Church has been dedicated March 25, 2015 by the Rev. Larry Silva, the bishop of Honolulu.
Today, St. Michael’s Parish — which includes the four mission churches of Immaculate Conception in Holualoa, Holy Rosary in Kalaoa, St. Paul’s in Honalo and St. Peter’s by the Sea in Keauhou — serves 2,000 families. In addition, the parish welcomes thousands of visitors annually.
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