Join us for our Online Worship Service on Sunday Mornings at 8:30am.

Kawaiahao Church
Kawaiahao Church
  • THIS WEEK
  • CONNECT
    • Sunday Services
    • Kahu Korner Bulletin
    • Time With Ke Akua
    • Prayer Requests
  • ENGAGE
    • 2022 Ministry Calendar
    • Kawaiaha'o Church School
    • Join Our Ohana
    • Serve
  • EXPLORE
    • 200 Years of Faith
    • 2022 Ali'i Sundays
    • Meet Our Pastor
    • Media
    • Covid-19 Protocols
    • Contact Us
  • TOUR
    • Historic Walking Tour
    • The Great Stone Church
    • Kawaiaha'o Fountain
    • Lunalilo's Tomb
    • The Kauikeaouli Clock
    • Ka'iulani's Bench
    • The Sanctuary
  • GIVE
  • STORE
  • More
    • THIS WEEK
    • CONNECT
      • Sunday Services
      • Kahu Korner Bulletin
      • Time With Ke Akua
      • Prayer Requests
    • ENGAGE
      • 2022 Ministry Calendar
      • Kawaiaha'o Church School
      • Join Our Ohana
      • Serve
    • EXPLORE
      • 200 Years of Faith
      • 2022 Ali'i Sundays
      • Meet Our Pastor
      • Media
      • Covid-19 Protocols
      • Contact Us
    • TOUR
      • Historic Walking Tour
      • The Great Stone Church
      • Kawaiaha'o Fountain
      • Lunalilo's Tomb
      • The Kauikeaouli Clock
      • Ka'iulani's Bench
      • The Sanctuary
    • GIVE
    • STORE
  • Sign In
  • Create Account

  • Bookings
  • Orders
  • My Account
  • Signed in as:

  • filler@godaddy.com


  • Bookings
  • Orders
  • My Account
  • Sign out

Signed in as:

filler@godaddy.com

  • THIS WEEK
  • CONNECT
  • ENGAGE
  • EXPLORE
  • TOUR
  • GIVE
  • STORE

Account


  • Bookings
  • Orders
  • My Account
  • Sign out


  • Sign In
  • Bookings
  • Orders
  • My Account

CELEBRATING 200 YEARS OF FAITH

This documentary ‘A Witness to Aloha’ is about the first Christian Church of Hawaii, Kawaiaha’o and its historical legacy for the past 200 years.   Interviews from Kahu Ken Makuakane, Henry Kapono, Pastor Wayne Cordeiro, Noelani Arista, and many others reveal the true history of Kawaiaha’o Church its impact and its legacy within the community of Hawaii, the Pacific triangle and the world.  

Celebrating 200 Years

Our Bicentennial Vision

Our Bicentennial Vision

On April 23, 1820 the first company of missionaries of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions established the first Christian Mission on the Island of Oʻahu to bring the good news of Jesus to the people of Hawaiʻi.  Reverend Hiram Bingham preached “Nu Oli”- for I bring you tidings of great joy!  The church was established on the grounds of Kawaiahaʻo – which translates to “the waters of Chiefess Haʻo”.  Known as the “Mother Church” of Hawaiʻi, Kawaiahaʻo Church for 200 years stands as a testament of Christian Aloha to all!

Our Bicentennial Vision

Our Bicentennial Vision

Our Bicentennial Vision

To reach out locally and globally, using the 200th year Bicentennial Celebration as an opportunity to educate and engage through media, music, art, and cultural programs to perpetuate the legacy of the first pioneer company of missionaries in Hawaiʻi with an emphasis on our next generation.

Back to Our Roots

Our Bicentennial Vision

Back to Our Roots

On October 23, 1819, seven couples with the Pioneer Company of missionaries from the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) set sail on the Thaddeus for the Hawaiian Islands from the east coast. Prior to their departure, the Park Street Church in Boston, Massachusetts, held a service in their honor. Our Kawaiahaʻo Church delegation provided their current congregation with the fruits of their mission - the preaching of the gospel by Kahu Kenneth Makuakane in English and deacon Dr. Kuʻuipo Wong in ʻolelo Hawaiʻi, along with gifts of music and hula. Services were held on Sunday, October 20, 2019 and on Wednesday, October 23, 2019.

Bicentennial SPEAKER SERIES, News and Events

The Forgotten Voices of Kawaiaha'o Female Seminary

BICENTENNIAL SPEAKER SERIES 

SUNDAY, MARCH 21, 2021

An illustrated talk on Kawaiaha'o Female Seminary, the mission school for Hawaiian girls founded in 1864. The boarding school was kitty-corner from Kawaiaha'o Church on King Street and the ties between the two were both intimate and strong. She will share the stories and histories of the kaikamahine o ke kula hanai o Kawaiaha'o and highlight the many daughters of Hawaiian missionaries and ministers who attended the school.

The Religious Life and Work of the Early ABCFM Missionairies

BICENTENNIAL SPEAKER SERIES 

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2021

Hawaiian Mission Houses Director of Operations and Collections Elizabeth Po‘oloa and Curator of Public Programs Mike Smola share readings, artifacts, and stories about how the first missionaries from the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) and early Native Hawaiian converts shared the Gospel and lived their religious lives. 

“Celebrating Advocacy Past, Present & Future”

BICENTENNIAL SPEAKER SERIES

 SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2020

Listen to Aletha Kaohi, a descendant of Kaumuali‘i, will speak of her heritage and creation of the book ‘Celebrating Advocacy” she co-wrote for the State Council of Hawaiian Congregational Churches, and why it was written.

The “Still Small Voice and the Master Navigator, I Want My People to Know”

BICENTENNIAL SPEAKER SERIES

 SUNDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2020

Listen to Rachel Kaiama's inspirational journey about the Kawaiaha'o Church’s visit to New England October 2019, the steps of the missionaries, and the impressions GOD imparted on our hearts. With a special appearance by Judi Manalo, Chair of Boston Bicentennial Celebration 2019 at Park Street Church.

He Leo Mai Ka Lani

BICENTENNIAL SPEAKER SERIES 

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2020 

This illustrated research presentation will explore the critical role played by Mōʻīwahine (Queen) Keōpūolani in building the foundations of a Christian Mission in the Hawaiian Islands. 

Memoirs of Henry Opukahaia

BICENTENNIAL SPEAKER SERIES 

SUNDAY, AUGUST 16, 2020 

Join us for an illustrated talk on new and interesting details our speaker has discovered in researching the two-hundred-year-old text of the classic biography of ‘Ōpūkaha‘ia. He will highlight the influence of ‘Ōpūkaha‘ia on the founding and in the subsequent history of Kawaiaha‘o Church.

What Makes Kawaiahao A Wahi Pana

BICENTENNIAL SPEAKER SERIES

SUNDAY, JULY 19, 2020

 “Wahi Pana: In Hawaiian, the term for a sacred place is wahi pana. Wahi is the word for place. In isolation, the word pana means “pulse.” Thus, sacred places are “places with a pulse,” living space." -  Na Wahi Pana O Hawaii:  Sacred Places of Hawaii,  Okura/Hallen.   Kaipo``i Kelling will take us on a journey back to the time of our Aliʻi and understand the historical significance of what makes this site sacred.

IF WALLS COULD SPEAK

BICENTENNIAL SPEAKER SERIES

SUNDAY, JULY 7, 2020 

The first installment of our Bicentennial Speakers Series is presented by church member and archivist, Keiko D'enbeau. She will share stories and history of those who have worshiped and made Kawaiaha'o Church the significant place it is for faith, history and culture.

HENRY OPUKAHA'IA

BICENTENNIAL SPEAKER SERIES

SUNDAY, JUNE 22, 2020

Kawaiaha'o Celebrates with Bicentennial Service on April 26, 2020

On Sunday, April 26, Kawaiaha'o Church held a special online Bicentennial Worship Service at 8:30 am

Reflections on a recent trip to Boston for Bicentennial Events in November 2019

Watch as a Kawaiaha'o Church delegation that attended Bicentennial events in Boston, Massachusetts in October

Our UCC Denomination

UCC HAWAII CONFERENCE

Denominationally, It is a member of the

 United Church of Christ.


20,000 Christians

130 Local Churches

5 Associations

6 Islands

1 Conference


Together we make up the Hawai‘i Conference, a body of the United Church of Christ (UCC). Our churches and members are unique and different from each other in many ways, but seek to walk together fulfilling God's mission in our communities and world.

About Kawaiaha'o church

Kawaiaha’o Church was established on April 22, 1820 by members of the the Hawaiian Mission from the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM). Originally known as the “Mission Church of Honolulu”, it became known as Kawaiaha’o Church when it evolved into a major parish church in 1840.

The name “Kawaiahaʻo” (/kɑ/wɐj/ə/haʔo/ or /kɑ/vɐj/ə/haʔo/) literally translates as “the water of Haʻo” and comes from the name of a sacred spring located on the church grounds as well as a moʻolelo (story) about the location.

Kawaiaha’o Church is the oldest church on Oʻahu and the second oldest church in Hawaiʻi. The lands were gifted to the Hawaiian mission by Kuhina Nui (Queen-Regent) Kaʻahumanu, one of Hawaii’s first Christian converts, and King Kamehameha III.

The foundation for the existing coral church was laid in 1839 and completed by 1842. Comprised of 14,000 coral blocks–each wearing one ton–mined from the reef on the west side of Oʻahu and brought by canoe by the early Native Hawaiian converts.

The church has been affectionately known as the “Hale Pule Lāhui (National House of Prayer of Hawaiʻi)”, the “Luakini” (“The tabernacle”), the “Great Stone Church”, and the “Westminster Abbey of the Pacific”, as this was the principal national church of the Hawaiian Kingdom where the Hawaiian Aliʻi and other Hawaiian notables were baptized, married, attended worship services, volunteered at and ultimately, laid in state.

Outside of its important religious history, the Church was the scene of important political developments throughout Hawaiʻiʻs history. On the front steps of the church, King Kamehameha III spoke the words that today are part of the state motto “Ua Mau Ke Ea O Ka ʻĀina I Ka Pono” after the Hawaiian Kingdomʻs sovereignty was restored from and by the British in 1843. Hawaiʻiʻs early parliaments and the Constitutional Convention of 1864 all met at Kawaiahaʻo Church. “He Mele Lāhui”, a composition written by Queen Liliʻuokalani and which became Hawaiʻiʻs first original national anthem was first played at Kawaiahaʻo Church. A majority of Hawaiʻiʻs rulers took their constitutional oath of office at Kawaiahaʻo Church and Hawaiʻiʻs first democratically elected head of state, King Lunalilo, is buried on the church grounds. After the coup that overthrew the Hawaiian Monarchy in 1893, Kawaiahaʻo Church continued to play a part in Hawaiʻiʻs history through the Territorial and post-Statehood periods.

Kawaiaha’o Church is a Hawaiian Congregationalist church and a member of the United Church of Christ.

Due to Kawaiaha’o Churchʻs religious and historical importance, the church is considered to be the “mother church of Hawaiʻi” and has served as a beacon of faith to all for generations. This year, Kawaiaha’o Church is celebrating itʻs 200th anniversary.

All are welcomed in faith and in Aloha!


Copyright © 2020 Kawaiahao Church 

All Rights Reserved.


Email: info@kawaiahao.org

  • Sunday Services
  • Serve
  • Contact Us
  • GIVE

This website uses cookies.

We use cookies to analyze website traffic and optimize your website experience. By accepting our use of cookies, your data will be aggregated with all other user data.

Accept