Hawaii's New Shrine to St. Anthony of Padua

The votive Shrine of St. Anthony of Padua

in the Church of St. Anthony in Kailua, Oahu.

The case to the right of the statue encloses a

certified 1st Class (bone) Relic of the Saint.

Today, our Kailua parish had the joy of dedicating our newly redesigned reliquary to St. Anthony of Padua - the only shrine in Hawaii, as far as I'm aware, that has a rare bodily relic of the illustrious Saint of Miracles!  The shrine was formerly situated at the other end of the church, under the main crucifix... but our priest - Fr. Clarence Zamora - felt that it belonged in a much worthier and accessible setting (and rightfully so).

       

Fr. Clarence blessing our parish's new

shrine to our patron, St. Anthony of Padua.

The students from the parochial school

assisted in the ceremony by bringing up

lit candles for the recently donated

votive candle stand.

So with the generous help of a few parishioners, Fr. Clarence ordered a votive candle stand for the devotional use of our faith community and set about making arrangements to move the relic to its current resting place.  The redesigned shrine utilized a niche and a marble statue of the Saint that was already in place within the church... and once the candle stand arrived, plans moved quickly and smoothly, culminating in a simple devotional space that fits in well with our unique church interior - it's beautiful!

I am now looking forward to seeing rows of lit candles offered by our parishioners and guests in observance of a time-honored and highly symbolic Christian tradition.  My sincere prayer is that from this hallowed place, St. Anthony will shed his blessings on all who have recourse to his powerful and effective intercession.

The original sketch I did for our priest of

the redesigned shrine to St. Anthony of Padua

and the first location of the reliquary when

it was under the church's familiar crucifix.

If you happen to live on the island of Oahu (Hawaii), or just visiting our islands, feel free to stop by our Kailua church.  All are welcomed to seek St. Anthony's intercession before his Sacred Relic and to light a candle as an expression of our faith in him... and in Jesus Christ, the Light of the World!

* * *  UPDATE:  A GREAT TESTIMONY FOUND IN GOOGLE REVIEWS * * *

For directions to St. Anthony of Padua Church in Kailua, click here.