Saints & Relics Presentation: St. George Church, 6-14-2026

This ministry launched its very first Saints and Relics Presentation at St. George Church back in October 2010 so this parish holds a warm place in this author's heart.   Since that first talk, I have since returned a handful of times to the Waimanalo parish to conduct a few more ... and the parishioners have always responded enthusiastically, each time, and today's presentation was no different.

Relics on display in St. George Church (note the

beautiful stained-glass windows of Hawaii's own

Sts. Marianne & Damien & Bro. Joseph

Dutton)

I brought 10 relics for my audience to venerate - St. Bartolo Longo, St. Bernadette of Lourdes, Ven. Francesca del Serrone, Bl. Josaphata Hordashevska, Bl. Karl of Austria, St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, Bl. Nicholas Kitbamrung, St. Peregrine Laziosi, St. Padre Pio, and Our Lady's veil - and spoke in detail about the lives of seven of them.  Again, the St. George parishioners were very receptive to the stories I shared of our Saints and holy role-models ...

Parishioners lined up to venerate the relics

Fortunately for the group, they have a wonderful, supportive Pastor - Fr. Raymond Ellorin - who also has a lively devotion to the Saints, surrounding his parishioners with their presence to encourage deeper faith.  Fr. Ray had a special Reliquary Shrine constructed inside the church to house 1st Class Relics of St. George Martyr and St. Damien of Molokai; had a beautiful meditation garden created, which he surrounded with large statues of several Saints; and recently installed 6 stained-glass windows also featuring Saints!  And last, but not least, Hispanic members of the parish erected an outdoor shrine to Our Lady of Guadalupe - see below.

Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us!

This parish is literally saturated with the positive spiritual influence and intercession of our holy heroes!  If one is ever in the Windward area of Oahu, St. George Church is definitely worth a visit.

Corpus Christi 2026 in Kailua

Today was one of the most meaningful observances of the Feast of Corpus Christi at my parish in a long, long while.  Our Parochial Vicar, Fr. Arrion, organized a Eucharistic Procession and Benediction for after the 11AM Mass ... which is usually the least attended of our three Sunday Masses.  But this morning was somewhat of a pleasant surprise as a good crowd of people turned up to participate in the special observances

Over 250 people - young and mature - walked and sang behind the Blessed Sacrament, as Fr. Arrion led us around the grounds of our church and school.  At mid-point, we paused in the school courtyard for prayers and a blessing, while many people knelt on the asphalt.

Scenes from my parish's Eucharistic Procession

We then made our way back to the church for more Eucharistic Adoration and prayers, before concluding with solemn Benediction.  The event was clearly a success ... and to be among so many of my fellow parishioners in public worship of our Eucharistic Lord was simply AWESOME.  I was moved and elated, to say the least.

And what made for a perfect ending to the Feast Day observances was the unexpected discovery of a potential holy image in one of the many photos I took during the procession - see below.

So did the Holy Face of Christ manifest in the sky over our church?  My friends and I believe so.  Compare the faint image under the sun (circled) with the photo of the face from the Shroud of Turin inserted at the bottom-left.  Not saying it's a miracle but there's an uncanny resemblance!  Regardless what, it was an awesome and immensely blessed day in Kailua!

O Sacrament most holy,

O Sacrament divine,

All praise and all thanksgiving,

Be every moment Thine!

Champion is on my Bucket List!

There are at least a dozen locations in the United States that claim heavenly visitations from the Blessed Virgin Mary.  However, only one series of apparitions has the distinction of being formally declared "worthy of belief" by the Catholic Church.  For those who haven't yet heard of them, they occurred at Champion, Wisconsin.

The National Shrine of Our Lady of Champion

Only three apparitions were claimed in Champion by the seer - Adele Brise - in October 1959.  Our Lady's message was relatively brief yet her few words spoke volumes and have stood the test of time; resonating in the hearts of many, including this author's.  In fact, the Blessed Virgin's requests at Champion (along with Adele's faith example) touched me so deeply, I was inspired to create a short video to help spread the message - click/tap the image below to view it.

Our Lady of Champion, as described by the visionary,

Adele Brise.  Click/Tap on the image to learn more

about the seer and the apparitions.

The quaint town of Champion has since become a popular destination for people seeking Peace, deeper Faith, and Healing ... and many, many graces have been reported by visitors over the decades.  Officially approved by the local Bishop on December 8, 2010, today the National Shrine of Our Lady of Champion welcomes over 200,000 pilgrims annually!  It's definitely on my Bucket List.