Hawai‘i Conference UCC

08/24/2026

Congratulations on 100 years! 🎉

08/22/2026

Kauaha'ao Congregational Church on Hawai‘i Island was hit hard by Hurricane Lala. We continue to hold the congregation and especially Kahu Debbie Wong Yuen in prayer as we look forward to ways to support them in recovery.

https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2026/08/22/community-mourns-damage-kau-church-graveyard-following-hurricane-lala/

08/06/2026

August 5, 2026 • View this week's Coconut Wireless!

Reflection from our Associate Conference Minister

The Dawn Chorus

Being surrounded by the dawn chorus fills my soul, heart, and mind to overflowing. It is a transcending experience for me. The dawn chorus is that symphony of bird songs that begins about an hour before sunrise. It ebbs and flows throughout the seasons. It has different voices in different locations but around the world, there is a powerful song that has burst forth each day for millions of years that follows the rising sun. For me, it is the song of creation, an ode to our creator, a prayer of thanksgiving and wonder.

At my home, I normally hear spotted doves, house sparrows, yellow-fronted canaries, zebra doves, mynas, saffron finches, warbling white-eyes, northern cardinals, and common waxbills. Last week when I was in Wahiawa on Oʻahu, I didn’t hear the saffron finches or yellow-fronted canaries, but I did hear the voices of the red-crested cardinals and red-vented bulbuls. If you want to know the bird songs at your home, I suggest downloading the Merlin app from Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

I challenge you to listen to the dawn chorus and to add your prayers to their songs. There is one prayer request that I want all of us to highlight. This week marks the third anniversary of horrific wildfires on Maui and there are many survivors who are still struggling to rebuild their homes, businesses, and lives. Let us lift them up in our prayers and our actions this week. And if you are one of those survivors, reach out and please know that you have not been forgotten. Let us join our voices and our actions with all of creation in the dawn chorus.

—Jonathan Roach

The Dawn Chorus Being surrounded by the dawn chorus fills my soul, heart, and mind to overflowing. It is a transcending experience for me. The dawn chorus is that symphony of bird songs that begins about an hour before sunrise. It ebbs and flows throughout the seasons. It has different voices in dif...

07/31/2026

Today is Lā Ho‘iho‘i Ea.

July 31 marks Lā Ho‘iho‘i Ea (Sovereignty Restoration Day), an important annual observance in the Hawaiian Kingdom. The day commemorates the events of 1843 when King Kamehameha III successfully negotiated the return of the Hawaiian Kingdom's sovereignty following a five-month unauthorized occupation by the British. That day Kamehameha III uttered the historic phrase, "ua mau ke ea o ka 'āina i ka pono," meaning "the life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness," which has become the official motto of the State of Hawai'i.

The Hawaiian Kingdom is a sovereign nation that never relinquished its sovereignty nor consented to annexation. As we reside on the unceded lands of the Kānaka Maoli, our Justice & Witness Missional Team invites you to reflect on how to acknowledge this truth as we work toward our mission of "pursuing peace, justice and the renewal of all creation" here in Hawai'i.

Learn more about Lā Ho‘iho‘i Ea: https://lahoihoiea.org/origins/

—From our Justice & Witness Missional Team

07/30/2026

July 29, 2026 • View this week's Coconut Wireless!

Reflection from our Associate Conference Minister

Why Doves?

Doves are messengers throughout our Bibles. It was a dove who brought an olive leaf, a symbol of peace, to Noah in Genesis, conveying a message that the violence and judgment were over. Then in all four gospel accounts of Jesus' baptism, the authors highlight a dove descending on Jesus; thus, the dove became our symbol of the Holy Spirit. The dove can be a symbol of wild, unpredictable freedom of the Holy Spirit and a symbol of peace and in other passages a symbol of purity and gentleness.

The dove is a multifaceted, complex symbol. But doves are very common, drab colored birds. And one of the most common doves in the world is the Rock Dove, which we know as the pigeon. The Hebrew word in our Bibles can be translated "dove" or "pigeon." Imagine the Holy Spirit as a pigeon; that puts a different spin on it. Did you ever wonder why God would use a dove instead of an eagle? Eagles are powerful, majestic symbols. Or why didn't God use an inspiringly beautiful bird like a peacock? They're stunning and magnificent. But no, God didn't choose any of these birds; instead, God chose a dove as a messenger.

With war raging in Iran and Ukraine, among other places, we need messengers of peace. We need to spread messages of peace, a holistic peace, that is more than just an absence of physical violence. This week, I encourage everyone to pray for peace. May we pray with our words, pray with our feet, pray with our hands, may we be a source and inspiration for peace. Like the dove, we don't need to be fancy, special, or extraordinary to be a messenger of peace. Just try being a pigeon for peace!

—Jonathan Roach

Doves are messengers throughout our Bibles. It was a dove who brought an olive leaf, a symbol of peace, to Noah in Genesis, conveying a message that the violence and judgment were over. Then in all four gospel accounts of Jesus' baptism, the authors highlight a dove descending on Jesus; thus, the d...