F.O.P (Fresh Off da Plane)

Bless You

Coming from the Upper Midwest, this phenomena is a little remarkable to me. Not completely, of course. I'm no stranger to a church. And in Minnesota I have seen a number of Ojibwe smudging ceremonies where burning sage is used to cast out evil spirits and bless a new building or breathe new life into an old one. But those are rarely done in public.

In Hawaii, though, these are ceremonies done in places for everyone to see and even at the behest of government officials. No permits required. And I'm not complaining. It's almost foreign to me, is all. Although, that's probably because blessings have their roots in a culture that predates the United States by about 1,800 years, at least.

A local representative from the Native Hawaiian community, usually a pastor, will bless a public project or initiative, such as opening Mokulele Highway or plant restoration at Haleakala National Park. Mayors, park rangers and construction workers will all join hands or stand close in a prayer and ritual that is both grateful and asks for future success.

I came from a city where government leaders were essentially forced by a group of vocal citizens -- represented by the American Civil Liberties Union -- to remove a monument to the 10 Commandments from City Hall's front lawn, which I also don't necessarily have a problem with.

I understand why most of us prefer to keep our religion to ourselves. It's personal. I used to even hold an internal debate about whether to say, "bless you" or "gazoontite" when somebody sneezed at work.

The Christian tradition is as deep in Minnesota as anywhere in the United States, even if we are pretty far removed from the Bible Belt. The arguments for school prayer and battles against abortion and gay marriage that dominated the last two decades' political landscape were on the forefront of people's minds.

However, in 10 years as a professional reporter I have never seen a mayor or Senator bow their heads in prayer (at least outside of a church service, private fundraiser or political rally).

I'm not getting into a big debate about Separation of Church and State. I can just understand why no one appears to be in an uproar about government officials partaking in public (quasi)religious ceremonies. I guess I just don't think anyone is afraid that blessings will lead to the creation of a church-state in Hawaii, especially after learning about the ceremony's origins.

In Hawaii, there's good reason why blessings bypass the rules of Separation of Church and State that keep religion out of public spaces, I'm told. It is honoring the traditions of people that over the last 150-plus years have melded with the Christian tradition into a hybrid ceremony that is as everyday here as Spam and eggs bentos.

The public blessing stems from the history of the kahuna or Hawaiian priest, Very Rev. Christopher Keohi of the Roman Catholic Order of the Sacred Hearts told me. Keohi belongs to the same order of Hawaii's future saint, Blessed Damien, who died serving people with leprosy on Molokai.

Keohi has performed countless blessings in his years, everything from a University of Hawaii observatory to new hotels and airlines, he said. One of the father's most recent ceremonies was to “cleanse” a Honolulu bar that was the site of two stabbings, on involving a Good Samaritan, he said.

A typical ceremony involves spreading salt, water and a branch or leaf, all symbols also important to Christians, Keohi said. The ancient Hawaiians would spread salt around a hale or hut and then cut a path in the line to represent cutting the umbilical cord, so new life would be given to the house, he said. Salt also was used to pack meat and represented preserving the spirit of aloha, he said. The ti leaf is often used in the ceremony, which is a sign of protection. Water represents life and cleanliness, Keohi said. So lastly, a leaf is often used to sprinkle water to the east, west, north and south “to bring the goodness,” he said.

“Water represents mana or an expression of God's power as seen in waterfalls and waves,” he said, gently laughing at any suggestion that this crosses the boundaries of Church and State. “This is part of the traditions of Hawaii, so Church and State separation has never been an issue. Here, it is politically correct because it is part of the cultural tradition. No one would ever think of starting a new business without a Hawaiian blessing. It brings about a recalling of the rich inheritance that is ours.”

Amen.

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MauiWarriorFan
07-24-08 3:21 PM »Report Abuse	Good stuff. A reporter from the mainland that gets it. You are the man. Thanks.

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