The first Catholic mission to the Kingdom …
Years: 1827 - 1827
The first Catholic mission to the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi had been established by the creation of the Prefecture Apostolic of the Sandwich Islands by Pope Leo XII and the appointment of Alexis Bachelot as its first and only prefect, a member of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, a religious institute called the Picpus Fathers, founded by Pierre Coudrin during the French Revolution.
The first Picpus Fathers had departed from Bordeaux aboard the La Comète on November 21, 1826 and stopped in Valparaíso in Chile on February 8, 1827.
Resuming their trip on February 25, the Picpus Fathers enter port at Honolulu Harbor on July 7.
Having originally been refused entry by Protestant advisors to the king, the Picpus Fathers do not disembark from their ship until July 9, the Feast of Our Lady of Peace.
Among the first Picpus Fathers are Abraham Armand and Alexis Bachelot of France, as well as Patrick Short of the United Kingdom.
They are joined by six lay brothers.
It has been claimed that Fathers Armand, Bachelot and Short concelebrated the first Mass in the Hawaiian Islands on Bastille Day, July 14, 1827, in honor of their religious institute's French heritage, but this is untrue, and an anachronism: concelebration of masses is not practiced at thia time, and since France is being ruled by the restored Bourbon monarchy, "Bastille Day" would certainly not be marked as a national holiday.
They perform the first baptism on November 30.
The Picpus Fathers are quick to plunge into the Hawaiian society.
They learn the local language, go into the Native Hawaiian community and begin preaching to them.
They distribute Hawaiian language Bibles and teach the lessons of Jesus from the gospels.
Hundreds of Native Hawaiians choose to receive the sacraments of baptism, confirmation and Eucharist.
Among the first converts are William Pitt Kalanimoku who had been baptized by Abbe de Quelen aboard the French vessel L'Uranie, which had arrived in 1819, four months after the death of Kamehameha the Great; also the royal governors of Oʻahu, Boki and Liliha.
They will become pivotal members of the Catholic underground.
The first Picpus Fathers had departed from Bordeaux aboard the La Comète on November 21, 1826 and stopped in Valparaíso in Chile on February 8, 1827.
Resuming their trip on February 25, the Picpus Fathers enter port at Honolulu Harbor on July 7.
Having originally been refused entry by Protestant advisors to the king, the Picpus Fathers do not disembark from their ship until July 9, the Feast of Our Lady of Peace.
Among the first Picpus Fathers are Abraham Armand and Alexis Bachelot of France, as well as Patrick Short of the United Kingdom.
They are joined by six lay brothers.
It has been claimed that Fathers Armand, Bachelot and Short concelebrated the first Mass in the Hawaiian Islands on Bastille Day, July 14, 1827, in honor of their religious institute's French heritage, but this is untrue, and an anachronism: concelebration of masses is not practiced at thia time, and since France is being ruled by the restored Bourbon monarchy, "Bastille Day" would certainly not be marked as a national holiday.
They perform the first baptism on November 30.
The Picpus Fathers are quick to plunge into the Hawaiian society.
They learn the local language, go into the Native Hawaiian community and begin preaching to them.
They distribute Hawaiian language Bibles and teach the lessons of Jesus from the gospels.
Hundreds of Native Hawaiians choose to receive the sacraments of baptism, confirmation and Eucharist.
Among the first converts are William Pitt Kalanimoku who had been baptized by Abbe de Quelen aboard the French vessel L'Uranie, which had arrived in 1819, four months after the death of Kamehameha the Great; also the royal governors of Oʻahu, Boki and Liliha.
They will become pivotal members of the Catholic underground.
