Q. What could possibly be more lame than the idea of a water park on an island surrounded by the Pacific Ocean?
A. Having MASS at that water park.
Hawaii is a tough place to be Catholic. After Bishop Ferrario's epoch of intolerance to all things traditional, and Bishop DiLorenzo's quick departure, many Hawaiian Catholics hoped that Bishop Silva would help straighten out a diocese awash in modernism and indifference. Instead, it looks like the diocese will stay awash.
Perhaps it is best to remind ourselves at this point that the Mass is not entertainment, it is not amusement and it is not to be taken lightly. When we attend Mass, we witness the unbloody re-presentation of the Death and Resurrection of Our Lord. It is a solemn event that demands piety and reverence.
So why is Bishop Silva of Honolulu permitting Mass to be offered in an amusement park?
On September 1, the Diocese will attempt to reach out to a generation that is distracted to death by a culture of entertainment and amusements by luring them into a water park and hoping that they might just offer some spiritual significance to young people in between the water slides and artificial waves.
Something here just isn't right.
For those interested in registering, you can get out your surf jams and bikinis and call the Office of Diocese Youth and Young Adult Ministry 808-203-6763...if that's your idea of "ministry".
For those who wish to express their concern, you too can call the diocese at 808-585-3300.
If you don't have time to call, at least say a prayer for Bishop Silva. Let us all pray that he open his mind and heart more deeply to the true renewal that Pope Benedict wants for our Church.
