E Komo Mai!
Welcome to Koloa Union Church!
We are followers of Jesus—the man who opened his arms to all kinds of people (including the scorned and oppressed, the poor, those living on the margins of society, and people from other places), who gave voice to the voiceless, who fed the hungry and healed the sick. Following in his footsteps, we welcome people from all ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds, cultures, nationalities, abilities, sexual orientations and gender identities; and we share God’s love in its many forms. We are a diverse community where everyone has something to offer. Come and join us—let us follow Jesus together!
No matter who you are or where you are on life’s journey, you’re welcome here!
Church Location:
3289 Poipu Road, Koloa, HI
We are located in the heart of Koloa on Poipu Road between Old Koloa Town and Koloa School and Library. As you are driving along Poipu Road, you’ll see our church set back from the road between the large monkey pod trees. It is a lava rock church in old Hawaiian style with a large white cross in the window. Parking is available in the front and south side of the property.
Scroll to the Bottom for Directions!
Mailing Address:
P.O. Box 536, Koloa, HI 96756
Phone: 808-742-6622
A Scent-Free Environment: We have members, friends, and a kahu who are highly allergic to various scents, often resulting in coughing, sneezing, difficulty breathing and speaking, as well as other symptoms. Heavy perfumes and colognes are particularly troublesome. We are requesting that our church be, as much as possible, a “scent-free” environment during worship services, social activities and meetings. We realize that there is no way to keep all scents away, and we plan to continue having fresh flower arrangements each week and leis for special occasions, but we do ask everyone to be sensitive to the needs of those around them when it comes to perfumes, colognes and lotions.
Alan Akana Gallery
Koloa Union Church hosts a gallery featuring the works of Kahu (Pastor) Alan Akana. The gallery is just around the corner from the church at 3281 Waikomo Road in the historic Smith Memorial Parsonage, a beautiful building on the grounds formerly owned by Congregationalist missionaries. Proceeds from sales at the gallery support the maintenance, upgrades and repairs of the parsonage. Dr. Akana has been watercoloring the flowers of Hawaii since 1993 and features his work of nearly a quarter of a century. Gallery hours are 2 to 5 p.m. on Sunday and by appointment. See www.alanakanagallery.com to learn more about the gallery and Dr. Akana’s art.
A Message from Our Kahu
“Nothing Will Be Impossible”
Luke 1:37
On Sunday, I talked about the two times I attended the Parliament of the World’s Religions: in Salt Lake City in 2015 and Toronto in 2018. While attending the first one, it occurred to me that I was doing something for peace, for I was gathering with people from many faith traditions from all over the world to listen to and learn from one another. I am convinced that the world would be a more peaceful place if we all listen to those who are different from us and we are willing to learn from them. In Salt Lake City, I attended the movie Nuclear Savage, which documented the testing of atomic bombs in the Marshall Islands by the United States from 1946 until the 1960’s, thus leaving some of the islands uninhabitable for the Marshallese people. After returning home, I looked up the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation online, since that was the organization that showed the movie and led a presentation and discussion afterwards. I was impressed with their mission, commitment to educating young people, as well as their list of supporters, including Jane Goodall, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and Peter Yarrow and Noel (Paul) Stookey from the legendary folk group Peter, Paul and Mary. I was so impressed, in fact, that I decided to make a donation to the organization because I wanted to do something big for peace. I’m sure it was not a big donation in terms of what some of their larger gifts must have been, but it was big for me. I thought for a moment that if we all did something for peace that was big for us each year, we would make a great impact in the world.
I also shared with the congregation about four beliefs that Mary held onto that brought peace to her and to the world. Each of these beliefs is taken from Sunday’s Gospel reading from Luke 1:
- God was with her.
- She found favor with God.
- The Holy Spirit came upon her.
- Nothing will be impossible with God
Can you, like Mary, hold onto these four beliefs and thus bring more peace to yourself and to the world? What big thing might you do to bring about peace on earth?
I closed my message by reading a poem by David Krieger, the founder and president of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation:
The One-Hearted
The one-hearted walk a lonely trail.
They hold the dream of peace between
the moon’s eclipse and the rising sun.
They set down their weapons, carrying
instead the spirits of their ancestors,
a collection of smooth stones.
At night, they make fires, and watch
the smoke rise into the starlit sky.
They are warriors of hope, navigating
oceans and crossing continents.
Their message is simple:
Now is the time for peace.
It always has been.
Aloha nui!
Kahu
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“A Message from Kahu Alan Akana” is provided most weeks by Koloa Union Church, an Open & Affirming (ONA) congregation of the United Church of Christ (UCC), a member of the Kauai Association and Hawaii Conference.
To see a video of Kahu Akana’s message, click HERE. You may see the Koloa Union Church YouTube channel to see many of his past messages and subscribe in order be notified when a new message is posted. Please share these videos with friends and invite them to church. Please feel free to “Like” any of the videos you see and share them on social media, such as Facebook, so that others will notice them.
You are welcome to join us on Sunday mornings! To see our Sunday morning schedule, click HERE.
Kahu Akana is also an accomplished artist! He specializes in creating vibrant watercolors of the flowers of Hawaii and hosts a Sunday afternoon reception in a gallery at his home, the Smith Memorial Parsonage. He also meets visitors by appointment. Most of the profit from the sales go for the maintenance and upkeep of the parsonage. To see a video about his art and gallery, click HERE. To see the gallery website, click HERE.
To learn more about Kahu Akana (and the rest of the staff at Koloa Union Church), click HERE.
Weekly News of the Church
Third Sunday of Advent
“We Light the Candle of Joy”
December 15th
Children’s Christmas Program
Sunday’s worship service
will be provided by our
children and youth!
Invite your friends!
Stay for lunch!
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CHURCH COUNCIL MEETING December 15, after Aloha Hour in Kahu’s office.
CHRISTMAS EVE CANDLELIGHT SERVICE December 24, 7:30 p.m. An evening of candles and carols and a special Christmas hula. Please join us.
CHRISTMAS DAY COMMUNION SERVICE December 25 at 10:30 a.m. A service with Holy Communion and Christmas carols.
COCONUT WIRELESS Click HERE to see the latest issue of the Coconut Wireless (the weekly e-news from the Hawaii Conference of the United Church of Christ).
LECTIONARY READINGS (Old & New Testament Readings for the Week) Each week, Christians throughout the world read biblical passages from the Revised Common Lectionary, including the Old Testament, Psalms, New Testament, and Gospels. After three years, a good portion of the Bible is included and the cycle begins again. RCL passages are often read in church worship services, and Kahu Akana usually includes at least one of them on the following Sunday. This week’s readings are Isaiah 35:1-10; Psalm 146:5-10; Luke 1:46-55; James 5:7-10; Matthew 11:2-11.
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“Weekly News of the Church” is provided by Koloa Union Church, an Open and Affirming (ONA) Congregation of the United Church of Christ (UCC), a member of the Kauai Association and Hawaii Conference. Please contact the church office if you would like to have our weekly news sent directly to your inbox. Join us at 3289 Poipu Road in Koloa!