Bishop's Messages

BISHOP'S MESSAGES

The Bishop's Wednesday Bible Study video messages will no longer appear on this page, but on his Bible Study page HERE.

Latest Messages:

Bishop's Lent Message 2023
February 22, 2023

Continuing Violence In Our Communities
February 9. 2023

My dear Siblings in Christ Jesus,

Over the past couple of weeks, the people of the United States have again been faced with the reality of unwarranted police violence in the death of Tyre Nichols. The Presiding Bishop has addressed this incident in his A pastoral word from Presiding Bishop Michael Curry on the death of Tyre Nichols.

I have been ruminating and praying about the pervasiveness of violence in our society and in our lives. Nations have besetting sins that then influence the responses of individuals. I think the besetting sins of the United States are shaped by the myths of individualism and materialism. Materialism and the related sins of greed and lust drove European settlers to displace and eradicate indigenous peoples for land and enslave Africans for free labor. READ MORE

The Feast of Epiphany
January 6, 2023

Na ke aloha o ke Akua ma loko o Iesu Kristo, e aloha iā ʻoukou ā pau!

We begin 2023, yet again, in a complicated and uncertain time. The economy is shaky, there is war in Europe and threats to peace in Asia, a pandemic continues, and our national government seems to be unsteady. This year is beginning like so many other years in human history. What does reality mean for us who know God in Jesus Christ.

For today, I have been rereading the second chapter of Matthew’s Gospel. The account of the birth of Jesus in Matthew’s telling of the story focuses on Jesus as “Emmanuel” (meaning “God with us,” 1:23). The second chapter focuses on the Magi, King Herod and the flight into Egypt. It is the story of dreams and misplaced trust. READ MORE

BISHOP'S CHRISTMAS MESSAGE 2022
December 23, 2022

A Word from the Bishop & Christmas Services Around the Diocese
November 19, 2022

Na ke aloha o ke Akua ma loko o Iesu Kristo, e aloha iā ʻoukou ā pau!

On the Fourth Sunday of Advent (December 18th), the Gospel lesson was from the Gospel of Matthew (2:18-25)

This is how the birth of Jesus Christ took place. When Mary his mother was engaged to Joseph, before they were married, she became pregnant by the Holy Spirit. Joseph, her husband, was a righteous man. Because he didn’t want to humiliate her, he decided to call off their engagement quietly. As he was thinking about this, an angel from the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because the child she carries was conceived by the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you will call him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” Now all of this took place so that what the Lord had spoken through the prophet would be fulfilled: READ MORE

Bishop's Thanksgiving Message 2022
November 23, 2022

Na ke aloha o ke Akua ma loko o Iesu Kristo, e aloha iā ʻoukou ā pau!

I’m writing this Thanksgiving message from home on Monday afternoon, November 21, 2022.

I woke up yesterday morning (Sunday, November 20) with a slight sore throat, sluggishness, and runny nose. It was the fifth day after a Church Pension Group gathering for clergy and lay employees. Everyone who attended the gathering received an email on Friday (November 18) informing us that someone at the gathering had tested positive just after returning home. I felt uncomfortable enough for me to go, “oh, no!” I had tested negative and felt fine on Friday after the warning email, and then again on Saturday (November 19) morning. But after waking up on Sunday, at Bea’s urging, I immediately tested again twice, and both tests were clearly positive. READ MORE

A Reflection from the Bishop on Resolution #2
November 8, 2022

Na ke aloha o ke Akua ma loko o Iesu Kristo, e aloha iā ʻoukou ā pau!

During the Annual Meeting of our Diocesan Convention (at ʻIolani School on Saturday, October 22nd), we adopted the following resolution:

BE IT RESOLVED, that this 54th annual meeting of the Convention of the Diocese of Hawai‘i urges the leaders of all congregations of this Diocese to initiate programs of voter education for parishioners to cultivate a better understanding of civic engagement as an expression of Christian faith, and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that this 54th annual meeting of the Convention of the Diocese of Hawai‘i affirms that as citizens, each individual Episcopalian has a responsibility to bear witness in the public square by exercising the right to vote and engaging in civic affairs for the common good.
READ MORE

Urgent Message from the Bishop: Hurricane Relief Fund
September 30, 2022

Please give today to the “Hurricane Relief Fund” of our own Episcopal Relief & Development (ERD). Working with partners and impacted dioceses, ERD will reach vulnerable communities devastated by Hurricane Ian, Hurricane Fiona, and other catastrophic storms. As ERD continues to assess ongoing needs in impacted areas, your urgent gift will enable ERD to respond now — and in the long run — to aid in recovery.
READ MORE

To view more of the Bishop's video messages, visit the Diocesan YouTube channel:

The Rt. Rev. Robert L. Fitzpatrick

Past Messages

2023

2022

Earlier messages can be found on the archive page:

Message Archive