From Kane to God to Buddha

The first Hawaiians brought with them the gods and goddesses of their respective islands of Polynesia. Through the centuries, local gods were added until there was quite an inventory of deities in control of almost every aspect of life in Hawai'i.

The Hawaiians' major gods were Kane, the creator; Ku, the war god; Lono, the god of peace, prosperity, wind and rain; and Kanaloa, god of the ocean. Perhaps the best known of all the gods and goddesses was Pele, the goddess of the volcano, usually referred to as the goddess of fire.

The Polynesians also imported their stringent do-or-die discipline known as kapu (taboo), which kept the populace in line. Kahuna (priests) ruled the secular and religious life of Hawai'i using this system of punitive taboos until the early 19th century. In 1819, King Kamehameha II broke the kapu system by dining in public with his mother and other women of the court, after which all kapu were abolished.

The first New England missionaries to set foot on these shores brought a new religion called Christianity to this tropical kingdom. They were followed by immigrants from other parts of the world, each culture bringing with it religious traditions from its native land. True to the nature of the Hawaiian people, all new forms of worship were tolerated, if not welcomed, and assimilated into society.

Today's lei of religions

Currently, there are close to 900 religious organizations, with combined property holdings in excess of $1 billion, registered statewide. Many other unregistered groups are known to exist.

With the possible exception of California, Hawai'i encompasses a greater diversity of religious traditions than any other state, and also ranks among the most religiously diverse areas in the world.

Active worship centers, including churches and temples, now number well over 1,000, giving a statewide per capita ratio of at least one center for every 1,000 people.

Hawai'i's main religions are Buddhism, Christianity, Indigenous Hawaiian, Judaism, Shinto and Taoism. There are 630 Christian churches in Hawai'i and almost 100 Buddhist, 35 Indian and Hindu, five Shinto, two Jewish, two Scientology and one each Muslim, Unitarian and Unification places of worship. There are nearly 100 churches classified under New Religious Movements and 28 places of assembly for the Baha'i religion.

In short, if you belong to an organized religion, it's probably represented in Hawai'i. If it's not, you can originate it.

O'ahu Historical Churches

Kawaiaha'o Church

• 957 Punchbowl Street, at King Street
• Phone: 522-1333
• Sunday worship services 8 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.

Dedicated in 1842, Kawaiahao (pronounced kah-vai'-ah-ha-o) Church is referred to as the Westminster Abbey of Hawai'i. The name means "fresh water pool of Hao," referring to a sacred spring that once ran near here. Hao was an ancient queen of O'ahu.

The New England-like design was the handiwork of a New Englander, Rev. Hiram Bingham, who led the first Congregationalist mission to Hawai'i in 1820. It was constructed of blocks of coral from the Pacific Ocean and mortared with burned seashells.

Formal portraits of Hawai'i's royal families line the upper gallery inside the church. Some of the original missionaries are buried on the makai (sea) side of the building.

Worship services are held in Hawaiian and English every Sunday. Free tours are offered on weekdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Sundays following the services. Phone ahead for scheduling.

Kaumakapili Church

• 766 N. King Street
• Phone 845-0908
• Sunday School 9 a.m.
• Sunday worship service 10:30 a.m.

The first Kaumakapili (pronounced ka-oo-mah-kah-pee-lee) Church was built in 1837 at the corner of Beretania and Smith streets in Chinatown. That building burned to the ground in the great January 10, 1900, fire that was started by city officials to eradicate areas contaminated with bubonic plague. In addition, it wiped out Chinatown.

The new version of the Congregational church was rebuilt in the working-class neighborhood of Kalihi, where it was more in keeping with the lifestyle and values of the common people. They wanted a more comfortable place of worship, away from Kawaiaha'o, which they perceived to be for wealthier people.

Liliu'okalani Protestant Church

• 66-090 Kamehameha Highway, Haleiwa
• Phone 637-9364

Hawai'i's last ruling monarch, Queen Lili'uokalani chose as the site of her summer home the banks of Haleiwa's picturesque Anahulu River. She attended the local Protestant church and, in 1892, presented to the church a one-of-a-kind clock which still graces the rear wall. In place of 12 numbers, one of the clock's seven dials uses the 12 letters of the Queen's name to show the passing of time. The other dials monitor the phases of the moon and the days of the month, week and year.

St. Andrew's Cathedral

• Beretania and Queen Emma streets
• Downtown Honolulu
• Sunday Hawaiian Mass 8 a.m.
• Choral Eucharist at l0 a.m.
• Phone 524-2822

King Kamehameha IV (Alexander Liholiho) and his wife, Queen Emma, were devout followers of the Church of England. The royal couple decided to build a French Gothic cathedral of their own and imported the sandstone for the building from the English countryside. Although the King died on St. Andrew's Day in 1863, the cornerstone wasn't placed until 1867 by his successor, King Kamehameha V.

The great 20-by-50 -foot window on the Ewa (west) side of the building is one of the largest stained-glass windows ever created in the United States. In the lower right corner is a likeness of Liholiho and Emma.