About Sacred Hearts · Kapalua, Hawaii
Sacred Hearts Mission Church is a Catholic mission church in Kapalua, on the northwest coast of Maui, Hawaii. It serves as a satellite (mission) of Maria Lanakila Parish in nearby Lahaina, which is the oldest Catholic parish on Maui, established in 1846 by priests of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary. The Kapalua mission was built in 1983 to serve the resort and residential communities of West Maui, and it offers a Saturday Vigil Mass and two Sunday Masses in a compact, distinctly Hawaiian Gothic-style building set on Office Road. It is part of the Diocese of Honolulu and is staffed by the Missionaries of Faith (M.F.).
- Established
- 1983
- Patron
- Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary
- Rector
- Rev. Kuriakose Nadooparambil, M.F.
- Diocese
- Diocese of Honolulu
Why belong here
Sacred Hearts Mission is a small, beautiful mission chapel in Kapalua where West Maui Catholics and visitors can worship in an intimate setting, with a Saturday Vigil Mass and two Sunday Masses celebrated by priests of the Missionaries of Faith. The mission belongs to Maria Lanakila Parish, the oldest Catholic parish on Maui (founded 1846), and offers the full sacramental and pastoral life of a much larger parish — including RCIA, religious education, youth and young adult ministry, outreach to those in need, music ministry (with a special Hawaiian music group that sings at the mission on the last Sunday of each month), altar server training, and wedding preparation. It is a convenient and welcoming worship option for the Kapalua, Honokahua, and Napili communities.
Mass times at Sacred Hearts
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday at 3:30 PM or by appointment
Sacred Hearts Mission Church — Kapalua, Maui
Sacred Hearts Mission Church is a small Catholic mission chapel serving the resort and residential communities of Kapalua and West Maui. It is a mission of Maria Lanakila Parish in Lahaina, the oldest Catholic parish on Maui, and shares the parish's priests, staff, and sacramental life. The current mission church was built in 1983 on Office Road in Kapalua, replacing an earlier Sacred Hearts church that had stood in nearby Honokahua since 1925. The mission is staffed by the Missionaries of Faith (M.F.) and supported by the Missionary Sisters of Faith (smf). Its intimate scale, koa-wood double doors, and three-tiered bell tower make it one of the most recognizable small churches on Maui's northwest coast.
- Type: Mission Church (satellite of Maria Lanakila Parish, Lahaina)
- Diocese of Honolulu
- Built 1983; architect Spencer Leineweber
- Address: 500 Office Road, Kapalua, HI 96761
History
Sacred Hearts Mission traces its origins to 1858, when Father Aubert Bouillon — the same French priest who led the building of Maria Lanakila in Lahaina — erected a church in Honokohau Valley dedicated to St. Bernard. That church was renamed Sacred Hearts in 1925 and relocated to Honokahua, where it served the area until the present Kapalua mission was built in 1983. The mission is a spiritual extension of Maria Lanakila, which was founded in 1846 by the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary. In August 2023, when the catastrophic Lahaina wildfire closed the historic Maria Lanakila Church, Sacred Hearts Mission in Kapalua became the worship home for the entire Lahaina parish — including Sunday Masses in English, Spanish, and Tongan — until Maria Lanakila was rededicated in December 2024.
- 1858: Original church built by Fr. Aubert Bouillon in Honokohau Valley
- 1925: Renamed Sacred Hearts and moved to Honokahua
- 1983: Present Kapalua mission church built
- 2023–2024: Served as temporary home parish for Maria Lanakila after the Lahaina wildfire
Architecture of the Mission
The 1983 mission church is a deliberate, compact interpretation of Gothic Revival in a Hawaiian setting. Architect Spencer Leineweber drew on traditional Gothic forms — the steep gable roof, the three-tiered bell tower, the shallow transepts, and stained glass lancet windows in the chancel — but adapted them to Maui's climate and building traditions. Eight sets of koa double doors line the nave, opening to trade winds for natural ventilation, while pergola-covered lanai on either side give worshippers shaded, informal gathering space after Mass.
- Architect: Spencer Leineweber (1983)
- Style: Hawaiian Gothic Revival
- Steep gable roof, three-tiered bell tower, shallow transepts
- Stained glass lancet windows in the chancel
- Eight sets of koa double doors; pergola-covered lanai on both sides
Clergy & Staff
The mission and its parent parish, Maria Lanakila, are served by priests of the Missionaries of Faith (M.F.) and a community of Missionary Sisters of Faith (smf), with a lay staff handling liturgy, outreach, religious education, youth ministry, business, and building maintenance.
- Rev. Kuriakose Nadooparambil, M.F. — Pastor
- Rev. Peter Laupapa 'Timoteo' Taufa'asau, M.F. — Parochial Vicar
- Sr. Vitoria Mauu, smf; Sr. Dan Hoang Trang Nguyen, smf; Sr. Ja Len, smf — Missionary Sisters of Faith
- Filomena Binanua — Liturgy Coordinator
- Ismael Manny Fernando — Business Manager
- Michele Rosenthal Leon — Outreach Coordinator
- Mary Rosenthal — Parish Secretary
- Beth Garrow — Bookkeeper
- Wendy Coon — Wedding Facilitator
- Maka Secretario — Youth & Young Adult Ministry
- Tonata Lolesio — Religious Education
- Sherlyn Dagdagan — RCIA
- Howard Lolesio — Building and Maintenance Director
- Ron Baybado — Pastoral Council
Music & Liturgy
Liturgy at the mission is shaped by the parish Liturgy Committee and by a multi-cultural music ministry coordinated by Filomena Binanua. The parish fields a Tongan Music Ministry (Saturdays at the 5:30 PM Mass at Maria Lanakila), a Hawaiian Music Ministry (Sundays at the 7:00 AM Mass at Maria Lanakila and on the last Sunday of each month at Sacred Hearts Mission), and the main Maria Lanakila Choir (Sundays at 8:30 AM, 10:30 AM, and 5:30 PM at Maria Lanakila). The Liturgy of the Hours (Lauds) and Rosary are prayed at 6:15 AM at Maria Lanakila Church.
- Hawaiian Music Ministry sings at Sacred Hearts Mission on the last Sunday of each month
- Liturgy of the Hours (Lauds) and Rosary at 6:15 AM at Maria Lanakila Church
Religious Education, Youth & RCIA
Faith formation for all ages is offered through the parish's Religious Education program (coordinated by Tonata Lolesio), a Youth and Young Adult Ministry (Maka Secretario), and the RCIA process for adults preparing for initiation into the Catholic Church (Sherlyn Dagdagan). The Altar Server Ministry welcomes young parishioners who have already received First Holy Communion to assist at Mass and other sacred ceremonies.
- Religious Education
- Youth & Young Adult Ministry
- RCIA
- Altar Server Ministry
Outreach & Social Ministry
The parish's social ministry — Outreach and Cancer Ministry — is coordinated by Michele Rosenthal Leon and Carmen Garcia. The program helps individuals and families in West Maui who are working toward self-sufficiency with food, rent and utility assistance, holiday baskets, personal help, and transportation. The outreach program also supports children at St. Mary's Orphanage in India.
- Outreach: food, rental/utility assistance, holiday baskets, transportation
- Cancer Ministry
- Support for St. Mary's Orphanage in India
Weddings & Sacraments
Couples may marry at either Maria Lanakila Church in Lahaina or at Sacred Hearts Mission Church in Kapalua. The parish hosts both parish weddings (for registered parishioners) and visitor weddings (for couples from elsewhere). Wendy Coon serves as Wedding Facilitator; couples can also reach out to Helen Nelson for visitor wedding information. Baptisms, First Communion, Confirmation, Anointing of the Sick, RCIA, and funerals are all coordinated through the parish office at 808-661-0552.
- Parish and visitor weddings at Sacred Hearts Mission or Maria Lanakila
- Wedding Facilitator: Wendy Coon
- Visitor weddings: contact Helen Nelson ([email protected])
- Parish office: 808-661-0552
Parish Councils & Committees
Lay leadership at the parish is organized through several councils and committees that advise the pastor and help plan parish life.
- Pastoral Council
- Finance Council
- Liturgy Committee
- Stewardship Committee
- Building and Ground Committee
Visit, Contact & Directions
Sacred Hearts Mission is located at 500 Office Road, Kapalua, HI 96761. Parish business mail should be addressed to 712 Wainee Street, Lahaina, HI 96761-1511. The parish office can be reached at 808-661-0552 (fax 808-661-1670) or by email at [email protected]. The full parish website — which covers both Maria Lanakila and Sacred Hearts Mission — is http://www.marialanakila.org/.
- Physical address: 500 Office Road, Kapalua, HI 96761
- Mailing address: 712 Wainee St., Lahaina, HI 96761-1511
- Phone: 808-661-0552; Fax: 808-661-1670
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: http://www.marialanakila.org/