About St. Vincent Ferrer · Maunaloa, Hawaii
St. Vincent Ferrer is a Catholic mission church on the west side of the island of Molokai, Hawaii, located at 274 Maunaloa Road in the small plantation town of Maunaloa. It is one of four mission churches that together make up St. Damien of Molokai Parish in the Diocese of Honolulu, alongside St. Damien Church in Kaunakakai, Our Lady of Seven Sorrows in Kalua'aha, and St. Joseph in Kamalo. The mission's patron is St. Vincent Ferrer, the great Dominican preacher and patron saint of builders. Mass is celebrated weekly on Sunday morning, and the mission has long been part of the island's ohana (family)-shaped Catholic community of native Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders, Asians, and Americans — many of them descendants of plantation workers.
- Established
- 1940
- Patron
- St. Vincent Ferrer
- Rector
- Rev. Patrick Fanning, SS.CC.
- Diocese
- Diocese of Honolulu
Why belong here
St. Vincent Ferrer is one of the most intimate mission churches in the Diocese of Honolulu — a small, ohana-style Catholic community on Molokai's west side that gathers every Sunday at 11:00 a.m. for Mass under the care of the Sacred Hearts Fathers, the same religious order that sent St. Damien to Molokai. Parishioners can register with St. Damien of Molokai Parish to be part of this historic mission church, renew their wedding vows at any Mass on the island, and support a small Catholic community that maintains four church buildings across the island while most members live on fixed incomes.
Mass times at St. Vincent Ferrer
Weekly Mass schedule
Saint Vincent Ferrer Church
Saint Vincent Ferrer Church is the Catholic mission serving the west side of Molokai in the plantation town of Maunaloa. The mission sits at 274 Maunaloa Road and is supervised by St. Damien of Molokai Parish. Sunday Mass is celebrated at 11:00 a.m.; Lenten and Advent Mass times vary and are posted on the parish website and Facebook page. The mission's patron is St. Vincent Ferrer, the 14th-century Dominican preacher canonized in 1455 and venerated as patron saint of builders; his feast is April 5.
- Address: 274 Maunaloa Rd., Maunaloa, Molokai (Westside of the island)
- Mass Schedule: Sunday 11:00 a.m.
- Clergy: Fr. Patrick Fanning, SS.CC.
- Parish: St. Damien of Molokai Parish, Diocese of Honolulu
History of Catholic Molokai and the Mission Churches
Catholicism came to Molokai in the 1840s when Sacred Hearts (ss.cc.) priests from O'ahu and Maui began visiting the island. After St. Damien de Veuster arrived in Kalaupapa in 1873 he built four churches on topside Molokai in just four years: St. Joseph and the Child Jesus in Kamalo, Our Lady of Sorrows in Kalua'aha, St. John the Evangelist in Moanui, and St. Ann in Halawa Valley. Two of those — Our Lady of Seven Sorrows and St. Joseph, Kamalo — are still in use today. A resident priest was not assigned to topside until 1900, and for much of the 20th century the Catholic missions on topside (including St. Vincent Ferrer) were served from Sacred Heart Parish in Hoolehua by ss.cc. fathers. After 1977 diocesan priests took over, and in 2007 the Sacred Hearts returned under Bishop Larry Silva to administer all of Molokai through a single Molokai Catholic Community.
- 1840s — Sacred Hearts priests from O'ahu and Maui begin visiting Molokai
- 1873–1877 — St. Damien builds four topside churches; two survive (Our Lady of Seven Sorrows, St. Joseph Kamalo)
- 1900 — First resident priest assigned to topside Molokai (Sacred Hearts)
- 1940 — St. Vincent Ferrer Church dedicated
- 1953–1959 — Fr. Herman Van den Wyngaert, SS.CC. enlarges St. Vincent Church during his final year as pastor
- 1972–1977 — Fr. David Paul Todd, SS.CC. serves as last Sacred Hearts pastor of topside before the order's 30-year absence
- July 1, 2007 — Sacred Hearts Fathers return to minister to all of Molokai under the unified Molokai Catholic Community
The Molokai Catholic Community
Four 'topside' churches make up the Molokai Catholic Community — St. Damien in Kaunakakai (the main church), Our Lady of Seven Sorrows in Kalua'aha, St. Joseph in Kamalo, and St. Vincent Ferrer in Maunaloa — alongside St. Francis in Kalaupapa. Two of them, St. Joseph and Our Lady of Seven Sorrows, were built by Father Damien himself and are still in use. The community is described by the parish as 'ohana (family), serving God, serving each other and the great world community,' made up of native Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders, Asians and Americans, many of them descendants of plantation workers. The Sacred Hearts Sisters assist the parish in its pastoral and catechetical mission.
- St. Damien Church, Kaunakakai (central) — parish church
- St. Vincent Ferrer, Maunaloa (west) — mission
- Our Lady of Seven Sorrows, Kalua'aha (east) — built by Fr. Damien, 1874; oldest church on Molokai
- St. Joseph, Kamalo (east/south) — built by Fr. Damien; now used more as a shrine
- St. Francis, Kalaupapa — administered by the Sacred Hearts since its founding
Clergy, Staff and Parish Council
Because St. Vincent Ferrer is a mission of St. Damien of Molokai Parish, its clergy and staff are the parish's. The Catholic Diocese of Honolulu's official mission listing names the following people serving the parish community that includes St. Vincent Ferrer.
- Rev. Patrick Fanning, SS.CC. — Pastor
- Rev. Patrick Killilea, SS.CC. — Parochial Vicar
- Deacon Michael Shizuma — Active Ministry
- Loretta Kalilikane — Office Assistant
- Pamelyn Fukuoka — Bookkeeper
- Grace Kashiwamura — Religious Education
- Jersula Manaba — Religious Education
- Stevie Chaikin — Pastoral Council
Religious Education
Religious education for the four church communities on topside Molokai — including St. Vincent Ferrer — is coordinated through the parish office and staffed by Grace Kashiwamura and Jersula Manaba, who are listed on the Diocese of Honolulu's mission page as Religious Education staff for St. Vincent Ferrer Mission.
- Religious Education coordinated parish-wide
- Grace Kashiwamura — Religious Education
- Jersula Manaba — Religious Education
Support the Mission
St. Damien Parish of Molokai writes that the parish community 'is unique in many ways. It has four church buildings to maintain… our parish community is very small and most are on fixed incomes.' Donations can be made online through the Diocese of Honolulu website (selecting St. Damien of Molokai Parish), by PayPal, or by check payable to St. Damien Parish of Molokai, P.O. Box 1948, Kaunakakai, HI 96748. Parishioner registration forms are available for download on the parish website and can be deposited at any of the four topside churches.
- Online donation via the Diocese of Honolulu website
- PayPal donation via the parish website
- Check payable to 'St. Damien Parish of Molokai', P.O. Box 1948, Kaunakakai, HI 96748
- Parish Registration form available for download; deposit in offertory basket or in the safe at St. Damien Church
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Fr. John-Mary (Sacred Heart, Hoolehua parish — predecessor)Through ~1948
Preceded Father Roland at Sacred Heart, Hoolehua, which had St. Vincent Ferrer as a mission.
- Fr. Roland Peeters, SS.CC.From 1948
Acquired a new parish hall for Sacred Heart in Hoolehua during his tenure.
- Fr. Bonaventure Crols, SS.CC.1951–1953
Served Sacred Heart / missions of Molokai.
- Fr. Herman Van den Wyngaert, SS.CC.1953–1959
Physically enlarged St. Vincent Ferrer Church during his last year as pastor.
- Fr. Ildephonse Kuntz, SS.CC.1959–1965
Succeeded Fr. Herman; served Sacred Heart and missions.
- Fr. Anselm Gouveia, SS.CC.1965
Took charge of Sacred Heart in 1965.
- Fr. David Paul Todd, SS.CC.1972–1977
Last Sacred Hearts pastor of topside Molokai before the order's 30-year absence; oversaw Sacred Heart and its two missions including St. Vincent Ferrer in Maunaloa.
- Fr. Clyde Guerreiro, SS.CC.From July 2007
First Sacred Hearts pastor to return to topside Molokai after a 30-year absence; led the unified Molokai Catholic Community.