Maria Lanakila Catholic Church in Lahaina remains standing following horrific wildfires. Some are calling its saving an "act of God." from New York Post https://nypost.com/2023/08/12/historic-lahaina-church-stands-miraculously-untouched-by-maui-wildfires/I am happy to share the news that Lahaina's Maria Lanakila Catholic Church, Maui, Hawaii seems to have survived the recent wildfires.
Maria Lanakila is a Marian Site featured in the book I edited, MAGNIFICAT: MAMA MARY'S PILGRIM SITES (Anvil 2012; copies available in Anvil's online site, and also via Kindle), which has an imprimatur by then Archibishop of Manila, Luis Antonio Tagle. I am sharing the article by Millicent Dypiangco about Maria Lanakila, indeed a place where prayers are heard and answered.
***
AT MARIA LANAKILA, OUR PRAYERS WERE
HEARD AND ANSWERED
Millicent Dypiangco
THE
IMPACT of my visit to the Marian site of Maria Lanakila did not occur in one
instance. There were no apparitions of the Virgin that appeared to me, nor were
there dramatic changes within me at any given moment during our visit. Rather,
I would call the influence of this site as prompting a perpetual transformation
that continues to exert its power over me to this day.
My
first visit to Maria Lanakila was in January 2001. It was actually my very
first visit to Hawai’i, to the island of Maui, taken on a family trip with my
husband and his parents and youngest brother. It would be the first of many
future family trips taken with the Dypiangco clan. I say “clan” because we have
now grown to be a family of sixteen…who make it a point to go on a family
vacation every other year…together…thanks to Mom and Dad. Prompted by the idea
to finally visit what many call “paradise,” I for one was very excited to visit
Hawai’i, and to finally go on the real honeymoon that Joe and I never went on
after our wedding eleven years prior…complete with my husband’s parents at
that!
As
I do on my vacations, I try not to have any expectations of the place so that I
may be pleasantly surprised at each turn. Pleasantly surprised was exactly what
I was at each spot we visited. I experienced the peace and serenity of Hawai’i,
particularly the island of Maui, which swept me right off my feet and made me
want to linger, savor, and soak in every single experience.
From
the very first greeting of Aloha, something stirred in me and I knew that this place
was going to be special. I think that the first impression of this place for me
was its simplicity, and how for me, felt as if I had finally gotten what I have
been craving for so many years. The simplicity and purity of the island melted
away all the stress from my body. I felt it from that first day, that first
meal of kalua pork, as I sat gazing at the blue Pacific from the shores of
Lahaina Village. I think that the only thing that broke that pattern was the
row of hotels that lined Kanapali where we opted to stay. However, it only
acted as our home base as we explored everything else that Maui had to offer.
Of
course, we could not go on a vacation without spending time at mass on Sunday.
And it was our practice to attend mass that led us to Maria Lanakila. Maria
Lanakila stood in its simplicity in the residential area of Lahaina. Its
architecture reflected the ease and purity of what surrounded it. It drew me
in.
Upon
entering this little church, I immediately felt at peace. My frame of mind had
totally changed. My mind was quieted as I sat in the pew and reflected before,
during, and after the mass. The hectic life that I lived in Los Angeles was
forgotten and I gave thanks. Thanks for the opportunity to finally be here in
“paradise,” thanks for the family who had accompanied me, thanks for my health,
my home, my livelihood. I was grateful for many things and I made sure that I
said those prayers of gratitude. Most especially, I prayed for the one thing
that weighed very heavily in my heart. I prayed for a child. Despite all the
blessings that I have received, I knew that there remained an emptiness in me.
And that emptiness was to bear a child, to become a mother, and to love like I
have not loved before.
Interestingly
enough, Maria Lanakila is located in downtown Lahaina, known to be the “cradle
of faith” on the island of Maui. The church’s name also translates to be Our
Lady of Victory. How uncanny that this place, this cradle of faith, was to be
the testing ground of my faith as I prayed in earnest for my heart’s desire. I
have always considered my faith to have been strong. I went to Catholic schools
from Kindergarten to twelfth grade. I received my sacraments. I went to church
every Sunday. Little did I know that the depth of my faith would be truly
tested in the first eleven years of my marriage as Joe and I awaited a child.
We even sought medical help and received treatments at a fertility clinic, but
none led to conception. Yes, my faith wavered. There were even times when the
strong desire to have a child placed a strain on Joe’s and my marriage. Shortly
prior to this visit to Maui, we had actually taken a step back and decided to
give ourselves some time to let things be. We decided to put distance between
all the medical interventions that we had undergone and to leave things in
God’s hands. This was not always an easy thing to do, especially for me. We
needed to have faith. I prayed for that faith.
Transformation
#1: A couple of weeks after returning from our trip to Maui, Joe and I find out
that we were pregnant.
Transformation
#2: Miranda Victoria Makanalani Dypiangco was born in late September of that
same year. Unbeknownst to us at the time, the middle name of Victoria that we
had given Miranda derives from the meaning of Maria Lanakila, Our Lady of
Victory. It could not have been any more appropriate for this coincidence to
have happened. We also purposely agreed to giving our child a Hawaiian middle
name. This gift eventually came from Joe’s cousin, Erinn, a native Hawaiian,
who gave us the name “Makanalani,” gift of heaven. Miranda’s name was complete.
Transformation
#3: Total turn-around on my part: emotionally, psychologically, spiritually. I
had become more real, feeling things more meaningfully, seeing things more
clearly, loving more deeply. My focus went from my job to my home. My home, in
turn, was transformed.
Transformation
#4: Family, and the time we take to cultivate our relationships, became
priority. One way that we make sure to nurture our family relationships,
particularly with Joe’s family, is to take these family vacations every other
year. Usually, we vary the places where we take these vacations. However, in
2005, Dad and Mom spoke up and elected to take the family back to Hawaii, to
Maui. They wished to return to Maria Lanakila to give thanks. We were in
complete agreement. So it was that Miranda Victoria Makanalani made her first
trip to the place that brought her to us.
Transformation
#5: Our ohana (Hawaiian for “family”) grows as a result of Miranda’s choice to
continue her dance studies in hula over tap/jazz/ballet. We have become a part
of a halau (hula school) that has Miranda developing her craft and that has
also brought out mine and Joe’s hidden talents. Through our halau, we have
found true friends who share a common love of hula and of the aloha
spirit.
Transformation
#6: Embracing the aloha spirit as part of our daily living. The aloha spirit
stands for much more than “hello” or “goodbye.” According to one of Hawaii’s
treasured kupuna (an elder), Auntie Pilahi Paki, the aloha spirit is the
coordination of mind and heart within each person. Each person must think and
emote good feelings to others. It means kindness, unity, humility, and
patience. These are qualities that we wish to impart upon Miranda.
Although
Maria Lanakila is not a popular Marian site, this church in the village of
Lahaina in Maui, and that has been built in Mary’s honor by the Congregation of
the Sacred Hearts of Mary and Jesus, has had a tremendous influence on our
lives. Its transformations are perpetual. From the birth of our Miranda (after
an 11-year wait), to a return visit to Maui and to Maria Lanakila (to give
thanks), to the discovery of hula (and our extended halau ohana), to learning
more about the spirit of aloha (and embracing it as part of our daily living),
to the writing of this Marian experience (and examining its impact on us), and
most importantly, to the way it has enriched our faith in Mary and in her son,
Jesus, Maria Lanakila, Our Lady of Victory, truly embodies “her triumphs with
the faithful.” Because of Maria Lanakila, where our prayers were heard and
answered, we are, and will be, forever faithful.
tags: Marian sites, Maui wild fires, Hawaii fire, Mama Mary
Read also:
Magnificat - Lahaina's Maria Lanakila Catholic Church Survived Maui Fires
Mama Mary Answered My Prayers by Lynley Ocampo
Mary is With Us - Our Lady of Lourdes, France by Brian Ascalon Roley
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