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SATURDAY | December 27, 2008
flASHback
David Shapiro
Thump
thump, it’s
shirtless
Obama
Christmas in Hawaiçi was
all Barack Obama all the
time, so where else to start
our “flASHback” on the
week’s news that amused and
confused:
• The vacationing presi-
dent-elect caused a stir when
he was photographed show-
ing off his bod. I shouldn’t
have laughed when John Mc-
Cain compared him to Paris
Hilton.
• Security forces won’t al-
low baby strollers or lawn
chairs for the elderly at the
Obama inaugural. It’s just as
well. It won’t be healthy for
young eyes or old hearts if he
takes off his shirt.
• The Hawaiçi State Society
was disappointed its Wash-
ington inaugural ball wasn’t
included among the 10 “offi-
cial” balls the Obamas will
attend. They should have
made the dress swimwear in-
stead of black tie.
• Rep. Neil Abercrombie
said the national pulse drops
10 points every time Obama
goes on TV because of his
Hawaiçi-bred calm. I guess
that’s better than the national
IQ dropping 10 points when
George Bush is on TV.
• But Abercrombie talking
about calm? Please. If he
were any more cranked up,
he’d be a one-man space pro-
gram.
• Mayor Mufi Hannemann
planned to greet Obama’s
plane, but was waved off
when the family asked for
privacy. Poor Hannemann
had to spend the rest of the
day looking for somebody
else’s glow to bask in.
• In non-Obama news,
Gov. Linda Lingle sent out
holiday e-cards instead of
real Hallmarks this year to
save money and postage.
It’s going to take more than
e-loha to balance the budget
in this economy.
• Three alleged leaders of a
copper theft ring were indict-
ed for racketeering, conspira-
cy, money laundering, drug
trafficking and false swear-
ing. If I was looking at 10
years in Hälawa, I’d swear
for real.
• Scientists are dropping
underwater mikes off the Big
Island to record deep-sea
volcanic eruptions and whale
songs. I can’t wait to hear
whales that swim too close to
the volcano singing “Hot Hot
Hot.”
• A Kauaçi man was
charged with causing seven
accidents in 20 minutes as
his car careened through
Lïhuçe and Kapaça. Thank
goodness they won’t let the
Superferry bring Kauaçi driv-
ers to Oçahu.
• June Jones settled with
the University of Hawaiçi for
half the $400,000 he owed
for skipping out on his foot-
ball contract, none of which
he’ll pay personally. He
should patent those magic
pockets where money goes in
but never comes out.
And the quote of the week
... from Obama to photogra-
phers at his golf outing:
“Come on, how many shots
do you need?” I hear his golf
partners were asking him the
same question by the third
hole.
David Shapiro, a veteran
Hawai‘i journalist, can be
reached by e-mail at
dave@volcanicash.net. His
columns are archived at
www.volcanicash.net. Read
his blog, Volcanic Ash, at
HONOLULUADVERTISER.COM/BLOGS.
go! pilots lied about napping
They came clean later
about incident on flight
to Hilo, report says
BY MARY VORSINO
Advertiser Staff Writer
Two go! airlines pilots whose of whom was a 53-year-old with
plane overshot Hilo airport by more than 20 years of flight ex-
about 30 miles initially lied about perience.
inadvertently falling asleep in
the cockpit while the plane was captain, told NTSB investigators
on autopilot, according to a re- that he inadvertently fell asleep
cently released National Trans- after experiencing “operational
portation Safety Board report.
The pilots, who were fired af- “We had gotten back on sched-
ter the Feb. 13 incident, later ad- ule, it was comfortable in the
Groups protest ceded-land stance
Big Island socked with heavy rains, snow
Storm that also hit parts
of O‘ahu dumped 12
inches in some places
Advertiser Staff
The Big Island yesterday was
pelted by heavy rains and even
snow as a winter storm made its
way across the island chain.
The National Weather Service
issued a flash-flood warning. At
one point yesterday the Kaçü Dis-
trict was hit with 2 inches of rain
per hour, while Laupahoehoe re-
ceived an inch per hour.
For the 24-hour period ending
at 5 p.m., Waiakea Uka received
12.61 inches of rain and Laupa-
hoehoe got 12 inches, the weath-
er service said.
The rains caused flooding, but
officials reported no major dam-
age or road closures.
Meanwhile, an additional 4
inches of snow were forecast to
fall at the summit of Mauna Kea,
Hawaiçi’s highest peak, on top of
the 8 to 12 inches the mountain
received on Christmas Day.
The storm also dumped rain
in brief but fierce bouts across
Oçahu yesterday.
[ HONOLULUADVERTISER.COM/localnews
mitted to dozing during the flight.
go! airlines officials did not re-
turn calls yesterday on the 11-
page report, which provides a
rundown of what happened dur-
ing the flight and also gives new
information on the pilots — one
The 53-year-old, the plane’s
stressors” and a hectic schedule.
A Hawaiçi County Civil Defense worker encounters a flooded roadway on Pauahi Street in Hilo. Some
areas of the Big Island got as much as 2 inches of rain per hour yesterday.
Text hibreak to 44636 to get local breaking news
alerts on your cell phone. For more alerts, go to
HONOLULUADVERTISER.COM/TEXT
LOCAL NEWS DESK
E-mail: hawaii@HonoluluAdvertiser.com | Telephone: 525-8090
]
cockpit, the pressure was behind one flight attendant aboard the an emergency on-board, the cap-
us,” he said, according to the re- 50-seat aircraft. tain said, “No, we must have
port. “I just kind of closed my About 9:55 a.m., the plane missed a handoff or missed a call
eyes for a minute, enjoying the passed over Hilo International or something.” The captain, ac-
sunshine and dozed off.”
Meanwhile, the 23-year-old
copilot who had been on the job
Airport at 21,000 feet and con-
tinued straight over the open
ocean for nearly 30 miles. When
cording to the report, also lied
to the Federal Aviation Admin-
istration after the plane landed,
for five months, told investigators
that with the morning sun shin-
ing in he entered a sleep-like
the first officer awoke about 9:58
a.m., he realized the plane was
off course, according to the re-
telling the agency that the plane
had “lost radio communications
because the flight crew had se-
state from which he could “hear
what was going on, but could not
comprehend or make it click.”
port, and woke the captain.
He also noted that the plane
had enough fuel for another hour
lected an incorrect radio fre-
quency.”
The captain later came clean
Flight 1002 to Hilo took off
from Honolulu Airport at 9:16
a.m.
and a half of flying.
Shortly after waking, the cap-
tain radioed air traffic controllers.
that day in an incident report to
Mesa Airlines, the parent com-
There were 40 passengers and When asked whether there was SEE GO!, B2
Broad Native Hawaiian
constituency demands
withdrawal of appeal
BY GORDON Y.K. PANG
Advertiser Staff Writer
Members of the normally con-
servative Royal Order of Kame-
hameha I and the Association of
Hawaiian Civic Clubs joined oth-
er Native Hawaiian groups at the
state Capitol yesterday to protest
Gov. Linda Lingle’s position on
ceded lands — lands that once
belonged to the Hawaiian gov-
ernment before the 1898 over-
throw.
“It’s not so much the number of
people here today but it’s who
came out,” said Vicky Holt
Takamine, a kumu hula and pres-
ident of the çIlioçulaokalani Coali-
tion, which coordinated the rally
attended by roughly 100 people.
Members of the pro-inde-
pendence umbrella group Hui Pü
and the newly formed Hawaiian
Independence Alliance also were
among those taking part.
The groups are protesting the
state’s appeal to the U.S. Supreme
Court seeking to overturn a
Hawaiçi Supreme Court ruling in
January temporarily barring the
ABOVE: Richard Kinney,
state from transferring or selling
standing in front of
ceded lands pending unresolved
Washington Place across from
claims by Native Hawaiians.
the state Capitol, was one of
The U.S. Supreme Court has
dozens who participated in a
agreed to hear the state’s appeal
rally yesterday opposing
in February.
Gov. Linda Lingle’s appeal
Leimomi Khan, president of
to the Supreme Court on
the Association of Hawaiian Civic
ceded lands.
Clubs, said her group opposes
the sale or transfer of ceded lands
LEFT: Organizers said the
until claims by Native Hawaiians
broad range of Native
are resolved.
Hawaiian interests that
“If you’re going to have a na-
participated in the rally showed
tion, you need to have an eco-
the deep concern over the
legal fate of ceded lands. They
SEE LANDS, B2
said Native Hawaiian claims to
the land must be resolved
See video of
before the state can transfer or
yesterday’s
sell them. protest at
Photos by JEFF WIDENER | HONOLULUADVERTISER.COM
The Honolulu Advertiser
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We’ll choose the best reader
shots submitted and present
TIM WRIGHT | Special to The Advertiser
them online on Tuesday at
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B2 | Saturday, December 27, 2008 The Honolulu Advertiser •

OBITUARIES
The Advertiser publishes obituaries about people of interest to its Downtown Mortuary. Woods, Julia Ann deForest
readers as a free public service. Obituaries may be submitted by HonoluluAdvertiser.com/obits JACOB JAMES TRANNEL
Karlsson and David deForest
mortuaries or, with proof of death, by indi- Woods; four grandchildren; broth-
Flag indicates Share tributes and more online. Search and read our daily and past 15, of Onalaska, Wis., died Dec. er, Peter Hills; and sister, Susan
viduals in writing. Fax 525-8037 or write to obituaries, view family-written funeral notices and write a tribute in guest
service in the 16, 2008. Born in Honolulu. Avid Coursey. Service in February 2009
U.S. armed forces Obituaries Editor, The Honolulu Advertiser, books at honoluluadvertiser.com/obits.
P.O. Box 3110, Honolulu, HI 96802. Include a soccer and hockey player who at First Presbyterian Church of
contact name and phone number. We reserve the right to edit for played with Team Wisconsin and Koçolau. Cremation held. Condo-
form, style and newsworthiness. Date of publication cannot be guar- p.m. Sunday at Mililani Downtown Shi and Ai Shi; four grandchildren. the Western Wisconsin Blue Dev- lences: www.CrosbyNeal.com.
anteed. To publish paid death notices, call the classified ads depart- Mortuary; service 6:30 p.m. Burial Visitation 9 a.m. Wednesday at ils. Survived by parents, Thomas Arrangements by Crosby & Neal,
ment at 521-9111. 10 a.m. Monday at Hawaiian Borthwick Mortuary; service 10 and Dena; brother, Nathan; sister, Newport, Maine.
Memorial Park. Casual attire. a.m.; burial 1 p.m. at Hawaiian Molly; grandparents, Karen
Arrangements by Mililani Mortuary.. Memorial Park. Aloha attire. Vandermillen, Jim Vandermillen CHARLES ISAO YAMASHIRO
LLOYD PCLARIN ALBINIO JR. Sandra Quinsaat, Stephanie and Bette Trannel; special friend, 91, of Honolulu, died Dec. 21,
SHIONG-SHIANG LEE BRIAN KUNIYUKI MIYAGI Morgan Poss. Mass held in Wis- 2008. Born in Nïnole, Hawaiçi. Re-
30, of Kapaça, Kauaçi, died Dec. 11, Bermoy, Colleen Kapu, Trudy
74, died Aug. 20, 2008. Born in
Silva, Linda Nicolas and Charlene 60, of çAiea, died Dec. 14, consin. No flowers. Donations to tired MTL bus driver who formerly
2008. Born in Honolulu. A land-
Paden; grandchildren; brothers,Taiwan. A former Honolulu pathol- 2008. Born in Honolulu. the Jacob James Trannel Memor- owned Beauty Clothes Cleaners.
scaper with Stonetree Construc- ogist. Survived by wife, Wang-Yen; Retired from the state of Hawaiçi. ial Fund. Condolences to: Survived by wife, Haruko; sons,
tion. Survived by father, Lloyd Sr.; Joseph Jr., Huddy, Jonah,
sons, Chong-Chia and Richard;
Christopher, Harold, Lani and Neki Survived by wife, Jill; son, Scott; w w w . s c h u m a c h e r - k i s h . c o m . Daniel and Ronald; daughters,
mother, Joni O’Donnell; son, Lloyd; daughters, Men-Jean and Ming- daughter, Shannon; a grandson; Arrangements by Schumacher- Lillian Goda and Cynthia Mishina;
Iaea; sisters, Nani Trelor, Olivia
daughter, Leiani; brothers, Lloyd Shing; seven grandsons; a grand- mother, Barbara; brothers, Gary Kish Funeral Home, Onalaska, Wis. five grandchildren; a great-grand-
Miller and Hedy Iaea. Visitation 9 to
N. and Lloyd J.K.; grandmother, daughter. Service 2 p.m. tomorrow and Paul. Visitation 5 p.m. Tues- child; brothers, Harold and Minoru;
10 a.m. Jan. 3 at Garden Island JUDITH MISAKO TSUKIYAMA
Betty Wilson. Visitation 1:30 p.m. at Community Church of Honolulu.
Mortuary; service 10 a.m. Casual day at Mililani Mortuary Mauka sister, Theresa Yamamoto. Visita-
Wednesday at The Kapaça King- attire. Ashes were buried at Hawaiian Chapel; service 6 p.m. No flowers. 66, of Honolulu, died Dec. 14, tion 5 to 6 p.m. Friday at Hosoi
dom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses; Memorial Park. Donations to the Casual attire. 2008. Born in Hilo, Hawaiçi. Sur- Garden Mortuary; service 6 p.m.
service 2:30 p.m. Private inurn- VIOLET QUINTANA COCKETT S.S. Lee Fund, Cancer and Fertili- vived by sisters, Betty Tsukiyama, No flowers. Casual attire.
ment. No flowers. Aloha attire. 81, of çAiea, died Dec. 15, 2008. ty Society, www.cancerandfertili HARLAN WADE SILVA Matsuko Motooka, Lily Tsukiyama
Arrangements by Kauaçi Memorial Born in çOçökala, Hawaiçi. Retired tysociety.org. 56, of Waiçanae, died Dec. 14, KATOSHI “KATO” YANO
and Amy Okada. Private service
Gardens & Funeral Home. Radford High School teacher and 2008. Born in Honolulu. Survived held. Arrangements by Nuçuanu 94, of Honolulu, died Nov. 26,
librarian. Survived by husband, RUI YING LIU LIN by father, Frederick; brothers, Memorial Park & Mortuary. 2008. Born in Honolulu. Retired
CLEO ELIZABETH Universal Motors journeyman parts
Reuben; sons, Reuben “Marty” Jr., 71, of Honolulu, died Dec. 12, Alfred and Christopher; sisters,
IAEA BERMOY Randy; Keala and Kevin; daugh- 2008. Born in Huzhou Village Ban- Fredlyn Nishikawa and Christina EDITH “DEE DEE” WOODS employee. Survived by wife,
77, of Kaläheo, Kauaçi, died Dec. ters, Maura Alvaro and Jonell; sis- fu Town, Zhong Shan Guangdong, Silva. Mass 11 a.m. Tuesday at Co- 65, of Maine, died Dec. 21, 2008. Nancy Misao Yano; nieces;
24, 2008. Born in Honolulu. Sur- ters, Victoria Sanborn and Peggy China. A homemaker. Survived by Cathedral of St. Theresa; inurn- Born in Port Chester, N.Y. A dental nephews. Private service held.
vived by husband, Henry Sr.; sons, Echavez; 16 grandchildren; nine sons, Jie Shan, Jie Peng and Jie ment 1 p.m. at Mililani Memorial hygenist and longtime Oçahu resi- Arrangements by Nuuanu Memor-
Henry Jr. and Wayne; daughters, great-grandchildren. Visitation 5 Chuang; daughters, Feng Shi, Li Park. Arrangements by Mililani dent. Survived by children, Paul ial Park & Mortuary.

had ever inadvertently fallen

CHRISTMAS IS OVER, BRING ON THE NEW YEAR
go!
CONTINUED FROM B1
pany of go! airlines, admitting
that he and his co-pilot inad-
vertently fell asleep about 9:33
a.m. — 17 minutes after take-off
from Honolulu. The two were
suspended and later fired.
The report says the flight
crew had been experiencing
“operational stressors” before
the incident, including being as-
signed an aircraft with a “faulty
flight management system” the
day before. Also, on the day of
the flight, the crew started 30
minutes late because of a sched-
uling error. That meant that the
crew had to rush during sever-
al flights to make up for the de- Reach Mary Vorsino at mvorsi
lay.
The report said neither pilot 754-8286.
asleep during a flight before.
But the captain did say he had
taken “intentional naps” before.
After undergoing a sleep eval-
uation, he was diagnosed with
“severe obstructive sleep ap-
nea,” which his doctor said
could lead to “significant fa-
tigue.”
The captain also reported
feeling “burnt out” in recent
months. The captain lived in
Missouri and had been based in
Tennessee, before taking a tem-
porary assignment in Kahului
in January. The assignment was
supposed to last until Feb. 9,
but was extended by 28 days.
The first officer of the flight
said he had never fallen asleep
on a flight before.
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CONTINUED FROM B1
nomic base,” Khan said. “We’d
like to have a decision made by
the Hawaiian nation as to what
happens to those lands.”
Others at the rally such as
Takamine and Clifford Hashimo-
to, aliçi nui for the Royal Order,
said they do not believe the state
should sell or transfer ceded
lands — period.
Hashimoto, in a statement read
by Royal Order spokesman
William Souza, said “the fall of
the Crown Lands will result in
the final solution of Hawaiians.
The actions of the Old Order are
back.”
Former OHA Trustee Adelaide
“Frenchy” DeSoto said ceded
lands should be used to benefit
Native Hawaiians by providing
them housing and health servic-
es.
“Maybe our people don’t have
to be on their knees all the time
begging,” DeSoto said.
Native Hawaiian rights attor-
ney Dexter Kaiama took issue
with the state’s position that
Hawaiians may have a “moral”
but not “legal” high ground when
it comes to ceded lands.
Rather than have a U.S. court
decide what happens to ceded
lands, “ask your country to sub-
mit itself to the international
courts,” Kaiama said.
The Lingle administration has
insisted that it has and will con-
tinue to support Native Hawaiian
causes and that its appeal to the
U.S. Supreme Court, which is be-
ing backed by a brief supporting
the appeal by 29 other states,
does nothing to diminish that.
Attorney General Mark Ben-
nett, after yesterday’s rally, also
reiterated his view that the state’s
position on the case has not
changed since it was filed against
Kaho‘onei Panoke with the Ilioulaokalani Coalition spoke to the rally at the state Capitol.
the Cayetano administration in
1994.
The original lawsuits brought
by four Native Hawaiians and
the Office of Hawaiian Affairs,
and then later joined, sought to
temporarily halt the sale of about
1,500 acres in Lahaina and Kona
to private interests to finance af-
fordable-housing projects for
moderate- and low-income fam-
ilies regardless of whether they
have Hawaiian blood, until
Hawaiian claims to the lands had
been resolved.
“We continue to believe that
the Hawai‘i Supreme Court’s de-
cision was legally incorrect and
that it’s our responsibility to ask
the U.S. Supreme Court to re-
verse the decision because we
believe it was fundamentally,
legally incorrect,” Bennett said.
The Lingle administration be-
lieves the issues raised by Na-
tive Hawaiian groups should be
addressed by the legislative
branch of government, he said.
That’s why both he and Lingle
have lobbied hard for Congres-
sional passage of the Akaka bill,
which creates a process that
leads to federal recognition of a
Native Hawaiian government en-
tity.
There is no inconsistency in
arguing that ceded lands are the
managerial jurisdiction of the
state government while lobby-
ing for the Akaka bill, he said.
Some of the groups at yester-
day’s rally oppose the Akaka bill
while others support it.
Ceded lands are the 1.2 million
acres once owned by the Hawai-
ian government and subse-
quently taken over by the U.S.
as a result of the 1898 annexa-
Federal Credit Union . . . . . 200
Eleanor Y. McCabe. . . . . . . 200
& Leonarda Pizarras
Aneuber . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Enid Pittman & Randi
Elaine & Jamie Wong . . . . 200
Creamer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
James Smith . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Betty Joao . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
In Memory of Derek Arita. . 100
In Memory of Kenji &
In Memory of Barney Mitsuo Sagawa . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Nakagawara . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
In Memory of Brigit . . . . . . . . 20
Dan & Wilma Seeman . . . . 100
Dana Kalima &
In Memory of Charles A. Dawnyette Sheldon . . . . . . . 10
Wothke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Anonymous . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Office of Council District
Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,314
VII - Sharleen, Corinne,
Previous total . . . 142,432.24
Ryan & Ruth . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Ralph & Gregoria Aranita . . . 50 Grand total . . . . . 145,746.24
JEFF WIDENER | The Honolulu Advertiser
tion. Those lands were then
passed to the state and designat-
ed for five purposes, including
but not exclusively for the bet-
terment of Native Hawaiians.
They make up a bulk of state-
owned lands and 29 percent of
the state’s land mass.
Takamine said her group
planned yesterday’s rally to co-
incide with the Christmas vaca-
tion visit by President-elect
Barack Obama in hopes in gain-
ing his attention on the matter.
Takamine’s group is planning
a larger event that will take place
in Waikïkï on Jan. 17, the an-
niversary of the 1893 overthrow
of Liliu‘okalani, Hawai‘i’s last
monarch.
Reach Gordon Y.K. Pang at
gpang@honoluluadvertiser.com
or 690-8908.
PAGE B3
SATURDAY | December 27, 2008 Faith MARY KAYE RITZ | 525-8035

Galileo returns to grace

EXPRESSIONS OF FAITH
By Joyce Lyon

No place
like our Pope pays tribute to
astronomer considered
home in a heretic 400 years ago
BY NICOLE WINFIELD

heaven Associated Press

In talking with people in
Hawaiçi, I encounter some
who are not happy to be
here.
They are homesick and
yearn to be someplace else.
This is especially true
around the holidays, when
we hear songs like “I’ll Be
Home for Christmas.”
A few years ago, I had to
travel from my home in
Hawaiçi to California to have
surgery. While I was there, a
friend gave me a plaque that
read, “Home is where the
heart is when your body has
to be some-
place else.”
That hit
the nail on
the head for
me.
It was not
easy to be
away from
the familiar
Lyon
place I
loved and felt so comfort-
able.
Nevertheless, I was able to
reason that:
1) This was not my perma-
nent situation and it would
pass.
And …
2) I was there for a specif-
ic, important purpose.
For those two reasons I
could relax and be content,
for a time. You can bet when
the time was right to return
to Hawaiçi, I appreciated it as
never before!
Too often, I take my life in
Hawaiçi for granted. And I
must admit there are things
about my home state that
disturb me a lot. But, of
course, that would be true
wherever I lived.
So, when irritations arise,
it is again necessary for me
to reason:
1) This is not my forever
home. I’m just a-passin’
through, and being a senior
citizen I’ve already passed
through the majority of my
time on this earth.
And …
2) There is a home being
prepared for me which is
much greater than anything I
can imagine.
How do I know? The Bible
tells me so, in John 14:2 and
1 Corinthians 2:9.
When I accepted Jesus as
my savior my restlessness
became contentment, be-
cause I then understood
there was a purpose for my
life.
I don’t lose the peace and
joy I have today because of
surgeries, problems and
tears. But just as the Apostle
Paul stated in Philippians
4:11, I, too, have learned to be
content in whatever state I
am in, be it Nebraska where
I grew up, California in a
hospital, or Hawaiçi where I
presently live.
It matters little because
my citizenship is in heaven
according to Philippians
3:20, and I’m just a-passin’
through.
When Jesus was returning
to heaven after his 33 years
on earth, he comforted his
troubled disciples by telling
them in John 14:1-3 that he
would be preparing a place
for them.
When my place is ready
I’ll be raring to go, never to
be homesick again.
Joyce Lyon attends Faith Bap-
tist Church in Kailua. She is a
mother and grandmother who
also belongs to a Christian
writers’ group. Expressions of
Faith is a column that wel-
comes submissions from pas-
tors, priests, lay workers and
other leaders in faith and
spirituality. E-mail
faith@honoluluadvertiser
.com or call 525-8035. Articles
submitted to The Advertiser
may be published or distrib-
uted in print, electronic or
other forms.
St. Peter’s Basilica has loomed large in Rome’s skyline for hundreds of years, and many notable moments
in history occurred under its dome. Galileo’s fall from grace was one such moment, now revisited.
Fellow evangelicals critical of Warren Services
Conservative pastor
not conservative
enough for some
BY RACHEL ZOLL
Associated Press
Rick Warren is in a place he
never expected to be: at the cen-
ter of a culture war.
The pastor chosen by Presi-
dent-elect Barack Obama to
give the inaugural invocation
backed Proposition 8, which
banned gay marriage in his
home state of California. But he
did so belatedly, with none of
the enthusiasm he brings to
fighting AIDS and illiteracy.
When other conservative
Christians held stadium rallies
and raised tens of millions of
dollars for the ballot effort,
there was no sign of Warren.
Neither he nor his wife, Kay,
donated any of their consider-
able fortune to the campaign,
according to public records and
the Warrens’ spokesman.
In fact, his endorsement
seemed calculated for minimal
impact. It was announced late
on a Friday, just 10 days before
Election Day, on a Web site
geared for members of his Sad-
dleback Community Church,
not the general public.
For gay rights advocates, that
strategy was nothing more than
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KWANZAA OBSERVANCE, 6 p.m. Dec. 27,
Unity Church of Hawaiçi-Diamond Head. 735-
4436, www.unityhawaii.org .
HANUKKAH FESTIVAL BANQUET, “It’s About
Two Great Miracles That Took Place in
Jerusalem, 164 B.C.,” 6:30 p.m. Dec. 27, 960
Ähua St. No. 603, $12. Tickets: 349-0721.
KOREAN CHRISTIAN CHURCH 90th anniver-
sary celebration, 10:15 a.m. Dec. 28 worship
service, followed by community program and
feast, 1832 Liliha St.; 536-3538.
CHANUKAH EIGHTH LIGHT LIGHTING CER-
Associated Press library photos
President-elect Barack Obama chose Pastor Rick Warren to give the inaugural invocation, which
angered gay rights advocates. Warren backed California’s Proposition 8, which bans gay marriage.
an attempt to mask Warren’s Lost in the uproar was the
prejudice. They were outraged irony of Warren’s plight. Ever
that Obama decided last week since he began his climb to
to give a place of honor to a prominence in the 1980s, he has
pastor they consider a general battled complaints from fellow
for the Christian right. evangelicals that he isn’t nearly
CALENDAR
EMONY, 5:30 p.m. Dec. 28, Maui Mitzvah Cen-
ter, 360 Hoçohana St., Suite 208, Kahului, Maui;
$10 prepaid; 808-249-8770.
ST. ANDREW’S EPISCOPAL CATHEDRAL
NEW YEAR’S EVE CELEBRATION, with 10:15
p.m. organ concert; 11 p.m. communion serv-
ice, and 12 a.m., blessing of the city, Dec. 31;
524-2822.
IZUMO TAISHAKYO MISSION traditional New
Year's blessings; with new ofuda and omamori
available, midnight Dec. 31 to 5 p.m. Jan 1; and
7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Jan. 2, 3 and 4, at the mis-
sion; 538-7778.
NEW YEAR’S LABYRINTH WALK AND EU-
CHARIST, a chance for contemplative prayer
for the past and new year, with communion
VATICAN CITY — Galileo
Galilei is going from heretic to
hero.
The Vatican is recasting the
most famous victim of its Inqui-
sition as a man of faith, just in
time for the 400th anniversary
of Galileo’s telescope and the
U.N.-designated International
Year of Astronomy next year.
Pope Benedict XVI paid tribute
to the Italian astronomer and
physicist Sunday, saying he and
other scientists had helped the
faithful better understand and
“contemplate with gratitude the
Lord’s works.”
In May, several Vatican offi-
cials will participate in an inter-
national conference to re-exam-
ine the Galileo affair, and top
Vatican officials are now saying
Galileo should be named the “pa-
tron” of the dialogue between
faith and reason.
It’s quite a reversal of fortune
for Galileo Galilei (1564-1642),
who made the first complete as-
tronomical telescope and used it
to gather evidence that the Earth
revolved around the sun. Church
teaching at the time placed Earth
at the center of the universe.
The church denounced
Galileo’s theory as dangerous to
the faith, but Galileo defied its
warnings. Tried as a heretic in
1633 and forced to recant, he was
sentenced to life imprisonment,
later changed to house arrest.
The church has for years been
striving to shed its reputation for
being hostile to science, in part
by producing top-notch research
out of its own telescope.
In 1992, Pope John Paul II de-
clared that the ruling against
Galileo was an error resulting
from “tragic mutual incompre-
hension.”
But that apparently wasn’t
enough. In January, Benedict can-
celed a speech at Rome’s La
ADVERTISER LIBRARY PHOTO | Aug. 16, 2008
conservative enough.
“The comments from many
of the evangelicals further to
the right of him are often criti-
SEE WARREN, B4
planned in the center of the labyrinth, 6 p.m.
Jan. 1, St. Clement’s Episcopal Church, Makiki;
955-7745.
STATEWIDE PRAYER WATCH, a time of fast-
A child’s piggy bank is often found
in the home. It is a device to teach a
ing and prayer, sponsored by a network of
child thrift. Mother would say to her
Christian churches, doors open, 3 p.m.; pre-
child, “Save your pennies. Put them
event worship, 3:30 p.m., and event, 4 to 6:30
in the piggy bank.” It is important to
p.m. Jan. 3, Aloha Stadium; 456-7729.
train our children to save money, but
it is also important to train them to
Send announcements to: Faith give so they will derive pleasure in
Calendar, The Advertiser, P.O. giving freely and generously some-
Box 3110, Honolulu, HI 96802; thing that is their own.
faith@honoluluadvertiser.com,
with “Faith Cal” in the subject line; or fax Thoughts by the late Rev. Paul Osumi
525-8055. are selected weekly by his family
Astronomer Galileo Galilei is
going from heretic to hero in the
Catholic Church’s eyes. The
Vatican is rehabilitating its most
famous victim of the Inquisition.
Sapienza University after a group
of professors, citing the Galileo
episode and depicting Benedict
as a religious figure opposed to
science, argued that he shouldn’t
speak at a public university.
The Galileo anniversary ap-
pears to be giving the Vatican
new impetus to put the matter to
rest. In doing so, Vatican officials
are stressing Galileo’s faith as
well as his science, to show the
two are not mutually exclusive.
At a Vatican conference last
month entitled “Science 400
Years after Galileo Galilei,” the
Vatican No. 2, Cardinal Tarcisio
Bertone, said Galileo was an as-
tronomer, but one who “lovingly
cultivated his faith and his pro-
found religious conviction.”
“Galileo Galilei was a man of
faith who saw nature as a book
authored by God,” Bertone said.
The head of the Vatican’s Pon-
tifical Council for Culture, which
co-sponsored the conference,
went further. Archbishop Gian-
franco Ravasi told Vatican Radio
that Galileo “could become for
some the ideal patron for a dia-
logue between science and faith.”
He said Galileo’s writings of-
fered a “path” to explore how
faith and reason were not in-
SEE GALILEO, B4
more
diverse,
poll says
BY CATHY LYNN GROSSMAN
USA Today
Worship services may still be
the nation’s most segregated
hour, but fewer congregations
are now completely white, finds
a study comparing churches, syn-
agogues and mosques last year
with a decade ago.
The National Congregations
Study says 14 percent of prima-
rily white congregations report-
ed no minorities in their midst
last year, compared with 20 per-
cent in 1998.
Such steep change in a short
period is noteworthy because
“religious traditions and organi-
zations are widely considered to
be remarkably resistant to
change,” says sociology professor
Mark Chaves of Duke Universi-
ty School of Divinity.
The study, in the journal Soci-
ology of Religion, compares 1,505
congregations in 2006-07 with
1,234 in 1998. It is based on sur-
veys by the National Opinion Re-
SEE DIVERSITY, B4
WEEKLY
THOUGHTS
B4 | Saturday, December 27, 2008
Pope Benedict XVI leafs through a book of documents of the trial of Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei
(1564-1642). The Pope paid tribute to Galileo on Sunday, honoring his works.
Galileo
CONTINUED FROM B3
compatible.
The Rev. John Padberg, a
church historian and the direc-
tor of the Institute of Jesuit
Sources at St. Louis University,
said he suspected the Vatican’s
new emphasis on Galileo’s faith
came from the pope himself.
“Pope Benedict XVI is ar-
dently convinced of the congru-
ence of faith and reason, and he
is concerned, especially in the
present circumstances, of giving
reason its due place in the whole
scheme of things,” he said.
While it is widely accepted
that Galileo was a convinced
Catholic, Padberg questioned
whether he could ever be ac-
cepted as some kind of a poster
child for the faith and reason
debate. “That’s going to be a
long shot for an awful lot of peo-
ple, on both sides, by the way,”
Diversity
CONTINUED FROM B3
search Center at University of
Chicago. Margin of error is plus
or minus 2.5 percentage points
for 2006-07 data, 3 percentage
points for 1998 data.
The increase in diversity is
only among primarily white
churches; black churches are as
segregated as ever, Chaves says.
The percentage of primarily
The Honolulu Advertiser •
he said.
Benedict, a theologian, has
made exploring the faith-reason
relationship a key aspect of his
papacy, and has directed his dai-
ly newspaper, L’Osservatore Ro-
mano, in particular, to take up
the charge.
On Monday, the newspaper
published a piece on the possi-
bility of alien life on other plan-
ets as well as one on the popes
who were “friendly” to astrono-
my.
Benedict clearly is: In his Sun-
day blessing, he noted that the
Vatican itself has its own merid-
ian — an obelisk in St. Peter’s
Square — and that astronomy
had long been used to signal
prayer times for the faithful.
But the Vatican’s embrace of
Galileo only goes so far.
There were plans earlier this
year to give Galileo a perma-
nent place of honor in the Vati-
can to mark the anniversary of
his telescope: a statue, to be lo-
cated inside the Vatican gar-
dens, donated by the Italian
white congregations reporting
at least some blacks rose from 27
percent in 1998 to 36 percent;
those reporting some Hispanics
rose from 24 percent to 32 per-
cent.
Worship is also “more infor-
mal and more enthusiastic by
every measure,” Chaves says,
with more shouting, clapping
and hands raised overhead in
praise. Use of drums in worship
jumped 70 percent from 1998.
“We find drums almost every-
where, even Catholic and Jewish
services,” he says.
Associated Press library photo
aerospace giant Finmeccanica
SpA.
The plans were suspended af-
ter some Vatican officials voiced
“problems” with the initiative,
said Nicola Cabibbo, the presi-
dent of the Pontifical Council
for Science. He declined to elab-
orate.
Finmeccanica spokesman
Roberto Alatri said the Galileo
statue was just an idea that nev-
er got off the ground.
Italian news reports suggest-
ed the Vatican simply didn’t
want to draw so much perma-
nent attention to the Galileo
episode, which 400 years on,
still rankles some.
“The dramatic clash between
Galileo and some men of the
Church left wounds that are still
open today,” the Vatican’s chief
astronomer, the Rev. Jose Fu-
nes, wrote recently in Osserva-
tore. “The Church in some ways
has recognized its errors.
“Maybe it could do better.
One can always do better,” he
wrote.
Both clergy and congregations
are grayer now than in 1998. The
average age of the primary cler-
gy person has risen from 48 to
53, and one in three members
are over 60, up from one in four.
This is partly because people
live longer, but also because
fewer young families join.
Two-parent families with chil-
dren are less common than they
used to be, Chaves says, and
“each generation ... seems to be
joining or returning at a slightly
lower rate than the one before
it.”
Warren
CONTINUED FROM B3
cal for his lax stance on their pas-
sionate issues,” said Scott Thum-
ma, a professor at Connecticut’s
Hartford Seminary who re-
searches megachurches and
writes about the challenges for
gay and lesbian Christians.
On paper, Warren might look
like any other religious tradi-
tionalist. He is the son of a South-
ern Baptist pastor, graduate of a
Southern Baptist seminary, and
his megachurch in Orange Coun-
ty is part of the conservative de-
nomination.
But Warren holds a different
world view than his roots sug-
gest.
He has spoken out against the
use of torture to combat terror-
ism. He has joined the fight
against global warming and, en-
couraged by his wife, has put his
prestige and money behind help-
ing people with AIDS. The War-
rens have done so at a time when
a notable number of conserva-
tive Christians still consider the
virus a punishment from God.
“If you want to save a life, I
don’t care what your background
is and I don’t care what your po-
litical party is,” Warren said in a
recent interview with The Asso-
ciated Press. “I think some of
these humanitarian issues tran-
scend politics, or ethnic or reli-
gious beliefs.”
While many religious conser-
vatives openly condemn Islam
as inherently evil, Warren reach-
es out to the American Muslim
community. This past Saturday,
he gave the keynote address at
the convention of the Muslim
Public Affairs Council, based in
Los Angeles.
“His social consciousness is
somewhat left of center, but his
theological, ethical stance is right
of center,” said the Rev. William
Leonard, a critic of the Southern
Baptist Convention and dean of
Wake Forest Divinity School in
North Carolina. “That’s the thing
that makes him potentially a
bridge person.”
Warren’s outlook has come at
a price. Many from the Christ-
ian right don’t trust him.
A registered independent who
does not endorse candidates, he
has called old guard evangelical
activists too partisan and overly
focused on gay marriage and
abortion.
In the run-up to the Saddle-
back forum he led last August
with Obama and Republican Sen.
John McCain, those giving War-
ren the most grief were conser-
vatives. They were convinced he
wouldn’t be tough enough on
HECTOR MATA | Associated Press
Evangelical pastor Rick Warren holds a different world view than his
Southern Baptist roots suggest. He has joined the fight against global
warming and put his money behind helping people with AIDS.
Obama. (Obama wound up stum- No scandals have tainted his min-
bling in his appeal to religious istry.
voters while answering Warren’s He is also one of the savviest
question about when a baby gets leaders among his peers.
human rights. Obama said it was His speaking invitations range
“above his pay grade” to respond from church groups to the Davos
“with specificity.”) World Economic Forum and the
“For probably the last 25 years,
evangelicalism became co-opt-
ed, and for most people it be-
came a political term,” Warren
United Nations. Saddleback’s
reach is now so broad, it’s near-
ly its own denomination.
Warren provides sermons,
said. “And it got identified with a
study materials and guidance to
certain style of political lean-
hundreds of thousands of clergy
ings.”
worldwide through pastors.com
The attacks on Warren stretch
and his other Web sites. War-
to how he presents the Gospel
ren’s “40 Days of Purpose” spir-
— watered-down and soft, ac-
itual campaigns have been con-
cording to his theologically tra-
ducted in more than 20,000
ditional critics.
churches, and he recently joined
Warren’s phenomenal best-
forces with Reader’s Digest to
seller, “The Purpose Driven Life,”
launch a multimedia global jug-
which has sold more than 30 mil-
gernaut based on his “Purpose
lion copies worldwide, partly re-
Driven” writing.
flects the self-help ethos of baby
Now he is trying to revolu-
boomers, although he insists it
tionize faith-based humanitari-
isn’t an advice book and he de-
an work through his P.E.A.C.E.
fends its religious content.
program. It unites local church-
Still, the tone of his writing is
es, businesses and governments
deliberate. Warren, 54, is among
to fight poverty and disease, pro-
a generation of pastor-CEOs who
mote peace, and combat what he
use marketing studies, polling
and census data to create con- calls spiritual emptiness. The pi-
gregations that will attract people lot project for this effort began in
who never go to church. One of 2005 in Rwanda, which has been
Warren’s most important men- dubbed the first “purpose-driven
tors was the late Peter Drucker, nation.”
considered the father of modern It is no surprise that he and
management. Obama have become friendly.
Warren started Saddleback Each tries to operate outside a
with one other family in 1980 in strict liberal-conservative divide,
California, a state with one of and has risked angering his sup-
the lowest percentages of church- porters to do so.
goers in the country. Saddleback “You can’t have a reformation
now draws more than 22,000 without somebody opposing it,”
worshippers each week.
Warren says. “If I wasn’t mak-
As the church grew, so did the
ing a difference, nobody would
critiques. “The pioneers get the
be paying attention.”
arrows,” he says.
Warren survives the pound-
ing partly because of his person-
al integrity. He donates 90 per-
cent of his many millions in book
royalties back to the church. He
says he stopped taking a salary
from Saddleback six years ago.