History of Kula Churches
Our Lady Queen of Angels sign
Our Lady Queen of Angels church
Holy Ghost Mission garden
Our Lady Queen of Angels sign
The three churches serving the Kula Catholic Community are, in order of age, St. James the Less Mission in Ulupalakua, Holy Ghost Mission in Waiakoa, and Our Lady Queen of the Angels in Keokea where the Catholic community’s rectory and office are also located. The distance between Holy Ghost and St. James is about fourteen miles, and Our Lady Queen of the Angels is located about midway between.
In the 19th Century, sugar growers in Hawai’i imported laborers from many parts of the world. One of these countries was China. When the Chinese workers completed their contracts most returned to China, with their savings; but some remained in Hawai’i often settling in Keokea to raise vegetables. The Chinese settlers perceived that Christianity had become the predominant local religion, so they elected to call the Lutheran trained Christian minister Rev. Shim Yin Chin from Canton, China. Father Shim arrived in 1900 and by 1906 orders for a plain wooden Church had been placed and materials had arrived at Makena landing on the coast about 3,000 ft directly below the proposed building site. The materials were delivered by horse drawn wagons and by 1907, the church had been built.
