Hoʻokuʻikahi: Made Whole Between and Within

Ephesians 2:14 “For He is our peace, in his flesh he has made both groups into one and had broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us.”
These are the grounding words for the recent Pastoral Leaders Retreat that I attended at Camp Mokule ʻia on Oʻahu’s north shore. Mahalo LCC for giving me the time and funds to attend. The theme of the retreat was “Hoʻokuʻikahi: Made Whole Between and Within” based on the Ephesians passage above. Our speakers were Rev. Dr. Ray Aldred, a Cree theologian and Director of Indigenous Studies at Vancouver School of Theology. The other speaker was Rev. Dr. Gwendolyn Kehaunani Hill – better known to many of you as Kahu Nani Hill, who previously served as pastor of Ko loa Union Church.

These two speakers shared a wealth of knowledge from points of view so different from that of this white, western European female. Rev. Aldred brought a Cree understanding of God and Kahu Nani a Hawaiian understanding of God. In hearing their talkes, two things stood out as vastly different from my perspective. The first is the importance of story telling. The importance of sitting down, maybe at the table sharing food and stories. Jesus did this often with his disciples and his enemies. Take time to be present for each other, even if you are not best friends. Aldred named this story telling as sacred space. Can I understand story telling as sacred space?

The second thing that stood our for me is that reconciliation is ongoing. As chair of the Conference Justice and Witness Missional team, I want to complete the work of the Reconciliation Committee under the team’s charge. But reconciliation is an ongoing event that may never be completed. And I, or we, must learn to live in the tension this brings and look forward to hearing the stories of the past that aren’t comfortable to live with. We lean into the difficulties that reconciliation work brings because Jesus broke down the wall but we have to jump in to keep it down.

God’s grace found us. Before we did anything, God loved us.
Before we crossed any bridge, Christ came toward us.
Before we sought peace, God offered peace.
Christ has become our peace.
We are not asked to manufacture peace.
We are invited to receive it.
We are members of God’s household.
The goal is not perfection. The goal is belonging.
We are part of a larger story and community.
We are sent not with pressure but with possibility.
Not carrying the weight of the world.
Not carrying the burden of fixing everyone.
But carrying the assurance that God’s Spirit continues the work begun among us.

Rev. Dr. Nani Hill, Closing Worship HCUCC PLR 2026