One of the hallmarks of Lenten worship in the Orthodox Church is the Prayer of St. Ephrem the Great.

Malulani just sent me a Hawaiian translation of this prayer:

E ka Haku a ke Kahu o ko‘u ola,
e kala mai ia‘u i ka ‘uhane o ka palaka,
ka lepahū, ke kuko mana, a me ke kakahili.

Akā, e hā‘awi mai ‘Oe ia‘u, Kou ‘ōhua, i ka ‘uhane o ke kūkapu, ka ha‘aha‘a, ke ahonui, a me ke aloha.

E ka Haku, a ka Mō‘ī e!
E ‘ae ‘Oe ia‘u e ‘ike i ka‘u mau hewa
a e ho‘ohalahala ‘ole aku i ko‘u hoahānau;
no ka mea, Nou ka pōmaika‘i
mai kēia manawa ā mau loa aku a i nā kau ā kau.
‘Āmene.

Listen here:

You can also download the PDF for easy practice.

In English, it goes like this:

O Lord and Master of my life, give me not the spirit of sloth, despair, lust of power and idle talk. But grant unto me, Thy servant, a spirit of chastity, humility, patience and love. Yea, O Lord and King, grant me to see mine own faults and not to judge my brother. For blessed art Thou unto the ages of ages. Amen.

There is a very nice commentary on this prayer written by Fr. Alexander Schmemann, available here.

Photos of our new location, known as “Hualalai Gardens” at the Palani Junction. We began moving in on Friday, February 12^th. This marks a huge step for us—it is the first time that the Mission has been paying rent to have its own home.

Blessing the ocean at the Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park