Dr. Edward Klein, professor of Linguistics at Hawai‘i Pacific University and one of HPU’s longest serving faculty members, made a 55-year-old dream a reality by traveling to Rome and formally participating in the events leading up to the canonization of St. Damien of Moloka‘i.

 

Dr. Edward Klein, professor of Linguistics at HPU, stands before the Colosseum in Rome, Italy. Klein was a member of the Damien Choir that performed in the events leading up to the canonization of St. Damien of Moloka‘i.

“In 1954, as a fourth grade elementary student, I was impressed by the story of then Father Damien,” Klein said. “Growing up in Kansas, however, I thought Hawai‘i was impossibly far away. Still, I marveled at how Father Damien could be so dedicated to his calling, accept a life among people with leprosy, and then die from the dreadful disease.”

Klein not only found his way to Hawai‘i, but he made his life here, first as a Peace Corps trainee and trainer in Hilo, and then later to pursue a Master of Arts (MA) in Linguistics, MA in English as a Second Language, and a PhD in Linguistics at the University of Hawai‘i-Mānoa. He began teaching at Hawai‘i Pacific in 1973.

“When I came to find out ‘Blessed’ Damien would be canonized as a saint this year, I immediately began looking to join the Damien Choir being organized by the Catholic Diocese of Honolulu,” Klein said.

The choir, made up of 60 men and women, practiced throughout the summer and presented a concert at the Cathedral of Our Lady Peace in late September, just prior to their departure to Rome.

“We featured pieces outlining the faith journey of St. Damien from boyhood in Belgium to his final 16 years on Moloka‘i,” Klein said. “I, along with the choir and 500 others attending the canonization, left Honolulu for Europe that next week.”

The pre-canonization festival was held in Damien’s hometown of Tremelo, and began with a mass celebrated by the cardinal of Brussels and hosted 2,000 attendees, including the king and queen of Belgium, the American ambassador, dignitaries, visitors from Hawai‘i, and many locals.

“The day was like a carnival encompassing the entire town,” Klein said. “A 4,000-seat tent was the venue for music and dance performances by the people of Tremelo and us, the Hawaiian guests. Both the choir and the halau answered stage calls from 2-10 p.m. It was really exhausting!”

The next day the choir and halau also performed in the town of Leuven at the church where Father Damien was laid to rest.

“Once in Rome, the most memorable event of the trip was singing the morning mass in the Basilica of St. Peter, the largest Christian church in the world,” Klein said. “On the afternoon of the same day we sang in the Basilica of St. Francis in the mountain-side town of Assisi – it gives me chicken skin to think about it. What a privilege it was!”

The canonization of Father Damien, and four other new saints, was held Sunday, Oct. 11. Klein said it was a festive occasion with flags, banners, and groups from all over the world, as well as Hawai‘i, often breaking out into spontaneous singing.

“The Damien Story for me began in 1954 and has gained new meaning through the experience of his canonization,” Klein said. “The saints are the ‘heroes’ of Christianity. Each of us would do well to consider St. Damien of Moloka‘i one of our heroes.”

Klein teaches graduate and undergraduate classes in applied linguistics. He has also served as a Fulbright Scholar, and as a Peace Corps volunteer and staff member in Korea.