Samoan Catholics celebrate new St. Peter Chanel shrine in Tacoma

TACOMA — Twice a month, about 150 Samoan Catholics from around the archdiocese come to Holy Cross Church for Mass celebrated in their native language.

Now the St. Peter Chanel Samoan Ministry at Holy Cross is celebrating the recent dedication of a custom-carved statue of their patron saint, a French missionary priest.

“We are so blessed in so many ways,” said Poasa Fa’aita, chair of the Samoan ministry. “I don’t know of any other patron saint being installed in a parish for the Pacific Islanders.”

It’s a visible sign that he hopes will connect with Samoan Catholics and draw more of them to participate in the ministry and faith community at Holy Cross.

Mile Petelo, the Taupou (community maiden), expresses joy as gifts and work of human hands are presented during the offertory at the April 28 dedication Mass of the St. Peter Chanel shrine at Holy Cross Church in Tacoma. In the background are Setefano and Pu’e, serving as the ‘Aiuli (escort/guard). (Melissa Timme photo)

The history of the Samoan Catholic community in the Archdiocese of Seattle goes back about 50 years, Fa’aita said. The community first came together at St. George Parish in Seattle, later moving to the former St. Ann Parish in Tacoma and St. John of the Woods (now a mission) in Tacoma.

Over the years, two Samoan priests ministered in the archdiocese and Samoan Catholics came from places like Vancouver, Everett, Kirkland and Kent to participate in the Masses in Tacoma, said Fa’aita, who lives in Bremerton and is a member, along with his wife Stella, of Our Lady Star of the Sea Parish. After a decade of service, the second priest returned to Samoa in 2016, and the Samoan deacon assigned to the community after that moved out of state in 2018.

Poasa Fa’aita, chairman of the St. Peter Chanel Samoan Ministry, and Futi Lui, vice chairman, present the gifts during the April 28 dedication Mass for the St. Peter Chanel shrine at Holy Cross Church in Tacoma. (Melissa Timme photo)

According to a history of the community, Samoan Catholics “longed for a permanent parish to unite in fellowship, strengthen their faith and celebrate liturgical celebrations in their native language.” When they were invited to become a ministry of Holy Cross Parish in 2019, Fa’aita was struck by the fact that his childhood parish in Leone, American Samoa, was also called Holy Cross.

“I think we’re home now,” he remembers telling the parish council in late 2018.

In 2019, Fa’aita said he asked Father David Mulholland, pastor of Holy Cross, about the possibility of installing a statue of St. Peter Chanel at the church.

“I was very, very happy to hear Father David say, ‘Well, we can work on that,’” Fa’aita said.

Childhood inspiration

St. Peter Chanel is the patron saint of Oceania, encompassing thousands of islands in the Central and South Pacific Ocean. So besides Samoans, he is a patron saint for Tongans, Fijians and other Islanders, Fa’aita said.

The statue of St. Peter Chanel installed at Holy Cross Church in Tacoma was carved in Italy. The plant at his feet, known as nonu in Samoa (morinda citrifolia) is used for traditional medicine throughout the Pacific Islands. (Courtesy Holy Cross Parish)

Wanting to be a missionary, Father Chanel joined the Society of Mary, the Marists, eventually traveling to Futuna Island, about 300 miles northeast of Fiji. According to the Marists, his missionary work there “caused fear and jealousy in the king and led the king to give orders to murder the missionaries.” Father Chanel was clubbed to death by a group of men on April 28, 1841. He was beatified in 1889 and canonized on June 12, 1954, by Pope Pius XII.

Fa’aita said he first saw a statue of St. Peter Chanel, dressed in a priest’s cassock, at his childhood church in Leone. That statue became inspiration for the new statue in Tacoma — Fa’aita said he provided the carvers in Italy with photos of it to serve as a guide.

The St. Peter Chanel Samoan Ministry Choir sings a tribute to their patron, St. Peter Chanel, whose statue, seen in the background, was dedicated during an April 28 Mass at Holy Cross Church in Tacoma. (Melissa Timme photo)

The St. Peter Chanel Samoan Ministry raised the money for the statue, which stands about 4 feet tall, Fa’aita said. On April 28, St. Peter Chanel’s feast day, the statue and its shrine were blessed and dedicated by Bishop Frank Schuster. The dedication Mass included prayers in Samoan, music by the St. Peter Chanel Samoan Ministry Choir and aspects of Samoan culture.

The Book of the Gospels is carried by young men — Fano, Dominic, Pu’e and Lui (not pictured) — in traditional Samoan attire during the Mass dedicating the St. Peter Chanel shrine at Holy Cross Church in Tacoma. (Melissa Timme photo)

For instance, the Book of the Gospels was brought to the altar on a shoulder carrier borne by four young men in Samoan attire, “depicting a sign of sacredness and royalty with deep respect given to the Gospel of the Lord,” according to the program for the Mass. At the offertory, a “community maiden” (Taupou) and an “escort/guard” (‘Aiuli) danced conservatively as they proceeded the gifts of bread and wine, “signifying the joy and happiness of the people as the gifts from the fruits and work of human hands are being presented to God,” the program said.

A reception after the Mass included a traditional sharing of a ceremonial beverage, presentation of gifts, and enjoyment of food and entertainment by the St. Peter Chanel Samoan Youth Ministry, Fa’aita said.

Above: Youth of the St. Peter Chanel Samoan Ministry — Susie, left, Lupe, Kenny, Ivoga, Meli, Jake, Pu’e and Honey — prepare for the Samoan Ava ceremony during Samoan culture presentations at a reception in the parish hall following the dedication of the shrine of St. Peter Chanel at Holy Cross Church April 28. Below:  Father David Mulholland, pastor of Holy Cross, enjoys the Samoan siva with Matagi Tavete during the reception. Poasa Fa’aita, chair of the St. Peter Chanel Samoan Ministry at Holy Cross, dances in the background. (Melissa Timme photos)

Worshipping in their language

Today, 16 families make up the core of the St. Peter Chanel Samoan Ministry. Some of them are Holy Cross parishioners, while others also belong to other parishes — for instance, the ministry’s vice chair, Futi Lui, and his wife, Merci, are members of Sacred Heart Parish in Lacey, Fa’aita said.

Samoan Mass is offered at Holy Cross on the second and fourth Sundays of each month, celebrated by a Samoan priest who stays in Tacoma while receiving medical treatment, Fa’aita said.

Fa’aita said the goals of the St. Peter Chanel Samoan Ministry include providing a central location for “Samoans to be able to worship in their language,” eventually getting a Samoan priest assigned to the archdiocese and helping Holy Cross Parish and its ministries.

Members of the St. Peter Chanel Samoan Ministry pose with Bishop Frank Schuster and other clergy after the April 28 dedication Mass for the St. Peter Chanel shrine at Holy Cross Church. Clergy pictured include Father David Mulholland, pastor of Holy Cross, Father Vaiula Iulio, Father Andrew Schwenke, Deacon Carl Chilo and Deacon Steve Cano. (Melissa Timme photo)

The St. Peter Chanel Samoan Ministry donates to Holy Cross on various holidays and supports the parish’s Annual Catholic Appeal. “Our choir has participated with the Holy Cross choir to provide music, especially during this past Lent,” Fa’aita said. “We are working together to be able to share in all the ministries.”

Installing the statue of St. Peter Chanel is an important step in connecting with Samoan Catholics, he said.

“There are so many lost souls out there, we have to be creative in how to get the people into the church,” Fa’aita said. “I want people to identify with St. Peter Chanel. Come to church, because this is your patron saint that’s here.”

Read more about the St. Peter Chanel Samoan Ministry.