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The Honolulu Advertiser

Posted on: Monday, January 31, 2005

Island churches cling to faith in the face of tragedy

By Peter Boylan
Advertiser Staff Writer

KANE'OHE — Marine Maj. Alex Chatman earns a living flying the same type of helicopter that crashed in Iraq on Wednesday, killing 31 of his fellow servicemen.

But he hasn't lost his fight, or his faith, because he said he believes God has a plan.

"As a pilot, I can't tell you how many times I've thought, 'Oh, man, this is it,' " he said yesterday, a few minutes before mid-morning service at Hope Chapel Kane'ohe Bay. "When you realize you're a child of God, you're not guaranteed tomorrow anyway. This is the time that people start to feel hopeless, and in those down times you have to come alongside and pray for them."

With the state still reeling from the deaths of 26 Marines from Kane'ohe Bay and a Navy corpsman from Pearl Harbor who were killed Wednesday when their helicopter crashed in western Iraq, congregations from Kalihi to Kailua took time yesterday to mourn.

One pastor framed the tragedy as an unexplained part of God's "great plan" and asked God for guidance and the strength to make it through the mourning period. Another spoke of the staggering loss of life and how it tested the faith of the most ardent believer.

"Lord, you have laid upon us much tragedy," the Rev. Gary Augustin said at Central Union Church's 8:30 a.m. service. "Help us to live with what we cannot understand."

At Hope Chapel Kane'ohe Bay, Chatham, a tall, chiseled figure, started the service by standing before the congregation and reminding them of the pain that the families of the dead were feeling.

Punctuating his words by striding across the stage and staring directly at members of the congregation, he urged everyone to pray for the men who died, their families, and the unit they left behind. Behind him, the names of the dead were projected onto a white screen.

"They made it through Fallujah and — boom! — they all die," he said, standing at center stage in the chapel's worship hall. "We have an opportunity to come alongside these families and lift them up."

Pastors and congregation members at Hope Chapel said they were shocked by the crash and immediately prayed for the families. While many said that they could not explain why these men died, they believed that they died doing God's work.

Colleen Kalama, a Kane'ohe resident, said it is God's plan to free the Iraqi people from evil and that President Bush is working with God's guidance.

"These men died doing God's mission," said Kalama. "He (Bush) knows God."

Set flush against the Ko'olau Range, Hope Chapel Kane'ohe Bay is a mix of local people, college students and the military. Its congregation of 1,600 includes about 400 Kane'ohe Marines.

Carl Moore, a 33-year-old youth pastor who lives in Kailua, said God can make good out of any circumstance, even death.

"It's knowing that God is in our midst to comfort us, walk us through it and make sense of it," he said. "We don't really know what God has planned."

Pastor Jeph Chavez said the crash and loss of life was tragic and that Hope Chapel has made itself available to members of the community directly affected by the incident.

"It tests people's faith," he said. "It brings up the question, 'Why does this have to happen?' " Chavez said.

Reach Peter Boylan at pboylan@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-8110.