The Collect:
- Traditional -
O Sovereign God, who raisedst up (King) Kamehameha (IV) and (Queen) Emma to be rulers in Hawaii, and didst inspire and enable them to be diligent in good works for the welfare of their people and the good of thy Church: Receive our thanks for their witness to the Gospel; and grant that we, with them, may attain to the crown of glory that fadeth not away; through Jesus Christ our Savior and Redeemer, who with thee and the Holy Spirit liveth and reigneth, one God, for ever and ever.
- Contemporary-
O Sovereign God, who raised up (King) Kamehameha (IV) and (Queen) Emma to be rulers in Hawaii, and inspired and enabled them to be diligent in good works for the welfare of their people and the good of your Church: Receive our thanks for their witness to the Gospel; and grant that we, with them, may attain to the crown of glory that never fades away; through Jesus Christ our Savior and Redeemer, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever.
Who were Emma and Kamehameha?
Kamehameha and Emma were the King and Queen of Hawaii in the mid 1800�s. Emma was born in 1836, was educated at the Royal School in Honolulu and as a young adult married Alexander Liholiho in 1856. Alexander and Emma had known each other from childhood. A year before their wedding Alexander had assumed the Hawaiian throne as Kamehameha IV.
Emma was loved by the Hawaiian people. She too loved them. She encouraged the building of a public hospital. The hospital was completed in 1859 and in honor of Emma was named �Queen�s Hospital.� The hospital is still serving the Hawaiian people today.
Emma and Kamehameha encouraged the Christian religion to blossom in Hawaii. Kamehameha invited the Church of England to enter into Hawaii and form the Church of Hawaii. Both Emma and Kamehameha were confirmed in 1862 in the new church.
In 1863 King Kamehameha died and Emma attempted to take the throne but lost an election for the monarchy. Though she was loved by her people, politics was not her strength. Emma died in 1885 at age 49. Both Emma and her husband, Kamehameha are remembered in the Episcopal Church on November 28 for their dedication to the Christian faith in particular, Anglicanism.
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