Moanalua High School students in the award-winning orchestra have proudly raised $200,000 over the last 6 years through their annual holiday concert.
These students, who have performed at Carnegie Hall in New York three times, don’t keep the money to buy new instruments, travel abroad or help their school.
Instead, they send $30,000 they raise every year overseas to a well-known charity, Mercy Ships, which is current housing American doctors in Africa on a medical mission. These doctors help the poorest of residents – some who have never seen a doctor – with urgent medical and dental needs.
It is the students’ gift to the world during the holidays and their chance to make difference for others in need.
The seventh annual fundraiser was set for this weekend, and students have been practicing for months to ensure their performance was perfect.
But an atheist activist, who has shown up to protest city hall Christmas tree lighting ceremonies as well as city council hearings and legislative events where there is prayer, has turned up as their Christmas Grinch and put a stop to the kids’ best-laid plans just hours before the show.
Mitch Kahle, founder of Hawaii Residents for Separation of Church and State, wrote a letter to the Department of Education on “Freedom from Religion Foundation” stationary on December 3 demanding state officials stop the concert. He claimed the public high school was in cahoots with New Hope, one of Hawaii’s largest Christian churches.
It’s true that some of the New Hope parishioners volunteered to sell tickets or work on the set. But the concert is run by school staff and features its students, and tickets are sold both on campus and by phone. One hundred percent of the proceeds go to Mercy Ships. Historically, Mercy Ships, which has been the beneficiary of the concert for 4 years, used the $30,000 from Moanalua’s concert to get another $30,000 from matching donors.
“People are assuming this is a New Hope event when it is not. They cancelled a high school event,” said Chad Brownstein, a volunteer with the concert, graduate of the school and employee of New Hope.
“For the people at New Hope, this not an issue because they (activists) are not fighting against New Hope. But the students had practiced and rehearsed and were excited to do it.”
Michael W. Perry, Hawaii’s best-known radio talk show host, has been covering the controversy extensively on his morning show on KSSK, a Clear Channel station.
“It is an unfortunate situation in which one person writing one letter to the DOE has disrupted a $30,000 fundraiser going on for 6 years now, and for what reason? He claims the Constitution says there can be no involvement with school and church and there is no such statement in the Constitution,” Perry said.
Donalyn Dela Cruz, director of Communications for the DOE, said the decision announced Monday to cancel the Friday concert was made by the DOE after consultation with the Attorney General’s office.
“The Department applauds both the students who were hoping to provide this concert, as well as the charitable purpose behind it. However, after some consideration, the Department realized that the concert could have been better structured,” Dela Cruz said.
Kahle is Hawaii’s only well known atheist who makes God an issue.
He’s protested the police department using the words “so help me God” in their oath of office, and got the Honolulu Police Department to remove the words from the oath in September 2002.
On his web site, Kahle proclaims proudly under a cartoon poking fun at the police, that “God Gets the Boot!”
Kahle appears to enjoy the media attention, because he has his media mentions posted prominently throughout his web site dating back for several years including the most exposure he’s had in an interview with Bill O’Reilly on Fox’s O’Reilly Factor.
But besides threatening letters that on occasion are backed by the ACLU, and the tantrums he’s thrown at city hall and the legislature when God is mentioned, Kahle has had few actual legal successes.
His group is made up of a handful of atheists who want God banished from the planet. One of his main sidekicks is his wife Holly Huber.
Kahle doesn’t win in court so much as he gets his way by getting people in government to simply bend to his wishes through bullying and threats.
He has intimidated Senate leadership into cancelling its daily prayer during the 60-working day session.
He’s pushed the Honolulu City Council leadership into cancelling only prayer a month typically held before its monthly meeting.
He’s harassed the military until it took a cross down from its property.
And when loved ones lost their family members on Mothers’ Day, May 9, 1999, during a tragic land slide at Sacred Falls park, and they posted eight small crosses by the roadside in remembrance, Kahle insisted the state remove them from the public sidewalk.
Kahle also takes credit for getting Boy Scouts programs and oath restricted on public school campuses in 2002, getting the phrase “I believe in God” removed from Navy youth cards, as well as getting “God Bless America “removed from the tax department and health department facilities shortly after the 9-11-2001 terrorist attack on America.
“I guess it is not a career enhancing move to have your government agency sued, because you stood up to this guy, but someone needs to,” said KSSK’s Perry.
“The DOE is in ‘duck and cover mode’ because of one guy and one letter. There are all kinds of organizations that would be happy to take him on and win. But he wins because they quickly capitulate.”
Perry, who emcees the City Hall Christmas Tree lighting celebration, experienced Kahle’s protests firsthand when Kahle, in front of thousands of children, tried to shout down the Buddhist and Christian religious leaders offering prayers ahead of the tree lighting.
When Perry took the stage, he told the children that “someone probably wouldn’t be getting a visit from Santa Claus”, and their laughter drowned out his Kahle’s protests.
“It is infuriating, this one little gnat keeps buzzing around. That one person who just uses threats can get his way and stop something that will really help people in need.”
There have been government officials who have stood up to Kahle.
House Speaker Calvin Say, a Democrat who represents Palolo, refused to ban prayer in the House of Representatives’ daily sessions even after Senate’s Democrat leadership capitulated.
Despite the ban on prayer in the Senate, Senate Minority Leader Sam Slom also rebuts Kahle’s demands by mentioning God every day in his closing remarks. Kahle is often there with his wife filming Slom.
While the student concert will not go on, New Hope will try to make up for the $30,000 that was promised Mercy Ships, by holding its own concert on Friday, December 7.
The event will take place at 290 Sand Island Access Road at 7:30 p.m.
Ticket holders to The Gift of Hope Charity Concert may use those tickets to attend the New Hope concert. Refunds from the Moanalua Winter program are also available Friday night at New Hope’s weekend services or at Moanalua High School. Brownstein said all refunds unclaimed after December 21st will be donated to Mercy Ships.
More on the web
https://www.enewhope.org/news/000768/
As a young priest I was often offended by actions like this. But now I realize that, though lost spiritually, atheists are 100% right to fight against an American theocracy. While it is God's gift to be lead by a Christian, it is not God's will that America joint other nations under religious rule. God bless this young man. We should all be so brave.
We're far from a theocracy.Even 60 years ago, when there was much more religion in public life, we were far from a theocracy.
Your point being?
If we're not a theocracy, he's not fighting against a theocracy.
"While it is God's gift to be lead by a Christian, it is not God's will that America joint other nations under religious rule."
Wow! You know the mind and will of God? Terrific! Ask him what I'm getting for xMas!
He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named is a Gigantic Arse-hole. Find him and drop kick him into the Ala Wai.
^^Typical religious hypocrisy?
So police officers, district attorneys, and others who enforce the laws are all ashholes. You are the only ash-hole.
What the author of this biased article fails to mention, is that this public school has been giving over $30,000 a year directly to a church organization. I'm not talking about the New Hope guys helping to sell tickets. The charity, Mercey Ships, is nothing more than a missionary organization. Good luck to them and may they be succesful at helping those in need. But taking money from a public school and giving it to a tax free organization, when schools are in such need of funding right here is not only sad. It happens to be a violation of the law. Cheers to Mitch Kahle for having the bravery to stand up in the face of all this persicution from the christians and do what's right. He must be an a man of high character as someone above pointed out, Hawaii is so incredibly bigotted that he's the only one not afraid to stand up for what's right there, instead of remaining silent in fear of judgmental christians who evidently think taking money from education and giving it to a church is cool.
Would you like to know other things that AREN'T in the Constitution? How about:
The Right To Privacy – The Constitution does not specifically mention a right to privacy.
The Right To Travel – As the Supreme Court notes in Saenz v Roe, 98-97 (1999), the Constitution does not contain the word "travel" in any context, let alone an explicit right to travel (except for members of Congress, who are guaranteed the right to travel to and from Congress).
The Right To Vote – The Constitution contains many phrases, clauses, and amendments detailing ways people cannot be denied the right to vote. You cannot deny the right to vote because of race or gender. Citizens of Washington DC can vote for President; 18-year-olds can vote; you can vote even if you fail to pay a poll tax. The Constitution also requires that anyone who can vote for the "most numerous branch" of their state legislature can vote for House members and Senate members.
Note that in all of this, though, the Constitution never explicitly ensures the right to vote, as it does the right to speech, for example. It does require that Representatives be chosen and Senators be elected by "the People," and who comprises "the People" has been expanded by the aforementioned amendments several times. Aside from these requirements, though, the qualifications for voters are left to the states. And as long as the qualifications do not conflict with anything in the Constitution, that right can be withheld.
Freedom of Expression
God – Except for one notable instance, however, none of these words ever appears in the Constitution, neither the original nor in any of the Amendments. The notable exception is found in the Signatory section, where the date is written thusly: "Seventeenth Day of September in the Year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and Eighty seven". The use of the word "Lord" here is not a religious reference, however. This was a common way of expressing the date, in both religious and secular contexts.
Innocent Until Proven Guilty – The concept of the presumption of innocence is one of the most basic in our system of justice. However, in so many words, it is not codified in the text of the Constitution
It's a Free Country – Read your Constitution — it never says it is a free country.
Jury of Your Peers – People often say "I have a right to have my case heard by a jury of my peers!" when there is no such right in the Constitution. The Constitution does take up the issue of juries, however. It is the nature of the jury which is not in the Constitution.
So, just like the "Right to Privacy", the "Separation of Church and State", while not mentioned in those exact words, can be deduced by not only the wording of the articles, but also the statements made by those who helped write it.
This article was written with a political slant. Not well-written at all. I am an atheist and in favor of Kahle's efforts. Extreme measures for extreme religionists. No, Kahle is not the zealot. People who insist or demand to have their demands expressed in public arenas are the zealots. Demand and prayer are synonyms for each other. Let's hope for world peace. No need to favor one religion over another. We are all one. WIthin a world community.
Wow, this article can hardly be called journalism. It doesn't address whether the protesting is constitutionally valid or why public officials would have conceded if it wasn't.
This is a lousy site, and not worth visiting again.
To all the people (including KSSK's Michael W. Perry) that think The U.S. Constitution says nothing about separation of church and state (and YES public schools ARE state funded) –
The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution says: “CONGRESS SHALL MAKE NO LAW RESPECTING AN ESTABLISHMENT OF RELIGION; OR PROHIBITING THE FREE EXERCISE THEREOF…."
The U.S. Supreme Court has interpreted this clause to mean that religion and government must stay SEPERATE for the benefit of BOTH. The government holds NO religious viewpoint and leaves all decisions about faith and religious practice to its citizens. Religious liberty is NOT SECURE when the government presumes to promote religion over non-religion or favors one faith over another. Our rights are not secure when the government uses public services intended for EVERYONE, such as the public schools, to indoctrinate, promote or coerce participation in worship. A high and firm barrier between the institutions of religion and government is a stable platform for religious and non-religious freedom!
Then they should NOT allow the teaching of evolution!! Nor that it's ok to be GAY! If they're there to only teach the 3 R's , then they can't teach the things that offend me!!
You're offended, so what? I'm offended by reality shows but they're not infringing on my constitutional or civil rights! Get over yourself and grow up.
although his disposition is clearly that of an arsehole, he is correct in this matter. anyone with a google on their computer can look up Mercy Ships. the very top of their homepage has a "Pray" link as part of the main banner. if this school wanted to send their money to a nondenominational charity, there are literally HUNDREDS of them that do not explicitly cater to religious beliefs. they chose one — and only six years ago — to pick this one. these students, faculty, and staff ARE condoning religious belief by supporting a religious institution by having this play. that is the sentiment behind the Establishment Clause.
it would be a clear-cut case in court and that is why the Department of Education told them to stop doing it. think about this point, as well: why would "New Hope" volunteer their time and money and efforts towards a nondenominational cause? that would be absurd when they are a religiously motivated institution, themselves!
I'm getting much more information about this situation from reading the comments here, than I got from reading the original article. Thanks folks!
I don't have any religious affiliations (atheist, if you need a label), but I do believe in tolerance and religious freedom. Respect for others beliefs should dictate what is reasonable and acceptable in public forums.
In this case, I can not comprehend why the students were denied the opportunity to present their talents for the public enjoyment, and redirect the funds to the benefit of their school… allowing anyone who bought a ticket to support the religious organization to receive a refund. Why does everything have to become a conflict between extremes?
So is he really an atheist? I wonder if he'll be crying out to God when someone has a gun to his head or someone he loves is dying?
I seriously doubt it. What good would crying out to a god do anyway?
And as the saying goes: One pair of hands at work does more than a thousand clasped in prayer.
People just have to say NO to this man. He has getting his way too long. He acts like a SPOILED BRAT and should be treated like a spoiled brat. Enough is enough!
Getting his way longer than what? Longer than Christianity has in this country? You gotta be kidding me…
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