Pastel Hell

A panel depicting Hell in the Painted Church Hawaii
The interior of the Painted Church Hawaii

This month’s Sunday Stills Color Challenge is ‘Pastels.’ See more responses here. Well, I couldn’t resist this headline, could I? It doesn’t look quite so bad when the colors fade to a kinder, gentler shade of purgatory.

These are from St Benedict’s Painted Church, on the slopes above Kealakekua Bay. Father John Velghe moved the church from the coast to its present site in 1899. Once it was rebuilt, he painted the interior as a mini cathedral with scenes from the bible adorning the walls. The paintings have faded over the years, but are still quite striking.

For more information about St Benedict’s Painted Church, go to https://thepaintedchurchhawaii.org/

The exterior of the Painted Church Hawaii

19 thoughts on “Pastel Hell”

  3. kzmcb's avatarkzmcb

    That’s very unorthodox I would have thought, although a priest in Western Australia who was responsible for building many new churches, of various designs, had one painted in stripes on the inside.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Graham's avatarGraham Post author

      I think it was the priest’s way of illustrating biblical themes to people who didn’t understand the language or writings of foreigners.

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  7. Terri Webster Schrandt's avatarTerri Webster Schrandt

    Not pastel heaven? 😂 The church interior looks a bit gaudy but one has to appreciate the countless hours of work put into those murals. I would have read your post anyway, Graham! The pic of the exterior is gorgeous!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Graham's avatarGraham Post author

      I believe the story behind the murals was that pictures were more understandable to the locals, than the strange spoken word. It is a bit gaudy, but it’s the tropics where everything is more colorful!

      Liked by 1 person

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