The Serenity Prayer, even for a non-religious person like me, is something that carries a lot of weight in terms of a life philosophy. The various permutations of this prayer have been applied in several therapeutic contexts, such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. But apparently there’s another context applying the Prayer to: Hawaiian Words And Phrases, an e-book from the University of Hawaii Press.
Hawaii’s Breathtaking Serenity Prayer, in Hawaiian: A blog about the serenity prayer in Hawaiian, short version of the serenity prayer and meaning behind serenity prayer with a lot of pictures, info and more.
serenity prayer in hawaiian language
E ola mau ka ‘aina i ke aloha.
A laila, ua ku’u ike i ka ike.
A laila, ua ku’u ho’ohiki i ka make.
E pōmaikaʻi i ka wai o ka lipo
A ʻike i ka wai o ka lipo, pono a kanaka
Wela o kuʻu mau hoʻokahi mea, ke aloha aku nei au
E hōʻailona hewa e nānā i ka hana
Lele ko mai nā mea nui nui a pau.
Aloha,
Kau’i ka pua o ua, he ahi ka maka.
Kaua i lalo nei ka ‘aina, he waiho ana i ke kai.
Aia no ke aloha a e ho’i, aia no ke aloha a e ho’i.
Aloha mai kakou, e ho’i aku nei. Aloha mai kakou, e ho’i aku nei.
He aloha pono, i ka ‘ike ipo. He aloha pono, i ka ‘ike ipo.
He aloha keiki, i ka hui pono. He aloha keiki, i ka hui pono.
A wale noa ia’u a e malama ia’u. A wale noa ia’u a e malama ia’u.
E kū maoli oe, e hoʻololi mai
A hele aku nei i ka waiwai
E kamaʻilioʻole e pili ana mai ke kūpono
E hiki ia mai aku o nā wā ikaika.
The Hawaiian word for serenity is kokua.
The word kokua means “help” or “cooperation”. It’s used in the Hawaiian phrase “he kokua nei”, which means “we’re in this together”.
The serenity prayer was written by Reinhold Niebuhr, a Protestant minister who lived from 1892 to 1971. Niebuhr was born and raised in Missouri, where his family had immigrated from Germany. He studied at the Union Theological Seminary in New York City, graduating in 1918. After serving as a pastor for several years, he joined the faculty of Union Theological Seminary as a professor of Christian ethics and social philosophy. His works include Moral Man & Immoral Society: A Study in Ethics and Politics (1932), An Interpretation of Christian Ethics (1935), Nature and Destiny of Man: A Christian Interpretation (1941) and Christianity & Power Politics (1949).
In his later years he became an outspoken critic of U.S involvement in Vietnam; he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Lyndon B Johnson in 1964 but refused to accept it because
The Serenity Prayer is a widely used prayer in the United States of America. The Serenity Prayer was written by Reinhold Niebuhr, a Protestant theologian, in the 1930s and 1940s. It is part of Alcoholics Anonymous and other 12-step programs.
The Serenity Prayer has been translated into more than 25 languages including Hindi, Italian, Chinese (Simplified), Danish and Hebrew.
The Serenity Prayer is also referred to as The Reinhold Niebuhr Prayer or The Serenity Prayer.
Serenity Prayer Definition
God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.
Short Version Of The Serenity Prayer
God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.