Temple of Peace Rev. Kedar St. John from Haiku is welcomed by host Jason Schwartz. Kedar explains the path he’s taken with partner Shelly to build a place to share celebration of God in an Inclusive loving model, filled with singing and love.
Summary & Transcript
- [00:00 → 02:40]
Introduction and Context - The host, Jason Schwartz, opens the show on KAKU radio 88.5 FM, “The Voice of Maui,” highlighting the significance of the day, September 11, which is also Diane Christopher’s birthday, Hurricane Iniki anniversary, and the date of the 9/11 tragedy in New York.
- Jason reflects on recent calamities impacting Maui, emphasizing the need to focus on gratitude, community, and healing rather than despair.
- He introduces his guest, Reverend Kedar Saint John from the Temple of Peace in Haiku, Maui.
- The show has a long history of celebrating Maui’s unique culture and community, having been on air for over 30 years, with a focus on environmental and social solutions.
- [02:40 → 10:55]
Reverend Kedar Saint John’s Background and the Temple of Peace Origin - Kedar shares his spiritual journey beginning as a Hindu monk in the 1970s, traveling internationally with a mission to help people, including time spent in apartheid-era South Africa.
- His early years involved deep study of Vedic literature, yoga, and meditation.
- Over time, he explored beyond Hinduism, embracing Mystic Christianity, Sufism, shamanism, and other faiths, seeking the universal silver lining across religions.
- He wrote a song titled “Temple of Peace” in the 1980s envisioning a unifying spiritual space honoring all faiths and embracing all people equally regardless of race or background.
- Kedar and his wife, Shelly, met in Nepal, their partnership now spanning 40 years.
- In 2004, they established the Temple of Peace in Haiku, taking over an old church building dating back to 1938, previously used by various Christian denominations and even a “gun church.”
- The Temple of Peace is incorporated as a ministry since 2000 and described as a millennial, interfaith house of worship aiming to embrace all spiritual paths without proselytizing.
- The Temple is known for its uplifting, inclusive atmosphere and celebration of life and love.
- [10:55 → 15:57]
Spiritual Practices, Music, and the Torah Story - Kedar is a prolific songwriter whose songs focus on devotion and universal love, inviting all to connect with the “God of your understanding.”
- The Temple incorporates symbols and artifacts from many faith traditions, including a Torah scroll.
- The Torah was donated by two Jewish brothers who had undergone a spiritual crisis and found renewal by returning to their Jewish roots.
- One brother brought the Torah to the Temple of Peace during Yom Kippur, and it is now cared for by Kedar’s son, who is half Jewish.
- This Torah symbolizes the Temple’s commitment to honoring diverse spiritual heritages and shared knowledge.
- [15:57 → 23:04]
Community, Inclusiveness, and Response to the Maui Wildfire Disaster - The Temple hosts events featuring diverse spiritual teachers, scholars, and musicians, creating a rich, healing community environment.
- The show highlights the recent wildfire catastrophe in Lahaina, Maui, and the tremendous community response characterized by selflessness, unity, and aloha spirit.
- Kedar describes the overwhelming empathy and volunteer mobilization from locals and mainland groups, emphasizing love and service over negativity and division.
- He stresses the importance of releasing trauma and carrying a spirit of hope and healing, focusing on “how to make things right and pono” (righteousness, balance).
- The community’s collective healing is seen as a powerful manifestation of Maui’s unique Aloha spirit.
- [23:04 → 29:54]
Healing, Self-Sustainability, and Future Preparedness - Kedar shares his personal experience of carrying the emotional burden of the disaster and the spiritual practice of releasing it to God.
- The focus is on service and moving forward constructively despite the many challenges and uncertainties.
- Jason and Kedar discuss the need for greater preparedness, self-sufficiency, and resilience on Maui, a place vulnerable to natural disasters like wildfires, hurricanes, and volcanic activity.
- The conversation highlights longstanding community conversations about self-sustainability, including growing food locally, managing water resources, and supporting a local economy rooted in art and culture.
- The disaster is viewed as a wake-up call and an opportunity for transformation toward a more sustainable and connected island life.
- [29:54 → 39:26]
Healing Ministry at the Temple of Peace
- Kedar explains the Temple’s holistic healing approach, focusing on Body, Mind, and Spirit.
- His wife Shelley, a registered nurse with 44 years of experience, leads the healing ministry offering various modalities such as:
- Shamanic colonics (colon hydrotherapy)
- Hyperbaric oxygen therapy
- Energy medicine
- Purification and cleansing retreats lasting about 10 days
- The Temple brings in intuitive healers, musicians, and practitioners to create transformative experiences blending spirituality, music, and healing arts.
- They welcome visitors locally and globally, offering both in-person and online access to their programs.
- [39:26 → 48:56]
Visionary Leadership and Interfaith Inclusivity - Jason praises Kedar as a visionary leader who has been ahead of his time in embracing interfaith unity and community healing.
- Kedar describes the Temple as a “Switzerland of temples,” welcoming all faiths without proselytizing, emphasizing the common source of all spiritual paths: the “God of our understanding.”
- The Temple’s mission is to create a space where people find acceptance without judgment based on external factors like appearance or background.
- The Temple embraces the concept of “Divine time,” where spiritual timing is always perfect, inspired by a clock gifted by the spiritual teacher Ram Dass with each numeral marked “now.”
- Kedar stresses the importance of being present, claiming the good in life, and supporting one another in community.
- The Temple’s website is templepeacemaui.com (undergoing growth and development), aiming to increase accessibility and awareness.
- [48:56 → 54:09]
Growth, Outreach, and Future Plans - The Temple is expanding its physical space with an outdoor Peace Pavilion to accommodate more people and larger gatherings, especially post-pandemic.
- The Pavilion will enable inclusive Universal Services that welcome diverse spiritual expressions.
- Kedar encourages people to “step into the mystery” and emphasizes that spiritual growth is mostly about showing up consistently.
- Many visitors report feeling “at home” at the Temple of Peace, often returning after long absences from traditional religious institutions.
- The Temple embraces a mission of embracing all of God’s family exactly as they are, inviting everyone to step into their higher potential and serve the community.
- [54:09 → 55:50]
Closing Reflections and Legacy - Kedar expresses gratitude for the opportunity to share and acknowledges the importance of community media and long-term documentation of Maui’s history through shows like Jason’s Neutral Zone.
- The interview closes with reflections on the new generation of Maui residents and the ongoing evolution of the island community in response to challenges.
- Kedar and Jason emphasize the importance of peace, love, and collective healing as the foundation for Maui’s future.
Key Insights and Themes
- Interfaith Unity: The Temple of Peace exemplifies a spiritual space that honors all faiths and traditions, promoting universal love and acceptance.
- Community Healing: The response to the Maui wildfire disaster showcased the powerful aloha spirit, selflessness, and unity across diverse groups.
- Holistic Healing: Integration of body, mind, and spirit modalities at the Temple offers comprehensive wellness and spiritual renewal.
- Visionary Leadership: Kedar’s decades-long commitment to inclusivity, peace, and sustainability reflects visionary thinking ahead of its time.
- Self-Sustainability and Preparedness: The conversation underscores the urgent need for Maui to embrace self-reliance in food, water, energy, and disaster readiness.
- Presence and Service: Spiritual growth is framed as consistent showing up and service to others; love transcends religious boundaries.
- Growth and Accessibility: The Temple is expanding its physical space and online presence to meet growing community needs and global reach.
Timeline Table: Key Events and Milestones
| Year | Event / Milestone | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1970s | Kedar begins as Hindu monk | Travels internationally, studies Vedas |
| 1980s | Writes “Temple of Peace” song | Vision of interfaith spiritual space |
| 2000 | Temple of Peace Ministry incorporated | Foundation for ministry work |
| 2004 | Acquires old church building in Haiku | Establishes Temple of Peace |
| Early 2000s | Receives Torah donation | Symbol of interfaith inclusion |
| 2020s | Pandemic prompts creation of outdoor Peace Pavilion | Expanding physical space for services |
| 2023 | Maui wildfire disaster | Community mobilizes in response |
Glossary of Terms
| Term | Definition / Explanation |
|---|---|
| Temple of Peace | Interfaith spiritual center in Haiku, Maui, founded by Kedar Saint John |
| Aloha Spirit | Hawaiian concept of love, compassion, and community |
| Pono | Hawaiian value meaning righteousness, balance, and harmony |
| Shamanic Colonics | A cleansing therapy offered at the Temple involving colon hydrotherapy |
| Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy | Medical treatment increasing oxygen supply for healing |
| Mystic Christianity | A spiritual path focusing on the experiential, contemplative side of Christianity |
| Torah | The sacred text of Judaism, symbolizing knowledge and faith at the Temple |
| Divine Time | Concept emphasizing the present moment as the only true time |
Summary
This interview on Maui’s KAKU radio explores the life and work of Reverend Kedar Saint John, founder of the Temple of Peace in Haiku. Kedar’s spiritual journey began in the 1970s as a Hindu monk and evolved into a broad interfaith mission embracing many traditions, including Mystic Christianity, Sufism, and shamanism. His vision, inspired by decades of searching and songwriting, culminated in the establishment of the Temple of Peace in 2004, an inclusive space that welcomes all faiths and focuses on healing body, mind, and spirit.
The Temple integrates diverse spiritual symbols, including a Torah donated by Jewish brothers who found renewal through their heritage. It offers healing modalities such as colon hydrotherapy and hyperbaric oxygen therapy alongside music and intuitive guidance. The conversation highlights the recent Maui wildfire disaster and the extraordinary community response fueled by the aloha spirit, emphasizing unity, empathy, and service over negativity.
Kedar and host Jason Schwartz discuss the importance of self-sustainability and disaster preparedness for Maui’s future, advocating for local food production, water security, and community resilience. The Temple is expanding with an outdoor Peace Pavilion to accommodate growing participation, both locally and online, fostering a universal message of love beyond religious boundaries.
Throughout the dialogue, key themes emerge: the power of interfaith unity, community healing through love and service, visionary leadership anticipating societal shifts, and the crucial need for preparedness in a vulnerable island environment. The Temple of Peace stands as a beacon of hope, acceptance, and spiritual growth, inviting all to “show up” and embrace their higher purpose in service to others.
Timestamped Transcript
00:00
[Music] we’re at the neutral zone Maui neutralzone.com boy dirty glasses we are on Kaku radio 88.5 FM the voice of Maui I we have a great engineer here in Tony brother Tony is uh has a show every day Monday to Friday though one to two um anyway I’m here and you probably know I’m going to be talking about all kinds of stuff today is an interesting day first of all I have a really special guest but even before I get to that when I woke up and I said it’s September 11th it’s Diane Christopher’s birthday happy
00:48
birthday oh and you know that was hurricane and Nikki day also wow and that was whoa wow wasn’t there a 911 the New York Calamity and then recently we had another calamity and uh it’s like but I don’t think Calamity I think whatever’s happening in the world we’re going to have to do something to do better and the only thing I know is after living on Maui for so long I’ve learned that do better means focus on what we have and what we’re grateful for and how can we help others and how can
01:32
we better the place we live in that’s why I’ve been on this trip for so long some of you on the island know me forever seems like forever I got here in 1988 but half of the island we didn’t have cable like my friend and guest kedar St John lives on the Haiku side until we had cable I don’t even think he knew there was a cable TV station that Jason Schwartz since God 1991-2 was it doing television shows about environment and talking about Solutions before it was fashionable yeah that was me
02:09
but over the years I found that keeping a good attitude and bringing good people to the people of Maui and the world and everyone knows the word Maui so you could be anywhere in the world you might have picked up this show and said wow that’s an interesting show yeah we got 150 more of these and we’ve been looking at Maui for 30 years on TV so there’s an Arsenal about looking at Maui not only Lahaina but all of Maui so if you’re from somewhere else remember here we are in Maui and we’d love you to
02:40
contribute to the welfare of all of Maui yes the horrible catastrophe that just happened we not we know that you’re aware of that but out of the ashes are going to come good things you know I’m going all over the map my guest just got here he looks very settled in most of my guests take a few minutes but this is Reverend Kedar Saint John from the Temple of Peace in Haiku Maui Welcome to our show thank you so much thank you can you get a little closer just to Mike just to be sure we got you right
um there you go Kedar not only has been a friend for a long time but can I know kedar I was going to say when he had hair but I don’t think he had hair when I first met you I had some hair yeah but I’ve known Kedar for a long time even when when you got the Temple of Peace I was so thrilled I wasn’t sure I never really remember even what you did but my friend Tom Fredrickson had a girlfriend who was your landlady Kira Kira yeah and Tommy rest in peace I saw Kara a couple of weeks ago there at the
03:48
Temple of Peace and so I’ve known you so long and I imagine I want to get the world on half of Maui that may not know when you hear the words Temple of Peace you’ve heard about it but you didn’t know who and what is creating this beautiful inspirational I want to say beacon if that’s a good word for love Temple of Peace kedar I want just I guess I’m just a little over the top here I’d like you to talk and jump in and cut me off wherever because I love this God on Sundays I used to go
04:24
to Unity Church a lot with Ariel we still go but once I go back and see my friend kedar me and Arielle we just like it’s like a magnet if you go to the Temple of Peace your heart just raises up well here he sits but humbly he sits I haven’t given a chance to talk yet um how did this all happen were you a Reverend before what was your direction well I began uh as a Hindu monk back in uh 70s and spend some time traveling around the world on a mission to help people in different countries like South Africa we went to
05:09
South Africa and in those days there is they had the law of Apartheid but I was a uh a Hindu Monk uh having just uh I think a lot of us in the 60s and 70s found ourselves in ashrams or places up in the Himalayas meditating looking for some type of solution to the challenge of uh in our life to find out who we are why we’re here what’s our purpose what’s what’s in it for me and that what is my service what am I supposed to be doing in this world to help people so I started off in that
05:53
way and did a really deep dive into The Vedas Into The Vedic literature of India yoga and meditation um and then after about seven years I found myself uh looking outside of that the box so to speak that I had found myself in and started exploring all different other types of faiths I found my born in a Christian family but I was more attracted to yoga as as growing up and then I took a deep dive into Mystic Christianity um and started looking at Sufism with the teachings of hazrat nayat Khan I
06:47
looked into shamanism exploring all different types of faiths and seeing the seeing how really there was a silver lining that went through all the different faiths and that was something that I was really attracted to and I wanted to I sang I wrote a song back in this 80s called Temple of Peace and it was a song about a place where everyone’s a brother and sister and that it honored all different faiths it was one structure one building a state of consciousness really where we could Embrace each other for who each
07:38
and each and every one of us are rather than for the color of our skin or uh whatever it is however it is when we come into this lifetime and I think that um when I think in terms of how there’s a lot of Separation The Separation uh is something which is taught when a baby comes into this world uh it doesn’t it’s not taught to hate it doesn’t learn to be greedy uh it’s not homophobic it’s not racist these are things I think that we are actually taught and um so I was looking at the place
08:25
where we could come together and focus on the love focus on how we can become connected to each other and recognize each other for who we and each and every one of us are and um and sing I was really attracted to singing singing my prayers and I think from that place um we eventually we moved to Maui my I met my wife and actually in Nepal uh um on the on that Journey when I was finishing off being a monk she was trying to forget about looking for a husband and I was looking for I guess my my twin flame and we found each other
09:13
and kathmand not in Kathmandu but in Pokhara Nepal and met each other and it was uh love at first sight and we’ve been together for 40 years now wow yeah so um how did we come to the Temple of peaceful I sang about it for about 20 years I sang this song and uh finally in the year 2004. we actually landed the temple piece up in Haiku an old church that’s been a a house of Faith House of God since 1938. and uh going through many many incarnations congregational churches Quaker Church uh there was even a group in there they
10:07
were called the gun Church yeah you know how people get into the guns and and so so then it became in 2004 we took it over and became the Temple of Peace so really we were incorporated as a Ministry in the year 2000 so I say that in Temple of Peace is really a millennial house of worship a house of faith and really Interfaith as best as we possibly can Embrace everybody well it feels like a celebration it every time I come we celebrate life and each other and how much love can we share it just it seems to
10:55
just exude from everyone there yeah he was such a great great leader in front every time you’re singing songs did you write many of those songs a lot of them a lot of the songs yeah and of course as a musician as a person who’s interested in songs which relate to um devotion uh laid out position with the Divine with the Creator I’m always seeking uh songs with messages that even just one single word that somebody might be sitting there in the celebration and it’s something hits them you know
11:35
uh there’s an infinite supply of love in this world it’s in God it’s in you it’s in me and so we focus on the love and bringing out that love um and invite people to find what it is for them the god of your understanding I was just going to say the god of your understanding that is one of the things some people have said I well are they Christian Church well whatever you are you bring to the circle that’s right people and when you in your temple before you started using the outside area in the
inside there’s a a Torah that’s a story I’m sure and different things from different faiths and you’re totally honoring and obviously to get a Torah is a huge thing so there must have been someone that not only loved you but that recognized a very special quality how did that happen to your world well um there was a time back in the early 2000s that I took a sabbatical for um what I was doing we were doing a house Church in 2000 until 2004 uh with my dear brother an ally Blue Mountain
12:58
God bless his soul he’s just he departed earlier this year yeah and I’m sorry what did you what was your question I don’t remember we were talking about the the Torah on how the Torah yes okay so I noticed when I was through yeah so so I was um I was helping these guys who had gone through uh let’s say uh a spiritual Dark Knight of the Soul they had they had been with a teacher for a long long time for maybe 25 years of their lives they became uh disgruntled with I guess the politics of
13:42
that Institution and um needed to move on and so somehow or other I was there and helped them to break loose of their of the the ism that they had become part of the confines of their definition of themselves yes exactly right and invited them to step outside the box and um this particular brother it was two brothers one of them both of them actually born in the Jewish faith and so they took a deep dive into Kabbalah uh which is the Mystic teachings of Judaism and so um and really we’re able to come out of
14:30
that dark night of their Spirit Dark Night of the Soul a spiritual um trap that they found themselves in and free themselves and by going back to their to their original Faith um they found a sense of meaning for their lives in a whole different sort of way anyway my one friend uh he calls me up and he says um kedar I’m coming to Maui um what can I bring you what can I bring to the Temple of Peace and I said well I don’t know you’re the born-again Jew um what would you bring to the Temple of
15:08
Peace you know knowing that we are into Faith what would you bring so I guess it was a high holiday of Yom Kippur which is a very special holiday to the Jewish people um he rented a house down the road from us and walked to the temple with this beautiful Torah that he had brought for the Temple of Peace and uh we gladly accepted it and it is actually in the care of my son my wife is Jewish Shelley’s Jewish so um he is uh half he’s Jewish and so he he is the guardian of that Torah and it sits in the temporal piece
15:57
as a representation of the Great Book of Knowledge and you’ve had guests and people you have all kinds of events of all kinds and we haven’t even gotten there yet you have a whole other section where your wife Shelly and you have all kinds of different healing modalities and you’re really a well-rounded experience the there is such a sacred feeling of every one every place there everything what’s really nice is as soon as you get there you feel included if there’s this great
16:33
inclusive experience and I was there yesterday with you and I thought that Solomon one of the guys is there regularly and we’ve known for many years Solomon’s Jewish he did a great overview for people about what Yom Kippur was and Rosh Hashanah for people that may not know he spoke real eloquently about Sufism you have a community of Scholars and people that bring such a richness to that experience it’s hard not to go there and not just like I say it’s it’s like I find myself
17:13
not knowing where to go except there there’s such a loving energy that the world I guess you know you know what do they say we’re you’re ramping up the world will get to know the Temple of feast they have a website now yeah yes templepeace maui.com Temple of peacemawi.com you guys are going to see it on the screen yeah um I have just uh over the years you know when I got to come regularly and listening to you I’m listening to things that you say I literally felt like I was reading my
17:47
own script that I was writing you know you just have just such a I want to say Universal here in this plane you are like me I take all pieces it takes everything to make a whole yeah and you do it so well and so gracefully I just I’m going back to the thing about praise katar you know the more I know you you know and like you say our buddy Blue Mountain was there all these years and and a tremendous richness that got developed with the ahimsa temple and you guys working in concert together yeah we
18:24
we like to build temples up in haiku and and they’re oftentimes temples that are um they’re places of worship uh that are really recognize the unity of everybody of every man of Faith every woman of Faith um we’re not uh prosely sizing or we’re not into really churchy entity or um religiosity but rather a path of spirituality and that recognizes that we we all come from the same Source there’s only one source and that sources could be named the god of our understanding and we
19:09
could be sitting here to mentioning all of the different names of God the recognition of the one and uh I love that song when you do that song you know which one you change a Curie and Shalom and each verse gets to honor a different Opening Our Hearts to the love of God that’s just such a beautiful yeah it’s just an opening song and and the the chorus is we are opening it’s really about us being in a place of being receptive and open to the to the good which is our good that we’re claiming
19:46
every single day we wake up uh and give thanks that we have a human birth and that we’re going to use this human birth for doing good things uh because we can’t I’m here with Kedar Saint John from Temple of Peace in Haiku Maui and this is the neutral zone Maui neutralzone.com 88.5 FM the voice of Maui we’re also simulcast on akaku Maui Community media they like to say Maui Community TV but I I’m holding on to that TV you know it’s still that screen there things are changing so quickly you’ve Everything
20:28
grows here so quickly you know recently I was going to have you on I’ve been after you to come out and visit my show I’m sure you probably didn’t realize Jason did a show every week really I didn’t really that’s true I mean you know people see myself they go wow I literally saw your show you really did some musician who was here plays with uh Mick Fleetwood you can’t he said I saw your show wow yep we’re on and we have people like Kate on no there is no one like Kedar but we have Jules Maui has
21:01
zoom and all around the world but Maui has people here that the world needs to see that together we are so incredibly totally capable of self-sustainability and love and cooperation you know when I think about that I was just thinking about the Hawaiians and the experience you guys were part of the hunger Heroes and uh helping with that effort and with this recent horrible fire wild fire from whatever source and all the conjecture about it and the bringing out that piece of sovereignty from the Hawaiians
21:41
I hope that things like this can help people realize how incredibly integrated we are here we’ve the people that have been helping on this from all over now we are just an incredible surge I’d say it was selflessness that’s right you know it’s like here on Maui we are a small island and it is our community that without any second thought without a second thought immediately everybody was entering emptying their pantries bringing water buying supplies getting generators doing whatever we
22:18
could to help the people of Lina and the overwhelming experience of what I experienced was the great love and unity that our community showed for our brothers and sisters regardless of where they were born or and especially for those who were born in Lahaina who are our Hawaiian Community our hosts culture here [Music] seeing that type of suffering has created a great empathy in our community and uh an army of volunteers just to help from their hearts and this is I think the the really the beautiful
23:04
spirit of Aloha that all of us who find ourselves living here in Hawaii and Maui um we find that there is this amazing uh spirit of aloha and that is uh it permeates and even in times of great disaster even in times of great suffering and pain we can with this Aloha Spirit comes forth and Embraces us and my sin I think we really certainly saw the most incredible energetic version of that the entire Community coming together and helping wherever we can you know now we’ve got um I’m working
23:45
with several groups on the mainland who are have worked with trauma um and and various locations where the people really needed to help release this trauma I myself the other day was feeling a great burden on my shoulders just from being here and being around this feeling empathically feeling what was going on and I got the chance to just let that go just let it go to make me a better person to be more centered to not carry this burden to release it and where did I release it I just offered it to God
24:27
Aloha I just let it go and I’m continuing to do that and I think that that’s um you know where our Focus was is how can we help the people this is this has happened you know there’s so many focus on well how did it happen and what are all the other things that made it happen and all the this is all true all of these things are considerations and people are asking these big questions and I think that the most important piece right now is to keep our minds keep our hearts keep our spirits in the
25:02
place of love and service to see how can we bring make this right how can we make this Pono and we’re dealing with a many many many moving parts uh and the and I call it the uh when it first happened it was you couldn’t help but look at the other side of all the questions uh the the trolling that took place to make it negative and to to be make it more confusing than it already was um you look to look at that stuff and I call it the treacherous land of lower frequencies um which is all of the doubt
25:42
and all the worry and all the concern uh yes that’s there but in order to be of service I need to be fully present and I can’t be thinking about how this happened who did this what was what was the nefarious reason that this happened I can’t go there and be empowered to be helpful in our community and I’m glad there are people getting the facts and will be giving us the reports but I’m sure we’ll get the right area either I’m not really good at lingering in that negativity I’d rather say okay what are
26:19
we going to do to bring ourselves together in a new and better way that’s right yes we don’t have the old maybe we’re now replacing something that can’t be replaced but we sure can do something beautiful yeah you know and move forward together in ways that we only dreamed of but here’s the opportunity to do that’s right yeah for a second I know it when I think of this thing and how we all came alive and then the government came in from fed and all that stuff it’s very unclear who is a victim here
26:55
because all of Maui is suffering in different ways from this financially and and emotionally and we all have connections with people from Lahaina you know I my years were in Lahaina that’s where I developed my life on Maui yeah but um there’s the acute and then there’s the long term this may be a long-term solution so I’m most curious to see when people will realize that we need to do things differently because we’re on an island that idea I’ve been talking about 30 years many of us
27:30
self-sustainability we grow our own food we create housing for our own people and how to create a local economy we promote art and music to the world and raise money for environmental well that’s my thing I’ve been talking for 30 years and half of the island didn’t even hear me for the first 15 they didn’t have cable it’s getting to be that time when we talk off camera and people explore what Maui Arts andmusic.org is they’ll see it’s them there’s this matrix it’s
28:05
called have an idea and go for it I keep walking into my vision years ago where I said you know this could be this and that and here the world is sadly growing up and all the things that were a hard sell are now much easier when you say self-sustainable grow our own food or we have to have our own water suddenly everyone sees a blade of grass it’s a little too tall and they’re like that has to be cut where’s the guy that’s going to cut it you could cut it too by the way you know
28:38
but I’m just knowing that out of this is going to come Solutions because we’re here and we’re going to be the ones doing it you know we are the leaders we’ve been waiting for that’s right you know I think that we we’re learning about how important it is to for preparedness we weren’t prepared for this our our government our government here on Maui was not prepared for this and none of us were prepared for this and I think that it is the ultimate wake-up call for us to really become as
29:15
you say self-sufficient and be prepared I know that that’s one of my goals right in this moment is really doing things and preparing things for any future event that might take place like this so that we can help even even more we don’t know what here we live in a Zone where you know we get threatened by hurricanes we get volcanoes going off uh and now this tragic fire which was all consuming and we forgot about cooling when you’re losing 25 homes that was a big deal and until you lose 2 000 that’s right the
29:54
people in Kula are feeling a little needful love that’s true it’s really true and and we’ve got to help everybody that we can uh and and the spirit of Aloha and that I think what’s is what this Maui Community is all about and even though it uh it’s very expensive to live here in Maui uh somehow or other we’re still here after decades and decades and we love it here because there is this Spirit of Aloha the spirit of community uh where we we kind of find each other and now more than ever we’ve found each
30:32
other we showed up and we showed up in full uh was so proud to be at the um with the hungry Heroes Hawaii uh at Blue Mountains Temple the other day where we honored all of the people who um who had crossed over in a special prayer and it was also a combination of a meeting of what do we do next and there were 270 uh incredibly able-bodied individuals who were absolutely ready to go to the next level what can we do now how can we help so yeah I’m gonna take a quick break I’m here with Kato St John from the Temple of
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Peace in haikum Maui Hawaii and I’m Jason Schwartz so we’re going to take a break and get some of our talking of community we are a community sponsored radio and that means that when I press these buttons you’re going to be hearing things from people in our community the support what we do hello there my name is Maddox and I’m a Cub Scout I’m here to talk to you today about becoming a Cub Scout like me Cub Scouts get badges for doing fun activities and we make friends Scouts go
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camping climbing fishing and swimming together we have fun we play sports and go to parades Scouts also help people and become the very best versions of themselves visit beascout.org and you’ll be able to find a pack near you get your questions answered and sign up online Saturday night at 8 and Sunday night at nine on Kaku 88.5 FM we experience dead air not that kind of dead air we’re talking Grateful Dead Grateful Dead music for an entire hour Saturday night at eight and Sunday night at nine with me Corey
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Daniels on Kaku 88.5 FM hi I’m Jason Schwartz host of the neutral zone ka-k-u is a listener supported station this means that all the great programs you hear like mine are sponsored by you as well as our Underwriters if you would like to help keep the voice of Maui talking loud and clear go to kakufm.org donate today and give and don’t miss the neutral zone Mondays at 11 A.M on 88.5 FM the voice of Maui adopt U.S kids presents What to Expect When You’re Expecting a teenager learning the lingo today I’m going to
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help parents translate teen slang now when a team says something is on fleek it’s exactly like saying that’s rad it simply means that something is awesome or cool another one is totes it’s exactly like saying totally just shorter as in I totes love going to the mall with Becca another word you might hear is jelly jelly is a shorter better way to say jealous as in Chloe I am like so jelly of your unicorn phone case you don’t have to speak team to be a perfect parent thousands of teens in
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foster care will think you’re um rad just the same to learn more visit adoptuskids.org a public service announcement brought to you by the U.S Department of Health and Human Services adopt U.S kids and the Ad Council [Music] I am back with Kedar St John from Temple of Peace in Haiku Maui Hawaii we are the neutral zone subtitled by the way it’s anything but neutral and um we are here and we are in k-a-k-u beautiful Studios and we’re right next door to akaku Maui Community media I was just mentioning to Reverend
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Kedar here that very soon we as Maui Arts and Music Association are going to be doing more music shows they’re already people doing music shows and my idea is not that we need to start new things it’s that we take the pieces that are already in this Matrix and recognize them and put them together under a branded media to the world that can now explore us and support us and their dollars can help support not the acute problem the government here and the people here but the long range they’ll
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help us raise the money to implement some of these solutions that are going to help that self-sustainability be a model to the world that’s like been my thing here since do you know that I spoke to the president of Maui Electric in 1992 and three we’re right when the cultural center was opening about solar with Chris Menzel right you know very well and we were talking about things that you see people doing things now and you’ll go why is that some new idea when we’ve been talking about these
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things for so long and I keep thinking that all that we’re doing here is just a matter of waking up when people realize that Temple of Peace and wyola church from Lahaina and King’s Cathedral we are all one and where everyone recognized that brother and Sisterhood what we can’t do on this island is nothing we are so incredibly blessed to have so many different colors of a rainbow here um what’s your favorite part of being the Reverend at Temple of Peace well I find myself drawn to this path to be
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in service and we focus one of the things that we do is we focus on Body Mind and Spirit so we call ourselves a healing Church healing Body Mind and Spirit we have a little my my wife Shelley St John she is a registered nurse nurse of 44 years wow and she has brought me into The Healing Ministry where we have various tools and various types of wonderful solutions to health and wellness such as cleansing purifying she she does uh something we call shamanic colonics where um or as some of her contemporaries call her the number one
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nurse and the number two business we’re able to purify the body through colon hydrotherapy increase the oxygen through hyperbaric oxygen therapy uh some and Energy Medicine we put together like Retreats for people so that they can come here a lot of people come from local people come people come from the mainland and do 10 days with us where we put them through a whole regimen of cleansing and purification and they come out feeling like a million bucks because they’ve just let go of a whole bunch of stuff
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so we are very holistic in our approach but we’re of course feel like we’re we’re into Bridge medicine we want to include all the various types of healing modalities that are out there and necessarily that uh in Ancient of Days were offered by the church or offered by temples that you could come there and you could undergo a process of release and purification to wake up to a much better version of yourself so we we feature those type things types of things at the Temple of Peace a lot
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we bring in people who are really amazing um intuitives who get messages and are able to deliver those beautiful messages we have different practitioners we have wonderful musicians local musicians International musicians coming in and we do concerts so healing music Healing Arts that’s why we’re a healing Church just a beautiful Vision like I say I I feel empowered to know that myself who has an idea can I feel empowered by what you do and it gives me strength that’s the notion I have of this integrated action model
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that we all just each of us doing our part like that how many people are exposed through what you do an amazing number of people that share through the world the train and you guys from wherever you are you can come to Temple of Peace and I know they have online things going on and will be so no matter where you are in the world you can help support Maui and its people even if you’re anywhere in the world that’s the part that I like that the world can see Maui and who and what we are and what
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you are and recognize what a beautiful way to be that really inspires me I think that you’re you’re right on um with your Visionary your vision your vision that you’ve had for so many years here spreading that the word and I think we’ve come to understand that usually Visionaries are anywhere up in 10 to 20 years ahead of their time so a lot of the things that you’re visioning back in the in the 90s and the early 2000s we’re starting to see happen now and I think it takes people a vision
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to uh to set the tone for the future so that we can aspire to become better versions of ourselves I like to think that it’s the difference with Checkers and chess you know stepping out of the game a Visionary what does that mean I mean someone that either physically sees it and has an inspiration and sees it but has an idea of something that can be in that realm of possibility right isn’t that what they say it’s it’s not this and that it’s what’s between them the real action is it’s where this
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and that have chance to see change and growth and grow into something new yeah you know you you are people are going to wonder why do you keep telling me so great well I guess it’s just whenever I see cut whenever I see you I light up because I know you come from such a beautiful and pure space and you’ve always been that way all right I didn’t really know that you had a background that was you know religiosity of different Persuasions and came up with your own but you’ve always
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just been such a beautiful guy and I’ve known Shelly also a long time it’s funny how on an island we after a while we kind of start waving to everybody I remember years ago and I’d wave to people and then now they wave back and I don’t know if they know us but we know we’re all here a long time that’s right and just like we say on the drop of a dime this need we are there that is such a beautiful thing and you’ve been I want to say you are really you and our buddy Blue Mountain because to
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me that’s you guys were working so well together you know bringing that idea and the ideas that you know I remember when I first met ramdas you know this is he just came to the island did a seminar at the Maui Prince Hotel and Arielle and I had the Good Fortune we did an interview with him and he was but over the years his idea about being here now we see that in all the religions about taking a look at what is now we’ve you just bring that that’s why I say whenever I see you I feel nothing but good I feel nothing
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but how can I help you share that message that just radiates from you it took a while to to to be I think brave enough to create a a space that was Interfaith you know Interfaith has been there a lot of ways and a lot of expressions and so certainly at the Temple of Peace we make ourselves available to welcome all people of faith and faith is such a personal thing so we’re not uh we’re but yet at the same time it is our faith in each other that we come together in this way but we came together as Community for this this
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disaster uh on this day this is 9 11 9 11. this is 9 11. yeah yeah our I think that our Lahaina is very similar to a 911 type of event it’s that big for everybody and um Maui is so beloved throughout the world that I don’t think that we’ve ever had this much attention coming to us no and we’re the number one we’re right up there in the travel destinations in the world but now they’re really looking hopefully Over the Horizon and can come here and go back with more than just the
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suntan and that’s our job yeah to share with them so they recognize that in it’s more than just a vacation place it’s a an experience for our lifetime well we are the furthest land mass from any place on planet Earth it’s not something and the Very fact that we find each other on this little island in the middle of the ocean uh with a group of wonderful people who are all here seeking the same thing and we’ve run into each other we recognize each other we see Kindred Spirits in each other I
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recognize you I don’t know how I recognize you but I do and uh why is that is because there’s something so the same in each and every single one of us and I think that that’s part of what the Temple of Peace makes itself available to I say that you say you’re in a neutral zone I I oftentimes joke that we’re the Switzerland of temples uh we whatever your teacher is we welcome that teacher it’s not like we’re exclusively only the teachers that we have come across in this lifetime but rather
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embracing everybody’s the spirit of guidance each one of us has the opportunity to be looking in this lifetime where am I going to find guidance and how is it that I can find Guidance with others who I resonate with who will lift me up and bring me into a place of recognition recognizing there actually we’re all in this together and so why the separation so somebody’s got to do it somebody’s got to take the opportunity and say listen we’re all in this together and we Embrace I always
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say to people we were loose in open affiliation of like-minded beings who know when to show up because uh and you can never be late for the Temple of Peace of any other services because you’re always in Divine time as RAM does um after he departed um his wonderful the lady that was taking care of him dasima sent over a clock to the temple and it’s in each numeral is who has the word now what time is it it’s now so I think about this there’s so much great gratitude and uh that we we have
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by being present when we can be present with what is and focus on the good that is ours then we claim that good and make it our own and we make it our own for each other on this island and for our brothers and sisters all around the world as I’m sitting here I was thinking maybe I should see if Kedar wants to put out the cosmic yes and I thought wait that’s a lot of memorization there’s so many things about what you do that are so uplifting there if you guys haven’t been to the Temple of Peace
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you get an extra cookie from me I don’t have cookies but you’ll come to me and I’ll give you my cookie you should go to the Temple of Peace it is an experience like you’re not going to ever forget and you’ll want to come back and we’re going to have to build a second I really believe in small is beautiful but linking all them together is I’m with you and what and what I’m so thrilled about with the day and age that we’re in just like right now it’s small but it’s reaching so many people and
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that message is going out yeah that we have the opportunity to connect in this way never before have we had such connection which I think is an evolution in Consciousness and when we start bringing words further forth that are inclusive in our languaging that’s a sign of an advanced culture so that we can find the the new the neutral ground or the solid ground or the ground that is there beneath us all you know and all we have to do is basically knock knock and you shall find seek seek and you shall find knock in the door shall
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be opened up I was just I used to say that uh we people have to knock on the door and open the door into this new world that’s right with all that’s gone on in our world there is no more door yeah it should be that they can just be walking in and make it feel natural and you are that natural door you’ve been really beautiful I think that when we uh think about Maui I cannot for the life of me think of a a better ambassador of love and peace that could Bridge all these different religions and the and
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different languages and cultures together you do it just so well you’re just such a great representative of that I well thank you have you um um now you guys are probably have other things and plans for what you’re doing now anything that you’d like to share with our audience of what’s coming up so that they might be able to well I think that uh one of the things which is coming up is us being so much more available online uh you know during the pandemic uh where we’re all closed down
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uh we did our best to comply with all the rules and regulations and one of the things that came about was we weren’t allowed to have our services inside so I created an outside place called the peace Pavilion and claimed as much of it as I possibly could we’re putting big canopies up really nice beautiful canopies and making it an outside environment so uh I think the good things which are coming up right now is that we have a much bigger space to do our Universal Services you know where we can
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bring more people in the Temple of Peace itself is a very small little chapel I can imagine this is a chapel that’s been there since 1938 in the old plantation days and so it’s rather small but now with the peace Pavilion and so many more people coming forth and identifying with the the god of their understanding whatever it is I’m not gonna sit there or stand there and prosely to anybody that to try to convert anybody to anything only uh encourage people to step into the mystery step into who they are and
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show up you know 95 of it all is just showing up and if we can show up and we can show up together and we can create a platform where we’re accepting people we’re not discriminating against people we’re open arms and we’re sharing our hearts then I think that effect is goes out into the world and that’s if anything we could say that love is our religion uh although it’s beyond love is beyond religion it’s Universal and it’s the recognition that each of us are here for a purpose and have a
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purpose and finding out what their purpose is and if we’re in in service to others to help them to come to the path then we’re on the path I always say like when you when you’re on the path you look for signs when you’re off the path you look for excuses so the signs are are people happy here is this is this is this a good thing yes it is I’ve had people actually come to the Temple of Peace that have not stepped on a foot and stepped a foot in church in each so-called Church
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for 30 or 40 years and said I came in I wasn’t I didn’t know quite what was going on and something just led me to come in and I sat there for a moment and I felt like I’ve come home I’ve come home to a place where people are not judging me by the way that I look or the clothes that I’m wearing or the car that I’m driving or that the area that I live but rather just accept me for who I am and I think that if if our mission is anything at all it is to embrace all of God’s family
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uh exactly as they are without imposing our will upon them but inviting them to step it up to step into their higher recognition of themselves or their family their community and to do good things so that’s that’s what I think well it’s really very very attractive I’m sure you guys that are on our Island are thinking well let me how do I write that down Temple of peacemawi.com okay yeah you remember that you remember it easy on website’s under construction Right In This Moment a little bit oh
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yeah well you know it’s growth is good we’re growing that’s the big thing right I have the same thing on mine I always encourage people when you go look realize those spaces that’s for our growth we’re in the process of growing and if you have something you could contribute to this experience give us a whistle you know now we only have a few more minutes left I believe it or not my eyes have this challenge of looking it looks like we have a minute 44 left is that possible I guess it is where did that go boy what
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happened and I excuse me if I’m a little bit wordy I hope I’ve given you time anything that you know that you would like to deliver to the audience that I may not have given you room to it’s not you have given me plenty of room here uh I I so appreciate that you invited me in here to have a chat with you today you’re very special and you’re very important to me and I and I recognize the work that you’ve been doing over the years uh even though I haven’t been uh a regular listener of
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your show uh you know uh it’s amazing that uh here we are sitting here on this beautiful on this 9 11 day talking about peace and love wait till you look at the website you’ll see that all those videos of all these events all these years between me and Todd Swan we’ve covered so many events he’ll be getting his videos on May you rest in peace get his into our site it’s like looking at the last 30 years of Maui when you explore our weather the Maui family and now what’s really amazing is it is a whole
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new generation of Maui family showing up yeah well we are almost out of time Kedar St John Temple of Peace Haiku thank you for being our guest here at the neutral zone I’m Jason Schwartz your host thank you guys for joining us from all over Maui and all over the world please come back and remember whatever it is remember who you are hello everyone aloha [Music]
