Our final episode of Season 4! This week, we travel to Hawaii with a whole troop of good people to visit some remarkable refugia spaces near Kaneohe Bay on Oahu. This episode, produced by Colin Hoogerwerf and Jim Stump, first aired on the Language of God podcast in April of 2025.
To learn more about the Language of God podcast, visit their website here. Language of God is produced by Biologos, an organization that promotes greater understanding and appreciation of science for people of faith.
In this episode, we visit First Presbyterian Church of Honolulu, the Hoʻokuaʻāina kalo farm, and the Waikalua Loco fish pond.
TRANSCRIPT
Welcome to the Refugia podcast. I’m your host, Professor Debra Rienstra. We are winding up Season 4 today with a very special final episode. Today, we’ll hear sounds and voices and wisdom from an extraordinary refugia site on the island of Oahu, Hawaii.
Last January, my spouse Ron and I had the incredible opportunity to visit Oahu, along with students in our Doctor of Ministry cohort, our friend Ben Lowe of A Rocha USA, and our friends Jim Stump and Colin Hoogerwerf of BioLogos. Colin’s name might sound familiar to you—that’s because he also produced season 4 of this podcast.
Our gang had an amazing time visiting the Kaneohe Bay area and learning about the Hakuhia Project. We also learned that the Hawaiian language has its own word for refugia: it’s kipuka—and you’ll hear all about it in a minute.
What you’re about to hear is a previously released episode of the Language of God podcast, sponsored by BioLogos. I make one cameo appearance to offer a definition of refugia, but today Colin and Jim will serve as our guides and introduce us to the inspiring refugia work in Kaneohe Bay. We visitors were all impressed with the commitment of these folks to “listen to the land, listen to the community.” They inspire us to take a long perspective, and remember that healing takes time, and discernment, and working together.
Many thanks to Colin and Jim for allowing us to reprise the episode here. And many thanks to our gracious hosts in Hawaii, especially Mark and Vicki Lepick, pastor Tim Shaw of First Prez Church, Dean and Michele Wilhelm, and Herb Lee. Thanks also to the Lilly Foundation for supporting our adventure there.
Let’s go to Hawaii!
For a full transcript for this episode, visit the Language of God episode website here.
