Tears and gratitude: Bishop Donohoe retires after 13 years of service

Bishop Paul Patrick Donohoe retires after more than a decade as bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Rarotonga in the Cook Islands, paving the way for Bishop Reinaldo Buny Gaitalado to take over as new leader

On Sunday 30 June, Bishop Donohoe ended his 13-year tenure as Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Rarotonga and was appointed Auxiliary Bishop.

As Bishop Donohue presided over the procession at St. Joseph’s Cathedral for the last time, Joe Akawa-Toki, who will soon be 81, fought back tears, his heart filled with gratitude and melancholy.

Outside the cathedral, Akawa Toki waited for a moment, frustrated but patient, with Bishop Donohoe.

When the moment came, his eyes sparkled with tears of gratitude and sorrow as he embraced the bishop.

In the 13 years since Bishop Donohoe arrived at the Catholic Diocese of Rarotonga in the Cook Islands, he has been a beacon of spiritual comfort and steady guidance for Akawatoki and the community.

“I’m going to miss him, and we’re going to go together,” Akawa Toki said.

“We hope he is a blessing to me, a blessing prayer, and our prayers are for ourselves.”

Auxiliary Bishop Paul Patrick Donohoe and Bishop Reinaldo Buny Gaitalado of Rarotonga, Cook Islands, pose after a special church service. MELINA ETCHES/24070112

On Sunday morning, during a solemn church service on the feast of St. Peter and St. Paul, Bishop Donohoe retired and Bishop Reinaldo Bueny Guetalado was installed as the new bishop.

Bishop Reinaldo expressed his “deep gratitude” to Bishop Donohoe for his 13 years of pastoring the Catholic diocese and to the wonderful priests who have given their Christian lives fully to it.

Carl Grassi of St Joseph Parish in Avarua said: “This is an exciting day, not only for the parish but for the people of the Cook Islands and the people of New Zealand as we welcome and support Bishop Reinaldo. We wish him all the best.”

“We also send our warmest wishes to Bishop Paul for the support he will continue to give and for the 13 years he has spent ministering to the faithful through encouragement and teaching us through faith on our way to Christ. We are grateful for all that we have learned.

“I pray that we will continue to empower our people, especially our Catholic community.”

Bishop Reinaldo received a beautifully carved Toco Toco, representing the special staff used by shepherds to protect and manage their flocks.

Sculptor Vainekiki Tomokino said he was honoured to carve the third Tok Tok for the Bishop of the Cook Islands.

“I’m so glad they asked me to carve this tokotoko, it’s very special for an important event, I’ve already carved two others in the past,” Tomokino said.

After the service, parishioners gathered for a kaikai, where representatives from the parishes of Rarotonga and Paenua, as well as representatives of the various ethnic groups in the Church, gave speeches of thanks and welcome.

Bishop Reinaldo is the first bishop from Asia to serve in the Cook Islands. His predecessors were from France, Belgium, the Netherlands and New Zealand.

Bishop Donohoe will hold his final church service at St Joseph’s Cathedral in Avarua at 10am on Sunday, July 14.