As with One Mouth

Many people knew Robert Mondoy far better than I ever did.

They knew him as a son, a brother, an uncle, a cousin, a mentor, a fellow musician, and a dear friend. For more than four decades, Robert faithfully served the Diocese of Honolulu as a gifted liturgical musician, composer, choir director, and teacher. His sacred music beautifully blended the richness of the Church’s tradition with the cultural rhythms and languages of Hawaiʻi, helping generations of Catholics not simply sing—but pray.

I can only tell you how I knew him.

Mostly, I knew Robert from the pew.

There were a few personal encounters over the years that I treasure. He encouraged me to keep learning the piano and pointed me toward the wonderful resources on his website. During the COVID lockdown, I had the chance to thank him for his collaboration Shelter Me, a song that brought comfort during an unsettling time. Once, while I was teaching Catechesis of the Good Shepherd to the children in our parish—and needed someone to give voice to our songs because I certainly couldn’t—Robert graciously stepped in.

Those moments meant a great deal to me.

But my story with Robert really began years earlier.

In 2017, after many years away from the Church, I cautiously walked back through the doors of St. John Vianney Parish.

I was estranged.

I didn’t feel like I belonged.

Then the Church began to sing.

Week after week, I came back.

At first, I simply knew that the music moved me. Robert’s liturgical music captivated me, but it wasn’t only the Psalms. Every hymn, every sung prayer, every acclamation gently carried the liturgy forward, and what had once felt like disjointed pieces became one beautiful act of worship.

Without realizing it, I began singing too.

Sunday after Sunday, my voice found its place among the voices around me.

The Scriptures began opening before me. I began to see the Old Testament reaching toward Christ and the New Testament fulfilling those promises. The Psalms became a bridge between the two.

The Mass was no longer something I attended.

It became home.

Looking back now, I realize that while I thought Robert’s music was bringing me back each Sunday, Christ was using that faithful ministry to call me—a lost sheep—home.

Years passed.

Our parish entered a different season.

Robert became ill.

We prayed.

We hoped.

We entrusted him to the will of the Good Shepherd whom he had spent a lifetime helping us to know.

On July 3, 2026, we received the heartbreaking news that Robert had passed away.

Sadness overcame all of us, of course, but there was also a quiet peace.

We had been praying so hard, for so long, that God would restore Robert’s health. Yet as much as we longed for that outcome, we also entrusted him to the will of the Good Shepherd.

So this past Saturday, I walked through those same church doors once again—this time for Robert’s Funeral Mass—with a tender heart.

The first reading proclaimed the promise of the resurrection.

Then came the Responsorial Psalm.

“The Lord is my Shepherd; I need nothing more.”

Robert’s own composition.

The cantor sang.

Then the congregation answered.

I don’t know how else to describe it except to say that when everyone opened their mouths to sing, it was as if we all had one voice.

Immediately, my mind went to one of my favorite passages in Scripture. In the Book of Daniel, the three young men, standing in the midst of the fiery furnace, bless the Lord “as with one mouth.”

Then the three, as with one mouth, praised and glorified and blessed God in the furnace…”
— Daniel 3:28

Many voices.

One prayer.

I had read those words before.

Yesterday…

I heard them.

As I looked around the church, tears filled my eyes.

Eight years earlier, I had walked through those same doors wondering if I belonged.

Now I found myself surrounded by brothers and sisters in Christ.

Different ages.

Different stories.

Different voices.

One Shepherd.

One prayer.

One voice.

In that moment, I realized I wasn’t the only one Robert had helped bring closer to Christ.

All around me were people whose faith had been strengthened, comforted, nourished, and deepened through the same faithful witness that had once reached me.

Perhaps that was Robert’s greatest composition.

Not simply the music he wrote.

But the way, by God’s grace, it gathered us more deeply into the worship of God.

As I left the church, one refrain remained in my heart:

“The Lord is my Shepherd; I need nothing more.”

Thank you, Robert.

Thank you for helping this lost sheep find her way home.

Learn More About Robert Mondoy

No single post could capture the full measure of Robert Mondoy’s life and ministry. If his story or music has touched you, I encourage you to explore these resources:

• Mondoy Music (Official Website) – Robert’s extensive collection of responsorial psalms, Mass settings, hymns, Hawaiian sacred music, piano compositions, and other liturgical resources.
• Hawaiian Catholic Herald Obituary – A beautiful tribute to Robert’s life, ministry, and the lasting legacy he leaves to the Church in Hawaiʻi.