Sir Apirana Ngata Urges New Approach To Church Work Amongst Maori

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 12, Issue 38, 16 April 1948, Page 3

Sir Apirana Ngata Urges New Approach To Church Work Amongst Maori

The Diocese of Waiapu is divided into three Native Church Board districts, the boundaries being approximately those of the three Archdeaconaries. A-, Church conference or Hinota (Synod) is] held in each of these areas once a year. Every three years a Hui Topu, or combined conference, is held and the Archdeaconaries conference is then dispensed with. The Hui Topu was held at the famous and beautiful meetinghouse named “Te Poho-o-Rawiri” at Kaiti, just across the river from Gisborne, last week-end.

All the Maori clergy, the Archdeacons and mission workers and others engaged in Maori work were expected to attend. Maori representatives on Diocesan Synod were also present. The meeting was unusually important for standing committees as well' as the Maori laymen are very anxious to see a forward move on the part of the Church among the Maori people. The Bishop of Waiapu conducted a quiet time for the Maori clergy in the Church at Kaiti on the Saturday morning, t and after lunch the larger gathering was held in the meetinghouse. , Sir Apirana Ngata emphasised the advisability of deciding on a policy governing the training of clergy for the Maori pastorate. He said training now was on exclusively European lines, and the Church had to decide whether that condiiton could continue. The Church authorities had to decide whether to proceed on the expectation that the Maori language would be lost, or whether the Church had to provide for its use to reach the heart and minds of the Maoris. He expressed the opinion that there should be no absolute merging of Maori and European pastorates.