Te Kopara 70
[3] Te Kopara, Number 70, Gisborne, 31 October, 1919.
‘Iti te Kopara, kai takirikiri ana i runga i te Kahikatea.’
Although the Bellbird is small, he plucks at the Kahikatea. [cf Nga Pepeha 908]
DIOCESE OF WAIAPU
The Bishop’s Address to the Synod held at Napier of 10 October, 1919.
The Bishop greeted the soldiers who had returned from the war and paid tribute to those who died on the battlefield, and he expressed his love for the families of the soldiers who returned. ‘It cannot be the sword that brings life to the world. The way of the sword brings death, casting down and overthrowing. The world will know life if we seek the authority with power to save, to raise up, to establish. We, the Church, have that authority. The law is unable to save. The law has no power to help. The power that brings salvation to all the people of the world is in the cross of Christ.’
The Bishop paid tribute to those who have died, to the ministers Turuturu Ngaki, Waata Kopae and Nepia Hotene. Turuturu was ordained Deacon in 1901 and Priest in 1912. He was minister to the Parish of whakatane from 1901 to 1910. Then he was moved to Te Puke. He ministered there right up to his death. He was a gentle man who faithfully served his Lord. He was also a man loved by his people. He had served as a minister for nineteen years.
Waata Kopae and Nepia Hotene were made Deacons in December,1917.
Waata was appointed minister for Nuhaka. He was a man who devoted his strength to the work of the Church. The parish grieves for him greatly. He was loved by the children throughout his parish.
Nepia Hotene was appointed assistant-minister in the parish of Ohinemutu.
I express my sympathy to their widows and their families.
Another minister who has been taken in recent days is the Rev Edward Jennings. In 1881 he was made Deacon and in 1887 he was ordained Priest. He was appointed as teacher at the Maori school at Rangiatea for three years at the beginning of his ministry. From 1885 to 1890 he was one of the teachers at Te Rau College. From 1890 to 1907 he was Head Teacher of Waerenga-a-hika School.
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He was someone who put much thought into his work, someone who loved the Maori People and who a good grasp of the Maori language. He was a humble and gentle man.
The Bishop had words of praise for those from this Diocese who had been sent as chaplains to the soldiers, Pakeha and Maori – the Revs. Henare W Te Wainohu, Canon John Arthur Lush, Peni Hakiwai, and Eric D Rice.
A project is under way to set up a [Whare-ropu-minita – House for a group of ministers (Bush Brotherhood)] in the Opotiki area. Two English clergy have agreed to come to New Zealand to run that House – Canon H H Foster and Rev E Hunt. Canon Foster was Head of a large college in England. When he has established that clergy house he is to return to England whence each year he will send some of the men who have passed through the college to be ministers at that house. The area they will cover extends from Opotiki to Waiapu. Three or four ministers will be permanently at that house. The house will be open to Maori and Pakeha clergy wishing to take a rest from parish work and also to get an in-depth knowledge of the work of the Church.
The cost of that house will be between £3000 and £4000.
Maori Mission.
Clergy Stipends.
The difficulty that we are facing now is that of stipends for the minister. The reason why there are difficulties in this area is the weakness of some of the parishes when it comes to collecting the appropriate amount. As happened in one parish – in 1918 they collected one hundred and eighty pounds (£180) as a stipend for their minister, this year not a single penny.
This situation means that it is difficult to carry on the work, it is weak, even on the part of those who are the leaders of the work. This situation, this sickness, will be cured by each person wh0 is called a faithful member of the Church having the same idea of giving an amount, as much as he is able to give each year, to support the work of God.
The business and the work of God will be accomplished well if this is done with generosity, commitment and stout-heartedness.
The Hui was held at Pupuaruhe in the Bay of Plenty. At that Hui one of the laymen moved: ‘That this Hui agrees, because it is right, that each person should give a tenth of all his wealth to God.’ Were this to be practised by the Pakeha and the Maori throughout this
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province, the work of clergy and wardens in all parishes would be so much easier.
There is not much work involved in keeping accounts of the expenditure each year. Some are not doing much to keep on appealing for money to help the work in other parts of the Diocese, because the funds of the Church are lumped together to provide for parishes that are weak and to help the work of God in lands abroad.
A Reserve Fund.
The parishes of Moteo, Waipatu and Waipawa, in the Archdeaconry of Hastings, Hawkes Bay, have done very well in that they have set up a scheme for contributing to a reserve fund to support their parishes. It has taken a long time to implement the scheme because of the collection for the soldiers.
As those other collections have ended, it is now possible to set about introducing that scheme. If the scheme is successful then the problem of providing for clergy in this archdeaconry will be solved. Other parishes have begun to follow their example.
Alcohol.
The subject of drinking alcohol has been dealt with by the Synod in some recent years, especially with regard to the prohibition area of Horouta, and there were some speeches about the amount of drinking that was going on there. At that time a Committee was set up to work on the matter and to ask the Minister of the Crown to devise a suitable solution. The main thing that [the Committee] asked for was that both the person who gave or sold the liquor and the person who received it should both be prosecuted. Only in this way could the evil be done away with; it was not possible to achieve it in any other way. The Minister replied: ‘It is not possible to work on this matter during this time of war, but when the war ends it will be dealt with.’ We have come to that time. The war nas ended and this Synod can now take up the matter afresh. The disastrous effects of that ‘food’ are still the same; it has no benefits. It may appear that the terrible impact is limited in those areas where alcohol is prohibited because of the strong arm of the law, but alcohol is still found there, and will continue to be found there if no law is made. This plan is also needed for those areas where alcohol is not prohibited for we see in those areas the dominance and the evil effects of that ‘food,’ particularly amongst the young people of the Bay of Plenty at the Hui held at Pupuaruhe in June. What was wrong about the prohibition law in Horouta area was that it did not do away with that ‘food’ but simply forbade a person from being near it, while the ‘food’ itself was still there as a temptation to Maori. At the time of the vote Maori had no separate power to vote, but could only stand there dumb. This is not the right way.
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We know that the Maori Councils had power to deal with this problem and we saw some good results for a time. Those Councils still exist but in name only. At the Hui held at Waimarama last August there was strong support for the motion passed at Pupuaruhe: ‘This Hui is of the opinion that not even one or several Maori Councils, although they have the power, will have the strength to deal with the alcohol problem; therefore we ask that when the next Synod meets it looks for a way of doing away with that evil thing.’ Therefore I am asking that a Committee be set up to work on this matter now.
THE REV E JENNINGS.
On Sunday, 4th October, the Rev E Jennings of Waerenga-a-hika entered into rest. This man was one of the leading elders of the Church in Gisborne. He was a good and gentleman. His finest sermon was not delivered in good words but in a good life.
This man was from Nelson in the South Island, and he was born there. In 1881 he was made Deacon. At first he became a schoolmaster in the Maori schools. This was his work at Rangiatea from 1882 to 1885. After that he came to teach at Te Raukahikatea under Archdeacon Leonard Williams who was made Bishop of Waiapu. In 1890 he became Head Teacher of Te Waerenga-a-hika College, a position he held until 1907. Since then he has lived the retirement life of the elderly.
He was an elder well-known to Pakeha and Maori in this whole area for all his good works. Farewell, Koro, to your rest.
A CORRECTION.
Te Kopara Number 69 was wrong in saying that Waewae Ratapahi was to be made Priest. He is at Te Rau learning the deep matters of the work of a minister. In December he will return to Motiti to work amongst his own people for a time. His people are working to erect a church on their island. The money given so far exceeds £200. All strength to you, remnant of Motiti. We are sending your child to help you.
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WAIMARAMA.
The Maori Synod Hui was held at Waimarama on 15th August. When the Synod’s work was finished, matters to do with the Soldiers’ Fund were dealt with. After that business of the Tamatea Council was attended to.
The house in which the people met is called Taupunga. Some at the Hui asked: ‘What is the significance of this name, Taupunga?’ I replied: ‘It is one of the anchors of Takitimu canoe and it lies on the beach at Waimarama. Another of the anchors is out at sea, a groper [hapuku] rock. It is called Muhuaka. The rollers of Takitimu lie at Waimarama at the Mokomokouri River mouth. The rollers are in a line from the lowest tide mark right up to the land. The trees are totara. The roots and the branches still lie there quietly. When the surface is disturbed by the waves one can see their ranks clearly. In the days of the faith Tiakitai dug up those trees to build a church. They were carried to land and heaped up. In the morning they were no longer on land; they had returned to their resting places. For three days the same thing happened. Then they were set on fire and burnt together. At last they stayed on land and did not go back. Then they were dressed as uprights for the church. When the church was completed Tiakitai and his younger brother went to Turanga to fetch his son, Te Teira Tiakitai, who had married a woman there. Out at sea the thirty of them all died. It was in 1847. A storm had come up during the night. Not a single person was washed ashore, only their boat. The boat was not damaged. It came to land at Waikokopu.
When Takitimu sailed from Waimarama it headed south. The four people left behind were Tuterangi-wetewetea, Tunui, Taaitehe, and Kaewa. All these four men were tohunga. Tunui got this name, Waimarama, from his reflecting pool. Should a war party come from Heretaunga and land on the beach at Waipuke its reflected image would be seen in that spring. A count was made and if there were more than one hundred it was known that this was a war party. They would climb into the canoes and paddle to the island known as Motuokura (Bare Island). So when the men landed, the people were safe, having crossed to the island. Hence the name, Waimarama, from the clarity of that spring.
The house of this man Tunui had a greenstone door¹ and also a greenstone beam in front. The name of the door of that house was Tauira-karapa. The name of the beam was Te Rama-apakura. The beam was visible. We know of eight generations from the man who owned that house.
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Because the descendants of Rakaipaka married the descendants of Rakai-hikuroa and Te-ao-matarahi the beam of that house was taken to Nuhaka. In the Tuhoe waiata it says:
[The following translation of A Lament for Te Maitaranui by Pikihuia is from Nga Moteatea Part II, pp.92ff. – Barry Olsen]
There was news of an eel (feast) wafted hither
From Te Papuni, and from Wharawhara [and]
‘Twas then you boasted, ‘The progeny of Mahanga
Abandons foodstores and his canoe’,
And the ‘progeny of Tuhoe, wasteful of treasures,
And wasteful of the lives of men unto the shades of night’.
Verily, a grievous death in the presence of Hineireireia,
For the one whose skin was deeply tattooed by Weo.
Onwards passed the tribes, they passed onwards o’er Mohaka;
And strewn about were their bones, strewn on Tangitu,
A feast it was indeed for the fish at Rangiriri.
The leader of the school of whales was taken apart
In payment for Te Rou, and Te Apa-rakau,
Who were killed by Tikitu, the progeny of ‘Whiro-of-the-night’
And of Taiwhakaea of this world.
Proceed into Tutira, because of Tiwaewae,
This sorrow which we shared with you
May now be recalled, O Tohe’, in the west,
And, perhaps, a death may be avenged.
Behold, O Sons, these eyebrows of ours
Were displayed proudly before Tamaki’s party,
It was thus Te Heketua was secured and Nuhaka overrun;
As an exchange token for visitors there was Te Tama-apakura²,
Proceed onward into Te Mahia
Because of Kahawai and Kauae-hurihia,
From the drinking waters of Te Rito-o-te-rangi,
There at the fallen stronghold of Puke-karoro
Was heard the triumphant shouting
From the crowded beach at Taiwananga, ah me.
The door is still lying at Waimarama between Rangitoto Hill and Matanginui Hill. Looking back over past generations this was three generations before those of us who are still alive. We dug for that door and located it. The wooden rollers were of maire. There was thunder and rain, and snow fell. The deluge was telling us that we would not be able to dig it up. And it sits there today and we have been unable to dig it up. But we know where it lies. The door and the beam belonged to Tunui, one of the men on board Takitimu. Six generations brings us to the migration from Turanga of Rakai-hikuroa and his family. It was the death of Tupurupuru that brought about this migration from Turanga. When that migration arrived he was still alive.
Mohi Te Atahikoia.
[¹ The words ‘tatau pounamu’ (greenstone door) refer to ‘enduring peace, and sometimes apparently to some visible symbol of the same’ (Williams, p.397). Tunui’s ‘tatau pounamu’ may not have been a sliding door made of greenstone but a door which symbolized the peace which was to prevail when one entered the whare-nui.
² The note in Nga Moteatea says that Te Rama-apakura was ‘a greenstone war club presented by Te Ta-ka-tau, chief of the Ngati Rakaipaka, to the Tuhoe, as a peace offering. Our article says that it was a ‘paepae’ which Williams says is ‘the beam across the front of a house’ or ‘a door sill.’ I opted for ‘beam.’ – Barry Olsen.]
KING TE RATA
We Maori people are not going to grow to maturity while our chiefs give a cause to take wrong paths. Indeed, ‘king’ Te Rata of Waikato has been fined twenty pounds for selling liquor.
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A GIFT FROM THE MAORI CLERGY TO THE REV CANON F W CHATTERTON.
On Tuesday, 14th October, the Maori ministers attending the Synod gathered at Hukarere School. They and their Elder were dining there. After dinner the Rev F Peneti stood to salute the Elder who had taught the young Maori at Te Rau College for seventeen years. Although he has left Te Rau his students still remember him. While he was living as Head Teacher at Te Rau College, his position was not just that of a teacher but that of a true father to all the young men who happened to live under his tutelage.
Because the clergy lived in widely separated villages they were not able to gather when their Elder left for the Parish of Rotorua, so they waited until the time of the Synod. ‘Now we present to you in the name of all the ministers who sat under you a token of their affection, a sum of £25. It is for you to buy something that will be a suitable reminder of your young Maori children. Do not look at how small this gift is, for nothing can adequately reflect the affection your students have for you.’
When the Elder stood, all his students, now ministers, applauded him. The Elder was deeply moved by the generosity of his young men towards him. ‘Our hearts are joined together by everlasting love. You, the Maori People, are always in my thoughts. When the Bishop first offered me the Parish of Rotorua I declined because it involved working with Pakeha only. When he offered it the second time he added to it the work of supervising the Maori Church. Then I agreed, realizing that some of my young Maori and I would be working together. I cannot find the right words to express my gratitude to you and my appreciation of the generous gift you have presented to me. I did not know that this was the purpose of your invitation to me this day.
Thank you all, and the blessings of the Heavenly Father rest upon all of you.’
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Woods’ Great Peppermint Cure is very good for Flu and Colds.
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THE NEW BISHOP OF MELANESIA.
On 21st September, John Manwaring Steward was consecrated as Bishop of the Islands of Melanesia in St Paul’s Cathedral, Wellington. The previous bishop had resigned. Mr Steward was elected by his fellow clergy in Melanesia to be their Bishop. Mr Steward has been doing the work of spreading the faith for seventeen years in those islands. He is at home in that part of the world, happy to live in lands where the sun shines strongly. He has learned the language of the inhabitants of the islands of Melanesia. The Bishop of Waiapu attended the consecration of that man, taking Peneti as his companion. Peneti expressed the to the new Bishop the love and the congratulations of the Maori People on his being called to be Bishop.
When the Bishop replied he said that when he returns he would like to visit the Maori marae. He would very much like Maori clergy to come to work with him in the islands of Melanesia. There are some islands where the people are very like the Maori of New Zealand and their language is very like the Maori language. It would not take long for Maori to learn some of the languages of Melanesia. Friends, who work together in the Lord’s vineyard, Te Kopara strongly supports this idea of the Maori Church starting to send out our representatives to proclaim the love of our Lord to peoples living in darkness. The centenary of Mr Marsden’s first proclamation of the Gospel to our forebears has passed. His text was: ‘Do not be afraid; I bring you tidings of great joy which shall be for all people.’ (Luke 2.10) The appropriate time for us to celebrate the centenary of the coming of the faith to Aotearoa has passed; the war made us forget. However let us think about it again.
Te Kopara spoke directly: The approach of the celebration of the centenary of the coming of the faith to us gives us a reason to think about our relations living in the islands of Melanesia. Scholars have shown that the Hawaiki migrants came by way of Melanesia. Genealogies go back to our ancestors who lived in Hawaiki. It is thought that some of the canoes settled on some of those islands. Therefore it is right that this part of the Maori People should be concerned for that part of the Maori People. We have grown old in the faith, while the inhabitants of some of those islands are still cannibals.
Mr Marsden’s text to us on 25th December, 1814, was a text which also points us to our kin
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living in darkness. ‘Do not be afraid; I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be for all people.’ First, can we not find a strong you man of understanding, with a heart committed to Christ, amongst the Maori People to go and preach to the Melanesians? Secondly, are we, the Maori Church, not able to put together a fund to provide a stipend for that person in Melanesia? The size of the fund would need to be one thousand pounds. Were the whole of New Zealand to contribute to this fund the burden on the whole Maori People would be light. The capital would remain for ever but the interest on it of £50 a year would be sent to support the minister. Most of the food for that minister would then come from the food of the Church.
We would remind Christian people who are making wills to set aside part of the possessions they are leaving behind as a thanksgiving to their heavenly Father. The following is the wording that you can insert in your will: ‘I give to the Bishop of Melanesia and his successors the amount of … pounds as a fund to support a minister or some ministers doing the work of the Church of England under the authority of the Bishop of Melanesia. That Fund should bear my name, that is, “The ….. Fund”.’
This is a better memorial of a person than wasting huge amounts on a stone. It is better to have small stones bearing the name. But remember that even so it will not benefit anyone. Very few people will see the stone. Whereas a contribution to the Fund will ensure that the person’s name appears before Synod every year. The Fund will continue to bless the work of the Church for ever.
May God guide us and strengthen us as we undertake this project relating to the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ.
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For sore throats take Woods’ Great Peppermint Cure.
FOOD FOR TE KOPARA.
October
Name / Address / Payment / Subscription Ends
C Ellis / Hunterville, Wellington / 5/- / January 1920
Rewi Tamihana / Wairoa, HB / £1 / April 1922
M V Bell / C/o Native Lands Department, Gisborne / 5/- /June 1919
Aporo Te Huiki / Puketapu / 5/- / September 1917
Kia Nepata / Puketapu / 5/- /October 1920
Mohi Te Atahikoia / Pakipaki, HB / 5/- / April 1918
Tiaki Rewiri / Pupuaruhe, Whakatane / 5/- / October 1919
PRINCIPAL FOR TE AUTE.
The Pakeha newspapers have carried an advertisement for a Principal for Te Aute College. That person will be paid £400 a year, and will be provided with a house, firewood, and electricity.
The position of Teacher, under the Principal, is also advertised. The wage for that position is £250, with house, firewood, and electricity. The candidate for this position should be able to teach agriculture.
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MORE ITEMS.
The Teachers at Te Aute.
Mr Wills, the Second Master at Te Aute College, has resigned as is to take up the post of Head Teacher of the Maori School at Otaki. The Principal of Te Aute, the Rev McNickle, has also resigned. His own illness and the stress of the recent death of his wife, has led Mr McNickle to decide to give up teaching. Te Kopara thanks these men for their work for the children of the Maori People. Mr Wills leaves in October and Mr McNickle is December.
Payment for Sheep Work.
The Arbitration Court for Wellington and some other areas has decided on pay for sheep work:
For Shearing
For 100 sheep £1 10 0
For rams Twice the rate.
For hoggets The rate and a half.
Daily Rates
Pressers, weekly £3 10 0
Preseers, hourly 2 0
Others, weekly 3 5 0
Others, hourly 1 10
Children, 16 to 18,
weekly 2 10 0
Children, 16 to 18,
hourly 1 6
Cooks, for 1-12
people, weekly 4 0 0
Assistant Cooks,
weekly 3 10 0
If there are more than twelve people, it is for the run-holder and the cook to negotiate the wage. In considering the above rates remember that the run-holder is to provide the food.
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The Book Shop for purchasing Prayer Books and Hymn Books has been moved to Napier, therefore those requiring Prayer Books and Hymn Book are to send to: Miss K Williams, P O Box 41, Hukarere, Napier.
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