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Māori Missions
The Presbyterian Church lay its foundations in New Zealand Aotearoa on the 20th February 1840, just fourteen days after the Treaty of Waitangi, te Tiriti o Waitangi, was signed. The Presbyterian church differed from other denominations, such as Anglican, Methodist and Roman Catholic. These denominations sent Missions to attend to the Māori population as their primary objective. In comparison, Reverend James Mcfarlane was sent on behalf of the Presbyterian Church to create a Mission for the Pākehā settlers. Through his ministry, Reverend Mcfarlane engaged with local iwi. Reverend Mcfarlane noted the devastation of colonisation on Māori, incredibly apparent by the imported diseases that ravished the indigenous people, as well as the broken promises made by the New Zealand Company. Reverend Mcfarlane wrote to the Presbyterian Church in Scotland with the hopes that they would find someone willing to establish a Presbyterian Mission among Māori.
Reverend James Duncan answered this call, and he arrived in New Zealand Aotearoa on 18th April 1843 with the purpose of creating a Māori Mission. Reverend Duncan was so enthusiastic about the prospects of his new role, he began to study Te Reo Māori on his voyage. Upon arrival Reverend Duncan was ushered to Manawatū and made contacts with aging chief Taikapurua and son-in-law Ihakara Tukumaru of Ngāti Raukawa. At this time, there was an Anglican Missionary, Octavius Hadfield, who visited this area every four months. It was at the request of Taikapurua and Tukumaru that Reverend Duncan stay in the area to set up a Mission among their people, as they saw benefits in a residential missionary as opposed to an occasional service provided by the Anglican Church. Hadfield and Reverend Duncan had opposing views on delivering the Holy Communion to Māori and Baptising Māori. Reverend Duncan believed that the Māori people learned the catechisms by way of memory, and they did not fully understand the deeper meaning behind the offering. Therefore, they should not be pressured to receive Communion nor should they be Baptised for similar reasons. Hadfield disagreed, and therefore the pair fell out of each other’s favour.
In 1889, Henry J. Fletcher of Rangitikei took an interest in Māori, and by the end of the 19th Century, had entered the Māori Mission for the Presbyterian Church. Fletcher’s family migrated to New Zealand in 1874 after purchasing a block of land from the New Zealand Company. Unable to find their allotment, they purchased another section near the township of Bulls. When Fletcher was thirteen, he left school and joined a Survey Party, where he crossed paths with Reverend James Duncan. Fletcher felt a call from God to join the Ministry to the Māori people, and when General Assembly were offering a position to work in the North Island Māori Mission, Fletcher applied. In 1893, Fletcher was appointed to conduct a survey of the Taupō area, and estimated that the Māori population ranged from 300-400 individuals, and the Pākehā population reached approximately 300. In the Taupō region, there was one elderly Anglican curate to tend to the 800 souls. Fletcher was quickly appointed by the Presbyterian Church, to take Taupō as his new charge.
At this point, Taupō was a wide and long district, and transit was challenging especially with many creeks and small rivers having no bridges. In 1907, two Deaconesses were ordained and appointed to assist Reverend Fletcher, they were; Mrs. Emare Poraumati and Miss Jane Spence, the latter was known as Sister Alison. The Presbyterian Māori Mission Committee (PMMC) had subsidised Sister Alison’s training at the Training Institute with the aim of her either becoming a field missionary or to teach at the Māori Girls’ School at Turakina. The PMMC was undertaking an ‘experiment’ to see if Deaconesses would be able to carry out the work of missionaries. This use of women in the mission field was not a new concept, as from an international perspective this female orientated initiative had been used for years. Sister Alison conducted services, established Sunday Schools, cared for the sick and injured and brought help and brightness into the community. Sister Alison was appointed the first Māori Mission Deaconess by the Presbyterian Māori Mission Committee, which was hoped to open the door for several other women to work among Māori.
The experiment between Sister Alison and Reverend Fletcher was unsuccessful. It was believed that it was the clash of personalities between Sister Alison and Reverend Fletcher, rather than lack of skills and abilities that caused the disagreements. A primary point of contention was that Sister Alison wanted to treat the sick and injured Māori in portable tents. Reverend Fletcher disputed this by claiming that Māori will not be treated in the same dwelling that another Māori has died in. In other words, Māori would refuse treatments.
In 1905 Turakina Māori Girls’ School was established. The Turakina school was opened by the Right Honourable R. J. Seddon, then Premier, on 13th April 1905. The primary objective of the school was to secure for Māori girls a suitable domestic training, with a view to better living conditions among the Māori, and to address the issues of infantile mortality. The school was opened free from debt and with a suitable balance in hand. On the 21st reunion of Turakina, it was easy to see the benefits of such an institution that in 1928 the new Turakina Māori Girls’ College was opened at Marton by Moderator, the Right Reverend James Aitken.
Another event that happened in 1905 was the introduction of the Māori Mission Birthday League. The idea was to organise and register birthday anniversaries of all the members of the church, and to request of them a sum of not less than one shilling, as a thank-offering on each anniversary.
In the 1916 General Assembly, Miss Annie Henry, who had been a matron at Manunui Māori Boys’ Agricultural School, and who had been studying to become a Deaconess at Training Institute, was ordained Deaconess to Māori. Shew was to be known as Sister Annie. The Manunui Māori Boys’ Agricultural School was established by Reverend J. I. Monfries in 1913. Reverend Monfries had an abundance of knowledge regarding farming and was agreed upon by himself and the Presbyterian Māori Mission Committee that it could be profitable to create an institution to teach Māori boys about farming. Reverend Monfries resigned in 1915 due to poor health. Sister Annie left the school in 1916, and it was soon disestablished.
It was decided that Sister Annie would work amongst the Tūhoe people from Ruatāhuna in the heart of Urewera. It was at a time when there was strong resentment towards Pākehā. Sister Annie was deemed ‘mad’ for even thinking about going into Urewera due to how dangerous it was, and how difficult the landscape was to navigate. This area was the largest settlement where Pākehā had not intruded. Sister Annie was the ‘pathfinder’ of the Tūhoe Mission, and was appointed Deaconess of Ruatāhuna, commencing work in February 1917 aged thirty-seven. Sister Annie was joined by Miss. A. Monfries who volunteered as a teacher. Miss A. Monfries was the sister of Reverend J. I. Monfries. The pair, Sister Annie and Miss Monfries, were gifted a three-room earthen floor whare.
Sister Annie was one of the few Pākehā women who were permitted to speak in traditional Māori settings, such as hui or on marae. Her interruptions of elders at Tūhoe were alarming, as they were never questioned by their brethren, and the elders were unsure of Sister Annie’s motives. Women were often useful in opening new Māori Missions as the initial lack of mana mean that they did not threaten the established male hierarchies. There was a growing emphasis on visiting women and children in their homes to tend to the sick and injured as well as establishing schools. In a sense women were gaining access to the tribal society without disrupting the politics.
Sister Annie helped with the establishment of a school for children aged between five and seventeen and ended up with a role of approximately seventy students. Her students remembered her fondly, and was known as ‘Hihita’ (sister) and admired her strength, courage and her ability to love anyone, no matter who they were. Sister Annie, Hihita, retired in 1948 and in 1971 passed away. She was buried at Ruatāhuna.
As the Māori population began to travel towards cities and towns the PMMC needed to refocus their Mission. The PMMC decided to set up Missions in Auckland, Wellington, Wairoa, Whakatāne and Rotorua. It was common practice that Pākehā men would gravitate towards Missions in larger centres – such as urban cities and towns, whilst women were frequently located in rural areas. The urban migration of Māori meant impacted heavily on the women leading the remote Missions. It was a natural movement that the Māori Mission would evolve into self-supporting congregations within the parent church, or as more of an autonomous structure. With and increasing number of Māori men becoming involved in the ministry of the Presbyterian Church, Pākehā women who worked as missionaries were sometimes designated as their assistance. This arrangement was not appreciated by the Pākehā women, some of whom had established their own Mission stations. These women felt that their role had been taken from them.
There has been over 170 years’ worth of mission and ministry to Māori. After 115 years since the arrival of the Presbyterian Church to New Zealand Aotearoa, the key landmark development was the establishment of the Māori Synod. The Māori Synod is a symbolic of the transition of Māori being subjects of Mission to partners.
References
Laughton, John George. “In Quest of Treasure – The Story of Presbyterian Māori Missions, 1900-1928.” DA3/4. Presbyterian Research Centre, Knox College, Dunedin.
Morrison, Hugh, Lachy Paterson, Brett Knowles and Murray Rae. ed. Mana Māori and Christianity. Wellington: Huia Publishers, 2012.
Reverend James Duncan answered this call, and he arrived in New Zealand Aotearoa on 18th April 1843 with the purpose of creating a Māori Mission. Reverend Duncan was so enthusiastic about the prospects of his new role, he began to study Te Reo Māori on his voyage. Upon arrival Reverend Duncan was ushered to Manawatū and made contacts with aging chief Taikapurua and son-in-law Ihakara Tukumaru of Ngāti Raukawa. At this time, there was an Anglican Missionary, Octavius Hadfield, who visited this area every four months. It was at the request of Taikapurua and Tukumaru that Reverend Duncan stay in the area to set up a Mission among their people, as they saw benefits in a residential missionary as opposed to an occasional service provided by the Anglican Church. Hadfield and Reverend Duncan had opposing views on delivering the Holy Communion to Māori and Baptising Māori. Reverend Duncan believed that the Māori people learned the catechisms by way of memory, and they did not fully understand the deeper meaning behind the offering. Therefore, they should not be pressured to receive Communion nor should they be Baptised for similar reasons. Hadfield disagreed, and therefore the pair fell out of each other’s favour.
In 1889, Henry J. Fletcher of Rangitikei took an interest in Māori, and by the end of the 19th Century, had entered the Māori Mission for the Presbyterian Church. Fletcher’s family migrated to New Zealand in 1874 after purchasing a block of land from the New Zealand Company. Unable to find their allotment, they purchased another section near the township of Bulls. When Fletcher was thirteen, he left school and joined a Survey Party, where he crossed paths with Reverend James Duncan. Fletcher felt a call from God to join the Ministry to the Māori people, and when General Assembly were offering a position to work in the North Island Māori Mission, Fletcher applied. In 1893, Fletcher was appointed to conduct a survey of the Taupō area, and estimated that the Māori population ranged from 300-400 individuals, and the Pākehā population reached approximately 300. In the Taupō region, there was one elderly Anglican curate to tend to the 800 souls. Fletcher was quickly appointed by the Presbyterian Church, to take Taupō as his new charge.
At this point, Taupō was a wide and long district, and transit was challenging especially with many creeks and small rivers having no bridges. In 1907, two Deaconesses were ordained and appointed to assist Reverend Fletcher, they were; Mrs. Emare Poraumati and Miss Jane Spence, the latter was known as Sister Alison. The Presbyterian Māori Mission Committee (PMMC) had subsidised Sister Alison’s training at the Training Institute with the aim of her either becoming a field missionary or to teach at the Māori Girls’ School at Turakina. The PMMC was undertaking an ‘experiment’ to see if Deaconesses would be able to carry out the work of missionaries. This use of women in the mission field was not a new concept, as from an international perspective this female orientated initiative had been used for years. Sister Alison conducted services, established Sunday Schools, cared for the sick and injured and brought help and brightness into the community. Sister Alison was appointed the first Māori Mission Deaconess by the Presbyterian Māori Mission Committee, which was hoped to open the door for several other women to work among Māori.
The experiment between Sister Alison and Reverend Fletcher was unsuccessful. It was believed that it was the clash of personalities between Sister Alison and Reverend Fletcher, rather than lack of skills and abilities that caused the disagreements. A primary point of contention was that Sister Alison wanted to treat the sick and injured Māori in portable tents. Reverend Fletcher disputed this by claiming that Māori will not be treated in the same dwelling that another Māori has died in. In other words, Māori would refuse treatments.
In 1905 Turakina Māori Girls’ School was established. The Turakina school was opened by the Right Honourable R. J. Seddon, then Premier, on 13th April 1905. The primary objective of the school was to secure for Māori girls a suitable domestic training, with a view to better living conditions among the Māori, and to address the issues of infantile mortality. The school was opened free from debt and with a suitable balance in hand. On the 21st reunion of Turakina, it was easy to see the benefits of such an institution that in 1928 the new Turakina Māori Girls’ College was opened at Marton by Moderator, the Right Reverend James Aitken.
Another event that happened in 1905 was the introduction of the Māori Mission Birthday League. The idea was to organise and register birthday anniversaries of all the members of the church, and to request of them a sum of not less than one shilling, as a thank-offering on each anniversary.
In the 1916 General Assembly, Miss Annie Henry, who had been a matron at Manunui Māori Boys’ Agricultural School, and who had been studying to become a Deaconess at Training Institute, was ordained Deaconess to Māori. Shew was to be known as Sister Annie. The Manunui Māori Boys’ Agricultural School was established by Reverend J. I. Monfries in 1913. Reverend Monfries had an abundance of knowledge regarding farming and was agreed upon by himself and the Presbyterian Māori Mission Committee that it could be profitable to create an institution to teach Māori boys about farming. Reverend Monfries resigned in 1915 due to poor health. Sister Annie left the school in 1916, and it was soon disestablished.
It was decided that Sister Annie would work amongst the Tūhoe people from Ruatāhuna in the heart of Urewera. It was at a time when there was strong resentment towards Pākehā. Sister Annie was deemed ‘mad’ for even thinking about going into Urewera due to how dangerous it was, and how difficult the landscape was to navigate. This area was the largest settlement where Pākehā had not intruded. Sister Annie was the ‘pathfinder’ of the Tūhoe Mission, and was appointed Deaconess of Ruatāhuna, commencing work in February 1917 aged thirty-seven. Sister Annie was joined by Miss. A. Monfries who volunteered as a teacher. Miss A. Monfries was the sister of Reverend J. I. Monfries. The pair, Sister Annie and Miss Monfries, were gifted a three-room earthen floor whare.
Sister Annie was one of the few Pākehā women who were permitted to speak in traditional Māori settings, such as hui or on marae. Her interruptions of elders at Tūhoe were alarming, as they were never questioned by their brethren, and the elders were unsure of Sister Annie’s motives. Women were often useful in opening new Māori Missions as the initial lack of mana mean that they did not threaten the established male hierarchies. There was a growing emphasis on visiting women and children in their homes to tend to the sick and injured as well as establishing schools. In a sense women were gaining access to the tribal society without disrupting the politics.
Sister Annie helped with the establishment of a school for children aged between five and seventeen and ended up with a role of approximately seventy students. Her students remembered her fondly, and was known as ‘Hihita’ (sister) and admired her strength, courage and her ability to love anyone, no matter who they were. Sister Annie, Hihita, retired in 1948 and in 1971 passed away. She was buried at Ruatāhuna.
As the Māori population began to travel towards cities and towns the PMMC needed to refocus their Mission. The PMMC decided to set up Missions in Auckland, Wellington, Wairoa, Whakatāne and Rotorua. It was common practice that Pākehā men would gravitate towards Missions in larger centres – such as urban cities and towns, whilst women were frequently located in rural areas. The urban migration of Māori meant impacted heavily on the women leading the remote Missions. It was a natural movement that the Māori Mission would evolve into self-supporting congregations within the parent church, or as more of an autonomous structure. With and increasing number of Māori men becoming involved in the ministry of the Presbyterian Church, Pākehā women who worked as missionaries were sometimes designated as their assistance. This arrangement was not appreciated by the Pākehā women, some of whom had established their own Mission stations. These women felt that their role had been taken from them.
There has been over 170 years’ worth of mission and ministry to Māori. After 115 years since the arrival of the Presbyterian Church to New Zealand Aotearoa, the key landmark development was the establishment of the Māori Synod. The Māori Synod is a symbolic of the transition of Māori being subjects of Mission to partners.
References
Laughton, John George. “In Quest of Treasure – The Story of Presbyterian Māori Missions, 1900-1928.” DA3/4. Presbyterian Research Centre, Knox College, Dunedin.
Morrison, Hugh, Lachy Paterson, Brett Knowles and Murray Rae. ed. Mana Māori and Christianity. Wellington: Huia Publishers, 2012.
Relates to
Recollect CollectionWomenMissionsImagesSr Annie HenryRev. Henry J. FletcherTurakina Maori Girls' College, MartonPersonSister Annie HenryMonfires, A. MissMonfries, J. I. ReverendAitken, JamesSeddon, Richard JohnPoraumati, EmareSpence, Jane 'Sister Alison'Fletcher, Henry J. ReverendDuncan, James ReverendMcfarlane, James ReverendLaughton, John George
MissionsImagesSr Annie HenryRev. Henry J. FletcherTurakina Maori Girls' College, MartonPersonSister Annie HenryMonfires, A. MissMonfries, J. I. ReverendAitken, JamesSeddon, Richard JohnPoraumati, EmareSpence, Jane 'Sister Alison'Fletcher, Henry J. ReverendDuncan, James ReverendMcfarlane, James ReverendLaughton, John GeorgeMāori Missions. Presbyterian Research Centre, accessed 11/12/2024, https://pcanzarchives.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/113367
