Writing this message has caused me to reflect deeply on where I stand in terms of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. I acknowledge that I am not the tuakana (elder brother) here but rather the taina (younger brother) needing to listen and learn.
My earliest engagement with tikanga Māori in the Church was at Knox College in the early 1980s as a fellow student of the Very Rev Tame Takao QSM - who left the Hall to become Moderator of the General Assembly! A kind and gentle mentor of things Māori.
Time spent with Te Aka Puaho at Te Maungarongo, Ohope Marae over the years has been inspirational. Currently, I am meeting early Monday mornings with a friend who is a wise kuia, to chat, to talk tikanga, practice Te Reo and work our way through one of Scotty Morrison’s Māori Made Easy workbooks. From these teachers I have learnt to love the language, to dig into my whakapapa and tūrangawaewae. The river and mountain that I identify with are visible on my daily bike ride to work - embracing my mihi has beautifully deepened my sense of place.
New Zealand’s younger generations are helping too. Struggling with my pronunciation at a Te Reo course recently, I was amazed at the fluency of the younger members of the class. Watching the way Te Reo is naturally incorporated into the education of my grandchildren gives me a deeper understanding as to why this is so. While some of my generation grumble about all manner of things to do with Māori in our society, the younger generation don’t just accept it, they embrace it and celebrate it the way it should be. It is so good to see the younger generation leading the way here.
You can see it in the Church as well. On my journeys as Moderator, I see and hear what is going on. I have been impressed to hear what younger ministers like Mo Morgan at St James at Whanganui, Sebastian Murrihy at Knox Waitara, Jono Barb at Linwood Union and Brendon McRae at Flagstaff Community Church are all doing to honour the Treaty in their context.
Maybe this is the taina leading the tuakana!? And doing so in a way that brings bubbling joy and hope to this nation’s bicultural journey, and our Church’s part in it.
Right Reverend Hamish Galloway
Moderator Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand
moderator@presbyterian.org.nz