MAORI MISSIONS

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 170, 20 July 1936, Page 6

MAORI MISSIONS

NEED OF FINANCIAL SUPPORT,

(To the Editor.)

While holding no brief for Bishop Cherrington and disagreeing entirely with those who think that because a man is a bishop his public utterances should not be criticised. I contend that he is on sound ground when he claims that the New Zealand Churches are failing to handle thp Maori missionary problem as strongly and effectively as the circumstances demand. It is true that the Church of England missionary bodies in various parts of the Dominion hold very great areas of land, the income from which is available for Maori education and missions. Yet there are no such assets in Bishop Cherrington's diocese. It would seem that the New Zealand Churches in general are so hard pressed raising money for little-understood mission fields far away that look so wonderful and romantic in the distance that they, without compunction, neglect the children of the race that has suffered so acutely by the very prosperity of the European immigrants to New Zealand. May God speed Bishop Cherrington in his efforts to raise cash in England to do the work among the children of our noble Maori race. The Government schools are a great movement in themselves, but lack the foundation that the British Sovereign insisted upon when giving the charter of self-government. One of the conditions made by the Royal hand was that steps be taken to win the Maori race to Christianity. That charter apparently to our New Zealand Governments is but a scrap of paper. It is regrettable that Bishop Cherrington,. on the occasion of his earlier visit to .England, made statements that, we are toid, deeply hurt the sensibilities of the Maori tribes in the Waikato and Taranaki. Cabled reports of his recent utterances seem again to have upset the Maori people, but the need he is emphasising is there, and certainly New Zealanders are not contributing the necessary funds to carry on the work in full strength. Some of our bishops have told us that to New Zealanders of European descent the needs of the Maori missions should come before those of any other mission whatsoever. Unfortunately they have not yet convinced the Church membership of this" fact, although it seems so obvious that "a wayfaring man though a fool" ought to see its truth. VERITAS.