“Mormons Unhappy About Maoris’ Love Of Carvings”

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29336, 15 October 1960, Page 14

“Mormons Unhappy About Maoris’ Love Of Carvings”

(New Zealand Press Association)

WELLINGTON, October 14. The Mormon Church was unhappy with the attachment of the Nuhaka Maoris to the carvings on the front of the Nuhaka hall representing the people’s ancestors, said a lay member of the church, Mr D. M. Cowley, today. “The Church feels that this is almost idol worshipping,” he said.

Mr Cowley, of Salt Lake City, who is in New Zealand supervising construction work for the church, said this was another reason why the churc . was keen to remove. the carvings and have them sent to Hawaii where a Polynesian village was being built by the Mormons. Mr Cowley said he thought the church had treated the Maoris unfairly. He claimed the Nuhaka Maoris were correct in their assumption that the whole hall would be sent to Hawaii. The man assigned to pull the hall down, crate it, and re-ertjct it in Hawaii was Elder A. Hansen, now in Wairoa. Elder Hansen had made several trips to Nuhaka to decide just how the hall had been put together. The building’s carvings, both inside and out were magnificently done by expert carvers, some cf whom were no longer alive. “If the church takes away the carvings the people will have only a shell left,” said Mr Cowley. Mr A. Anderson, president of the church’s New Zealand South

Mission, said tonight, that the removal of the carvings would admittedly leave just the hall superstructure, but the Maori people would be compensated by having a new modern concrete chapel in its ’stead.

Mr Anderson said he had explained the church’s intention to the Mormon congregation in Nuhaka nine months ago and they had voted to allow the carvings to be taken away. The church had put 140,000 dollars into the hall, he said, and those who protested about the carvings were not of the Mormon faith, /

The construction of the new chapel would begin almost right away' and there would be definitely no Maori carvings in it. He said he had no knowledge of the Nuhaka hall being also a-war memorial. It was used solely for Latter Day Saint services. '