MISSION TO MAORIS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22399, 21 April 1936, Page 7

MISSION TO MAORIS

SERVICES IN HAMILTON 1 APPEAL FOR MORE WORKERS [from our own correspondent] HAMILTON, Monday The annual services for Maoris conducted in St. Peter's Cathedral yes- •/ terday. There Mere fair attendances. Holy Communion was celebrated at> 11 . a.m. by Archdeacon Hori Raiti, of Nga- -> ruawahia, and Canon K. A. Karaka, of Morrinsville, was the preacher. Special hymns in Maori were sung , by the Morrinsville Maori choir at the i service held yesterday afternoon, which was conducted by the Rev. W. T. K. - Skey. In his address, Archdeacon Hori Raiti said that a new spirit had ■ veloped in the Maori mission work in "L----the Waikato during the last 10 years, ? and the Maoris greatly appreciated the"' encouragement they had received from Bishop C. A. Cherrington. They re- * garded the opportunity to hold an annual service in St. Peter's Cathedral as a very great privilege. Good progress was being made,, with the Maori Mission in the Waikato diocese, said the archdeacon, although the districts were still far too large for tho three Maori priests and the two pakeha priests engaged in the dioceseto cope with successfully. There had beeu four European lady workers employed in the diocese, but at present there were none. The archdeacon appealed for volunteers for this important branch of the work. . 7 The archdeacon spoke of the setback" Christianity among the Maoris had" received following the Maori War and the confiscation of their land, and spoke of the hope that had been experienced since Bishop Cherrington had - taken interest in the mission. If there . were a sufficient number of workers ' and sufficient monev with which to pay them the work would advance far more rapidly than it had in recent years. He looked forward to the time when v the cathedral would be packed at theannual services provided for the Maoris: