BISHOP OF AOTEAROA. MAORI CHIEFTAINS PAY TRIBUTE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20582, 4 December 1928, Page 8

BISHOP OF AOTEAROA.

MAORI CHIEFTAINS PAY TRIBUTE

A NOTABLE GATHERING.

(Per United IJgESS Association.)

HASTINGS, December 3. A large gathering of Maoris of the North Island, including Sir Apirana Ngata, the boys of Te Ante College, and the girls _of the Hukurere School, as well as the visiting bishops and-a number of pakehas, assembled at Paki-Paki yesterday afternoon to pay tribute to the Right Rev. F. A. Bennett, the new Bishop of Aotearoa. Speeches were delivered by local and visiting chieftains. Sir Apirana Ngata, on behgilf of the Natives, thanked the General Synod for creating an assistant bishop to supervise the work among the Maoris, and in response, he said, the Maori people would have to make good. The new bishop was faced with tremendous responsibilities, but with the goodwill and support of the Maori clergy and laity his work would be made much easier. He emphasised the fact that the work of the church must be adapted to the needs of the Maori race while the fundamentals remained intact. The Primate (Dr Averill), in reply, said it was well to learn to walk before learning to run. He knew that some people desired to see a step yet further forward. He hoped, if the present experiment was a success, to establish a definitely Maori diocese, but that would depend on how the Maoris backed it up.