Addres by the Bishop.

Waiapu Church Gazette, Volume XI, Issue 11, 2 May 1921, Page 5

Addres by the Bishop.

Address by the Bishop of Waiapu at the Hui-Topu held at Manutuke on Sunday, 10th April, 1921 :— I welcome you in Christ's name to this Conference. Since our .last HuiTopu there have passed away from among us the Rev. Walter Kopae, the Rev. Nepia Hotene, the Rev. Turuturu Ngaki, the Rev. Ratema Te Awekotuku, and the Rev. Henare Te Wainohu Wepiha. • The Rev. Walter Kopae, after being, trained at Te Rau College, was sent to Nuhaka. There he did a wonderful work during the short time he was permitetd to minister there, winning all by his strong personality and character. He realised the need of winning the children to Christ and gathered them whenever and whe.reever it was possible. , The Rev. Turuturu Ngaki was also trained at Te Rau College, and served the whole period of his , ministry in the Bay of Plenty. His quiet, humble, and consistent Christian life won the respect of all who knew him. The Rev. Nepia Hotene went from Te Rau as assistant curate and was only there a year or so when he was overtaken with illness. He was a quiet and reserved man and had scarcely time to make himself known to the people. - The Rev. Ratema Te Awekotuku came as a student to Te Rau College as an elderly man. As a student he made an historical visit to the Uruwera Country and was one of the first clergymen to penetrate the Uruwera Country since the early days of the Mission. After finishing his College career he was stationed at Whakatane with Turuturu. Later on he was transferred to the "Hot Lakes District, where he remained till his death. During the period of the war, when there was a shortage of clergy, though retired he again did more active work, and his ministration^ were much appreciated by those to whom he ministered. He was a man of calm, strong faith. " ; The x Rev. Henare Te Wainohu Wepiha was a man the Diocese, especially at this juncture, can ill afford to lose. You all know how he volunteered as Chaplain to the Maori Battalion when the war broke out, and how' he wqn the respect and confidence of all with whom he served. It was with his own men that he shone conspicuously. He was their courageous leader, their counsellor, their companion and friend, above all he was their father in God. On many of his men he made a vivid and enduring impression by his spirituality, coupled with a strong personality. He gained material honors for valiant service in the field. He .

has now passed into Paradise, there, to await Ms reward as a good and valiant soldier of Jesus Christ. If is. my intention to hold these triennial "conferences at Manutuke as was 'originally intended. This Conference was due to be held last year, but was postponed owing to my absence in England for the Lambeth Conference. The Lambeth Conference of 1920 was the largest held at Lambeth since its inception. It was attended by 254 Bishops. It dealt with some, of the most pressing! questions that - confront ChristendonL The most, important of the subjects was that deal- ' ing with "The Unity of the Churches." It is our intention tb consider this subject either before or after the next session of our Diocesan -Synod. I will not, therefore^ say anything about it now, /save to commend it earnestly to your thoughts and prayers, There are other matters of local interest as well as of importance, claiming our serious attention to-day. : FINANCE. I regret that I have again to place Finance in a prominent place at this Conference. I had hoped that -the various Native Pastorates would have so responded to what is their clear duty that this would have been unnecessary. I regret to say that if is as necessary as ever. The response for the year ending March 31st, 1920, was wholly inadequate. There were some bright exceptions, e.g., Mohaka £115'' and Wairoa £60, but the long established Pastorates of Turanga, Whangara, Tokomaru Bay, Hikurangi; Wawakawa, appear in the Year Book of 1920 as not having raised a single penny towards the stipend of their Minister. I believe one or two of the Pastorates sent in their contributions after the books were closed. But the fact remains — the amount contributed was wholly inadequate.- The position to-day is a very serious one and unless the Church people of the various Pastorates awake to their sense of duty and responsibility, the position will be more serious still during the coming .year. I view the position with very grave concern. It is a most distressing state of things when a pastorate raises its full quota one year, causing one to hope that a. new day has dawned, and then it drops away to contributing nothing the next year. Such fit-' ful giving is unworthy of the Church of which we are members. I would again plead that each adult church member should set apart, a proportion of his income for God and his Church, and that proportion should be a tenth. Only when we come to some such principle of giving^-, can the Church go f prward in her work.

ENDOWMENTS. There is, I am glad to report, a brighter side to this finance question. There are several Native Pastprates m the Diocese which, are increasing their existing endowments, -Porangahau, Te Hauke, Paki Paki, Kohupatiki,. Nuhaka, Moteo, Omahu, Waipawa, and Te Kaha having raised considerable sums. I would like to express, on behalf of. the Diocese, our sincere appreciation of this effort, and I would commend this effort to increase the endowment fund, to every native pastorate in the Diocese. It ; is a solution,' and I believe, the 'best solution of the financial prob:lem; ■••■',-,?'' '.■•.' , ;:■ „',■ :•• '■ H >' ■ THE DRINK QUESTION. This question must still exercise the minds of those who have the physical, moral, and spiritual welfare of our Maoris at heart. ..There has been some improvement, e.g., on the East Coast. But this improvement is merely local, dependent upon prevailing conditions. A better stamp of policeman who tries to do his duty, or of -hotel proprietors, has meant some improvement, but still a large amount of liquor is consumed by natives in the dry area, and also off the premises in non-prohibited areas. This is often obtained through the medium of the pakeha, but in many eases it is obtained direct from the hotel proprietor, . . So that in cases where the proprietor is indifferent to the law, and bent upon his own selfish ends, drink has been on the increase, with its attendant results. There are hotels on the East Coast and these in the dry area, which could not exist for six months, without Maori support. The Licensing Committee know this and the police know it, and the public generally know it; yet these hotels are permitted. The law as it stands is a farce. While dealing with this, I must refer to the amount of drinking that goes on at tangis. In many quarters this evil is on the increase. Now- it will be remembered that we have more than once approached .the Gfov- X ernment asking that the law shall be altered, making it culpable not only to the pakeha to give, or sell, liquor for the pakeha to give, or sell, liquor the premises in non-prohibited areas; but also that it shall be made an offence for any Maori to have it in his possession. , Until this is done, the policeman, however, vigilant or zealous he may be > in the execution of his duties, will fail to get convictions. I would, therefore, urge this conference to deal with this subjeet to-day, and to . take such steps as it may think best to bring about this change , in the '.law.'- :!■''..'■" '."'■'■■ • v' '. "■ -.:' .."■/ : V... ' ••

'Hitherto the members of the-. Cabinet whom we have approached^ have expressed sympathy but have said that nothing could be done during the period of the war. Now that .the war is over we must again press our case and not let the matter rest till we have achieved our /'end. TRANSFER OF LAND TO THE , DIOCESE. lam glad to be able to report that since, the last Hui-Topu a considerable number of Church sites have been transferred to the Waiapu Board of Diocesan Trustees. Our Maoris are learning that sites so transferred are not taken from them, but are held in trust for them for all time, and that no property so transferred can be used for any purpose save that for which it- was originally given. It secures a continuity that no private trusteeship can secure. I would urge, therefore, that all land given for churches, vicarages, and mission houses should be transferred to the Waiapu Trust Board. EDUCATION. I. Te Aute College. ' It will be agreed by all who know something of the inner workings of Te Aute College that the appointment of Mr E. G. Loten as Principal of the College has been fully justified. We have in Mr Loten a trained organiser, and a good administrator. He is a man who knows his wprk, knows human nature, and loves the Maori race. He is a disciplinarian, balanced by sound judgment, wide sympathies, and a keen sense of humor. We look with confidence to ; a great future for the College. The Agricultural Side. The have taken over the 600 acres of land at Te Aute, for the^ agricultural training of the boys. This land was set apart for this purpose. It is to be remembered that in doing this we are in no way ceasing to deal with the classical side of the boys' training. We encourage promising boys to matriculate and to antler the Civil Service, or the Professions. Indeed we look to Te Aute boys for recruits for the ministry. I want this to be quite clear that Te* Aute College can give an education <etiual to any secondary school in the Dominion. At the same time there are a large number of boys who are not fitted for higher education. It is with these we would deal. After, they have been well grounded in general knowledge, it is our purpose to draft them in,td the agricultural side, and so send them home when their school course is ended lovers of work, and with a good practical knowledge of farming. .

2. Hukarere iSchool. It is not necessary to say much concerning this school. Miss Emily Bulstrode, the head teacher, is now in England on furlough, her place being taken by Miss Hall, who. is acting as head in- her absence. The school, under her able leadership, maintains its excellent tone and work. , It is not necessary for me to say more. The Inspector's report speaks for itself. -3. Waerenga-a-hika College. The financial position of the College is in a serious state owing to the great increase in the cost of living. The fees have twice been raised during the last two ye^ars, yet in spite of this the overdraft at the bank has now reached over £1000. It 'may be found necessary to reduce the number of pupils and so reduce the expenditure. This would be a serious step to take, especially in view of the fact of the excellent staff of the College. I cannot speak too highly of the work done by Mr McGruther, the headmaster, arid of Mr Lazaron, assistant master. LAPSING FROM THE FAITH. I view with great concern a considerable lapsing from the faith on the part bf our professing Church people. It means that many' who have been baptised and confirmed, and even communicants of our Church, have a very slender' grasp of the great truths of Christianity, . and cannot stand against the stress of sickness or adversity. This manifests itself- frequently in going to a to-, hunga and this leads to baneful results. ■:.■-■■'■.. - , A tohunga may have power or he may hot, but whatever power he has, it is the power of the Devil and not the power of God and of His Christ. It means a reverting to heathen superstitions and leads in more cases than some of us are aware of, to demoniacal possession. I want to make this quite dear — that a man who from lack of faith in Christ visits a tohunga, exposes himself to the inroads of Satan. It often leads- to obsession, and finally the possession of devils. There are many such cases amongst Maoris who have visited, tohungas-r-cases which correspond' identically with . those mentioned in Holy Scripture and there described as . men (t possessed with devils.". .. N Such cases amongst" the Maoris are beyond all dispute. They correspond identically with cases known to me in South Africa when men have come, under the power of " Witch Doctors." They are common enough in countries where the Cross of Christ has not been preached t)r where Baptised Christians have reverted to heathen superstitions.

A clear proof to my mind is the fact that by dealing with such cases of demoniacal possession in the power of -the names o£ Jesus of Nazareth, the demons -have been east out. I want, then, to make myself quite clear on this point. Let me gather it up in a few brief sentences. The tohunga may 'have power. , Whatever power he has if is the power of Satan. He is an ally of Satan. He is the foe of Christ, and " adversary of the Cross of Christ." ..To . consult with a tohunga, is to ... expose oneself to the inroads -of Satan, laying oneself open to disease and "possession," and death. The cause is the lack of the training of little children in the faith of Christ. The; remedy is in your hands. Gather the little children together at every opportunity. No time is lost time given to teaching Christ 's little ones, for it is -'not the will of your Heavenly Father that one of these little dnes should perish. ' ' I commend then, the care of the little children to your constant attention. The future of the Church of this Province depends upon then?. You are responsible for their training. Teach them the great truths of the Gosjlel of Christ and- they will respond. Neglect them and they will . imbibe all kinds of error and superstition to their ultimate ruin. Let us take heed that we " despise not one of Christ's little ones." I commend, these thoughts to your earnest consideration to-day, and I pray that God the Holy Spirit may grant us his wisdom and guidance.