Minarapa Rangihatuake (?–1893) was a New Zealand Methodist missionary responsible for the first Wellington church. Of

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

descent, he identified with the Ngā Māhanga

hapū In Māori language, Māori and New Zealand English, a ' ("subtribe", or "clan") functions as "the basic political unit within Māori society". A Māori person can belong to or have links to many hapū. Historically, each hapū had its own chief ...

of the

Taranaki Taranaki is a regions of New Zealand, region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano Mount Taranaki, Taranaki Maunga, formerly known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the ...

iwi Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori, roughly means or , and is often translated as "tribe". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, and is typically pluralised as such in English. ...

Early life

Also known as Minarapa Te Atua-kē, was born in the early nineteenth century in

. He was of the Ngā Māhanga. In an attack against the Taranaki tribes, he was taken captive by Waikato. Then, while in the Waikato, he was captured by

Ngāpuhi Ngāpuhi (also known as Ngāpuhi-Nui-Tonu or Ngā Puhi) is a Māori iwi associated with the Northland regions of New Zealand centred in the Hokianga, the Bay of Islands, and Whangārei. According to the 2023 New Zealand census, the estimate ...

Missionary influence

The rise of missionary influence led the captives to liberation and those who adopted Christianity went to reside in mission stations. Minarapa ended up in the Wesleyans'

Māngungu Mission Māngungu Mission was the second mission station established in New Zealand by the Wesleyan Missionary Society. Located near Horeke, in the Hokianga Harbour, it was founded in 1828 by the missionaries John Hobbs and James Stack after the first ...

in the Hokianga. There he was appointed a lay preacher for which he received £1 and four white shirts as payment. In 1839 he went as a missionary to his Taranaki people then residing at Te Whanganui-a-Tara (

Wellington Harbour Wellington Harbour ( ), officially called Wellington Harbour / Port Nicholson, is a large natural harbour on the southern tip of New Zealand's North Island. The harbour entrance is from Cook Strait. Central Wellington is located on parts of ...

). In 1842 he returned to Taranaki. Wiremu Te Kāhui Kararehe was a son of his.

References

1893 deaths New Zealand Māori religious leaders New Zealand Methodist missionaries Methodist missionaries in New Zealand Taranaki (iwi) Year of birth missing {{NewZealand-reli-bio-stub