Following Friday night’s powhiri, the General Synod formally convened in its opening Eucharist, held in Te-Ika-Roa-a-Maui wharenui at Owae marae in Waitara.

Three priests concelebrated the Eucharist. They were Rev Ngira Simmonds from Manawa o Te Wheke, Assistant Bishop of Wellington Rt Rev Eleanor Sanderson and Rev Mele Prescott from Taranaki.

For Bishop Eleanor, who has never presided at the Eucharist in a marae setting before, this was an unexpected experience,

“Being asked to take up that role in Waitara, I was reminded of a verse from Psalm 85 which says Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other.”

“The privilege of concelebrating the Eucharist in that place, at this point in history, was humbling, especially the encouragement and affirmation Archdeacon of Taranaki Leonie Joseph gave me. It was a joy and delight.”

Archdeacon Leonie shared in that delight, revelling in the sign and symbol of a female bishop celebrating Eucharist at the centre of the wharenui.

“It was beautiful to see the altar up there on the main stage and to see the bishop there too. She is an inspiration for all women.” 

The service followed the pattern of many in Waikato-Taranaki diocese, which has a 20-year history of bicultural ministry schools, begun during Archbishop David Moxon’s episcopate.

On Friday, the translated words guided the assembly again, through Bishop Muru Walters' English version of Te Whakawhetai me te Whakamoemiti, the most frequently used Maori language Eucharistic service in A New Zealand Prayer Book/He Karakia Mihinare o Aotearoa.

Ngira Simmonds, who with Rev Stephen Black helped put the service together, explained that they opted for Maori concepts and ideas to reflect and honour Christ in the wharenui setting.

For Archbishop Don Tamihere, worshipping in wharenui, amidst carved ancestors and woven symbols adds another dimension,

“The house creates a spiritual fabric, we become surrounded by the story.

“That is the point of the wharenui, you can’t help being moved, you can’t help remembering.

“The house enables the people, it enshrines the stories of them as a people. And in Christ there is a connection that unites all of us. Their grief is our grief. Their joy is our joy.”

At the heart of the liturgy was a video presentation that stood in place of the sermon.  

The Native Affairs documentary told the story of St Mary’s Cathedral at the time of its consecration in 2010. It highlighted the shadowy past of St Mary’s still seen in its military hatchments which pained descendants of those who had been killed or incarcerated under those banners.

It told how St Mary’s Church sided with the colonial powers that had seized land, freedom and human rights from Taranaki Maori, even going so far as hosting a colonial garrison whose job was to violently suppress the passive resistance efforts of local iwi.

As well as chronicling the visit of Archbishop of York John Sentamu, the documentary featured the late Sir Paul Reeves, who offered his wisdom on healing of the church’s past wrongs in Taranaki.

“The church must first acknowledge its complicity and involvement - that its hands were not necessarily clean, that it was the church of the settlers and many of those people that did things which now we regret were people who would call themselves Christians,” he said.

“So how do we take a place like St Mary’s and bring it out of that, and put it towards the cause of justice, peace, unity ー not giving things away, but understanding about how we each have come to where we now are?

“The church must listen carefully and act wisely, but be on the side of those who wish to take the matter forward, so that our grandchildren will bless us, and not curse us.”

General Synod met in Tikanga caucuses for most of Saturday preparing background on their priority motions for Synod, then reconvened as a full synod that evening to deal with the first three procedural motions, setting the Synod processes in train.

This morning synod delegates piled on to coaches for the three and half hour journey to Turangawaewae Marae in Ngaruawahia, where they took part in an ecumenical service of thanksgiving to mark the 160th anniversary of the Kingitanga – at which new archbishop, Don Tamihere, preached the kauhau.

Our report from Turangawaewae will be online soon.