Top: Bishop Waitohiariki Quayle; Bottom: Bishop Steve Maina
The Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia has come a long way!
A Kenyan, Steve Maina, was ordained and installed as Bishop of Nelson, and then the first Māori woman to be ordained a bishop, Waitohiariki Quayle, became Pīhopa o Te Upoko o Te Ika (in fact, she is also the first New-Zealand-born woman to be made a bishop in this province; NZ-born Denise Ferguson was made a bishop in July in Adelaide).
Diversity in leadership reflects and hopefully encourages diversity and catholicity in our church. There is also, in both these ordinations, a stronger connection being made beyond cathedral walls. Bishop Steve led a throng of people into Nelson’s Main Street. For Pīhopa Waitohiariki, the pōwhiri and ordination service was at Anglican school, Rathkeale College, and six marquees were needed to welcome the crowd.
You can read much more about it, and find videos of these events:
Nelson celebrates Bishop Steve
Bishop Waitohiariki’s day of firsts
