The Tikanga Pākehā Conference met on Saturday 10 June 2023.

The purpose of the meeting was for the Tikanga Pākehā members of General Synod Te Hinota Whanui to receive and consider a nomination from the Tikanga Pākehā Bishops for the appointment of the next Senior Bishop Tikanga Pākehā and Archbishop of New Zealand who would serve alongside Atipihopa Don and Archbishop Sione as the Primates of our Province.

The process for the election of a next Senior Bishop Tikanga Pākehā is continuing, and it next calls for the Tikanga Pākehā Bishops to meet as a House. The first occasion they are all able to next meet is early October. 

Archbishop Philip will retire from his role as Archbishop at the end of June and will continue on as Diocesan Bishop of Waikato & Taranaki. In the interregnum the Primacy will continue to function with Atipihopa Don and Archbishop Sione as we have seen happen before when other Tikanga have also had a time of interregnum between appointments of Archbishops. The functions of the role of Senior Bishop Tikanga Pākehā will be shared among all the Bishops of Tikanga Pākehā and some delegated executive committees.

A brief report on other parts of the meeting

The Tikanga Pākehā Conference (TPC) was able to do some other important things when they met on Saturday. 

One was to say a profound "thank you" to retiring Archbishop Philip Richardson. Speakers and Bishop colleagues spoke of the huge impact of his leadership, but also the toll on Archbishop Philip and his family. ++Philip (who continues as Bishop of Waikato - Taranaki) was acknowledged for his passion and commitment to justice, as well as his huge impact on the way all of our Bishops are working together so collegially. Bishop Ross Bay from Auckland said that ++Philip's willingness to stand alongside them in often challenging circumstances has been a feature from the beginning. If there was ever a silver lining to the COVID-19 pandemic it was the way ++Philip encouraged them to be closer to each other, which has continued to the present. There has been a real cost for his own Diocese and also his family (his wife Belinda in particular). A gift of garden vouchers was given to him to help with the ongoing transformation of land that they planning to live on and plant out. In response, Archbishop Philip said he was so grateful for all the kind personal messages received when he indicated he was standing down, and he paid tribute to his Executive Assistants, Chancellors he has worked with, Michael Hughes (General Secretary) and to his own Diocesan Senior teams and family.

The second was to hear an update from Ms Diana Langdon and Rev'd Lorna Gray on some recent research into three tikanga education completed called : Te Pae Tawhiti 2040 The Far Horizons 2040. This has led to a renewed focus on what is called "The Ministry of the First Third" i.e. the initial  part of life (Children, youth and young adults) and a call for all of us to find ways to support and champion all of the babies and children, young people and young adults now. Gone are the days when we encouraged younger people to get on and do things themselves - they need to the support and love of all of us who are older. Watch this space for more ways we can do this. 

Dunedin Disruptions

Unfortunately, only part of the Dunedin TPC reps were able to be present on Saturday as freezing fog at the airport delayed the plane by over 6 hours. Thanks to a quick provision of a Zoom link, some of us were able to take part in the day from Peter Mann House.

The Last Word 

The last word goes to Archbishop Philip Richardson, who reminded us:

1. A healthy Church is one where we know how to pray and how to play. We need to keep our sense of joy in faith and in our community.
2. Prayer is about going so deep into ourselves that we see ourselves as God sees us - we are loved and precious. 
3. Of a "child with no name" who was cremated in India when Philip was there: she died in a slum, was carried to the river and cremated. This unknown child will never be forgotten as she continues to tell us that the point of the Gospel is to serve those most at the edge of the world. Her life continues to keep Archbishop Philip focused. 

+Steven