Te Reo Aroha o te Aranga - Love Language of the Easter

Whānau gathered from near and far and most often several memorial headstones were unveiled together. This post-colonial tradition of Hura Kohatu during Aranga Easter was deliberately aligned with this time to acknowledge the significance of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, Te Aranga mai o Ihu Karaiti. 

Hura Kohatu has evolved over time and as a commemorative event it is the last tangible expression of love from whānau, symbolizing our deep affection and respect for our departed whānau members. Consequently, the roles and responsibilities we assume in organizing Hura Kohatu with grace and reverence becomes important. The preparation of memorial stones, that includes appropriate wording or symbols, travel arrangements, and hospitality at the marae can all take months to organise and are powerful symbolic acts of service. People are mobilized to provide kai (food), organise pōwhiri (welcome), deliver whaikōrero (speeches) and karakia (offering words of affirmation), sing waiata (songs) to uplift each other, and the memory of whānau members passed. It is a time of honoring memory, and the teachings and stories passed down through the generations.

Aranga was viewed by our tupuna as a tapu time in the Māori Christian calendar. The resurrection of Jesus, a pivotal event in Christian belief embraced by our whānau serves as a symbol of hope and transformation in times of darkness and hopelessness. Hura Kohatu acts metaphorically, in the context of Aotearoa, that speaks to the risen Christ and life moving forward in different ways. With Christ, the disciples moved forward in ways different to when Jesus was with them. So too do our whanau after the Hura Kohatu. The expressions of love manifest in the act of Hura Kohatu are boundless. The profound narrative of the Aranga story continues to resonate across cultures, influencing our love language of forgiveness, redemption, faith, and renewal. Regardless of our circumstance and whatever struggles we may face we turn with hope to the new life that the resurrection brings.

E Te Ariki

E tatari ana ahau ki a koe

E tatari ana tōku wairua

E tūmanako ana tōku reo ki a koe

Aianei ake tonu atu Āmine.