Whārangi 1: Haurongo
Te Ahu, Īhāia
?–1895
Nō Ngā Puhi; he kaiako, he mihinare
I tuhia tēnei haurongo e Alister Matheson, ā, i tāngia tuatahitia ki Ngā Tāngata Taumata Rau i te 1990. He mea whakamāori nā Ngā Tangata Taumata Rau.
Nō Te Uri Taniwha o Ngāpuhi a Īhāia Te Ahu. I whānau ia i Ōkaihau. I ngā tau 1832–33 i a ia e tamariki ana, i noho kē ia, i te kāinga o Te Hāpimana (Thomas Chapman) o te Rōpū Hāhi Mihinare (Church Missionary Society) i Kerikeri. I te whakatūnga i te mīhana ki Rotorua i te tau 1835, ko Te Ahu tonu tētahi o te kaiāwhina a Te Hāpimana. Kore i roa ka moe a Te Ahu i a Rangirauaka o Ngāti Riripō. Nō te 9 o Mei 1841 ka iriirihia rāua e Parāone (A. N. Brown) i Tauranga. Ka tapaina a Te Ahu ki a Īhāia, ko Rangirauaka i tapaina ki a Kātarina Hāpimana. Tokowhā ā rāua tamāhine, kotahi pea nuku noa atu rānei ā rāua tama. Kāore i te āta mōhiotia. Kotahi tonu ko Pānapa e mōhiotia ana, nā Parāone hoki i iriiri i te 1 o Hune 1841.
I te tekau tau mai i 1835, i te takiwā ki Rotorua, he pakanga tonu, he pakanga tonu, te mahi a Te Arawa ki a Waikato, ki a Ngāi Te Rangi o Tauranga. I te mea nō Ngāpuhi kē a Īhāia Te Ahu, pai noa iho tana haere i te taha o Te Hāpimana i ngā marae-ō-Tū. Mea rawa ake, kua tū ko ia hei tumuaki mō ngā kaiako a Te Hāpimana. Taka rawa iho ki te tau 1845 mehemea kei te māuiui a Te Hāpimana, kua riro mā Īhāia e whakahaere ngā karakia i ngā Rātapu. Hau ana te rongo o ngā mahi a Īhāia. I noho tonu rāua ko Rangirauaka i te whare mīhana. Ko rāua hei whakahaere i ngā āhuatanga katoa o te noho i reira. Heoi, tokorua rāua ko Te Hāpimana he werowerohia tonuhia e te mātao i Rotorua, nā reira ka nuku a Īhāia mā, me a rāua tamariki tokorua, ki Maketū noho ai. Ko te whānau a Te Hāpimana kia tū mai te hōtoke kua haere ki Maketū noho ai, ki te wāhi mahana. Nō te tau 1851 rā anō ka tūturu te noho ki reira.
Ka tae ki te tau 1857, ka tīmata a Īhāia ki te whakarite i a ia hei pirihi i roto i te Hāhi Mihinare. Atu i a Hūrae ki Oketopa, noho kē mai ana ia me tana whānau katoa i te mīhana i Tauranga. Ko Parāone hoki te kaiako i a ia ki ngā āhuatanga o te Hāhi. He tau mai anō, i te ngahurutanga, i te hōtoke, ka nuku ki te Kura o Tīpene i Ākarana (Auckland) ki te whakatika i a ia mō tana whakawahinga. I reira ka whakamātautauria, ka toa, ka whakawhiwhia ki te Paipera hei taonga māna. Ko te 29 o Āperire tēnei. Ākuhata rawa ake, kua māuiuitia anō a Īhāia, ka hoki ki Maketū. Ka mahi i reira, ā, nō te nekehanga o Te Hāpimana ki Ākarana i te tau 1861, ka riro ko ia hei tumuaki mō te mīhana. Nō te 30 o Noema 1861 ka whakawahia hei rīkona e te Pīhopa, e Te Wiremu (William Williams).
E tū rā ngā pakanga o te tekau tau mai i 1860, ka noho tonu a Īhāia i tōna kotahi ki ngā mahi mīhana i Maketū. Te taenga ki te tau 1867, he kore mihinare i tua atu i a ia hei pīkau i ngā mahi; ko te tutū hoki o te puehu i ngā Hauhau, ka taumaha rawa atu ana mahi. Kua kore a Īhāia e mōhio, e ahu ana te mīhana ki hea. Nāna anō i hanga tō rāua whare ko Rangirauaka ki te pā i Maketū. I te tau 1868 ka puta atu te minita Mihinare, a Te Kerēhi (T. S. Grace) ki te torotoro i a rāua. Ka karakia tahi rāua. Nō te meanga atu a Te Kerēhi kia whakatangihia te pere hei karanga i te iwi, eke tonu te whakautu a Īhāia: 'E kore rātou e puta mai.' Ahakoa anō, pūmau tonu a ia ki tana mahi. Tū rawa i a ia te Whare Karakia a Tāmati. Ka whakatapua i te 2l o Maehe 1869, e tū tonu mai rā i nāianei.
Ko te tūmanako o Īhāia kia noho mai he minita Pākehā ki tērā takiwā i Maketū rā. Nō te taenga mai o te minita rā, o S. M. Spencer me tana whānau i te tau 1870, ka ea tana wawata. Ka wātea hoki a ia ki te tirotiro haere i ōna rohe i Rotorua tae atu ki te rāwhiti o Te Moana-a-Toi-te-huatahi (Bay of Plenty). Heoi ki tā Īhāia, ka nui te pakeke o ngā mahi a te kaupapa Karaitiana. Ko te kōrero a Parāone i te tau 1873 ki te Rōpū Hāhi Mihinare: 'Pōuri rawa atu a Īhāia mō te taha whakapono o tōna iwi, ahakoa te whakamihi ki ana mahi, ahakoa whakarongo ki ana kauhau i ngā wā whakataki ai ia i a rātou.
Tae rawa ake ki te tau 1881, kua noho tūturu a Īhāia ki Rotorua. He tau mai anō, ka tū ko ia hei minita tuatahi ki Ōhinemutu. Ka tahuri ia ki te rapu tikanga kia tū ai he whare karakia. Tū ana ko te Whare Karakia o Faith. Nā te Pīhopa, nā Edward Craig Stuart, i whakatapu i te 15 o Maehe 1885. Ka puta i te Pīhopa ngā kōrero papai, ngā kōrero whakamihi mō Īhāia. Mō te ū ki te kaupapa mō ēnei tau e 20 mai i tōna whakawahinga. Tuahangata pai mō ana mahi mā te mīhana i te rohe o Rotorua. Ka mahue i a ia a Ōhinemutu i te tau 1889; he wā e noho minita ana i te Kura o Tīpene i Ākarana; ka pū tana ruha i te tau 1892. Ka hoki a Te Ahu ki Kaikohe, ki reira whakatā ai. Nō te 7 o Hūrae 1895, ka mate.