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Story: Ngā hāhi – Māori and Christian denominations

Presbyterian Māori missions: Rua Kēnana and John Laughton

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Presbyterian Māori missions: Rua Kēnana and John Laughton

The Scottish-born Presbyterian minister John Laughton spent much of his working life in Māori communities. Residents of Maungapōhatu, the remote Urewera religious community founded by the prophet Rua Kēnana, invited Laughton to join the Presbyterian mission there while their leader was in prison. Rua was released soon afterwards and the two men eventually became friends.

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Alexander Turnbull Library

Reference: 1/2-030856-F

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

Hirini Kaa, Ngā hāhi – Māori and Christian denominations – Presbyterian Church, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/30624/presbyterian-maori-missions-rua-kenana-and-john-laughton (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Hirini Kaa, published 7 April 2011, updated 1 March 2017.