Wiremu Te Tauri 		May 17
Missionary in Wanganui
Our information about the missionary work of Wiremu Te Tauri is gleaned almost entirely from comments made about him by Richard Taylor of the Church Missionary Society. Taylor arrived in New Zealand in 1839 and was appointed to Wanganui in 1843, where he served till 1866. He enlisted Wiremu Te Tauri as his head teacher and took him with him on a number of his missionary travels. Te Tauri also worked independently and in partnership with other Maori missioners. His full name was Wiremu Eruera Te Tauri, and he was a chief at Taupo of Ngati Tuwharetoa and Wanganui descent. The dates of his birth and death are not known.
Taylor and Te Tauri in May 1846 shared the burial service over the spot where a pa had stood in the Te Rapa valley at the south end of Lake Taupo. The once fruitful valley had been buried, in many places more than twenty feet deep, by the bursting of a natural dam, which caused a huge land slip to sweep down the valley. Among those killed was the Ngati Tuwharetoa chief, Te Heuheu Tukino II. Taylor says of that event:
When I read the burial service over the spot where the pa stood, accompanied by Wiremu Tauri, my head teacher, even then the mud was so soft that we sank in it nearly ancle [sic] deep. It was a solemn moment; an entire village laid buried beneath us, with all its inhabitants - the young, the old, the infant, and the hoary-headed - all in one awful moment were deeply entombed.
At Christmas time that year Te Manihera and Kereopa were preparing to go on what was to be their last missionary pilgrimage (see 12 March). Taylor reports: 
Wiremu Eruera, and Tahana, two of the teachers, came forward and said that as these two were now devoted to the Lord, they did not think it right the servants of God, as ambassadors of Christ, should go forth without suitable clothes; they immediately gave each a pair of black trowsers, the only Sunday ones they had; others contributed coats; one person gave one garment and another gave another, until the two were perfectly provided with proper clothing. 
Te Manihera’s and Kereopa’s journey eventually led to their martyrdom. A meeting was held at Taupo on 1 April 1847 after their tangi, and the subject of utu was discussed. Wiremu Te Tauri endorsed the opinion of those who were against utu and argued that the loss of a teacher would not hinder the gospel. He said:
A minister was like a lofty Kahikatea tree full of fruit, which it sheds on every side around, causing a thick grove of young trees to spring up; so that although the parent tree may be cut down, its place is thus more than supplied by those which proceed from it.
Wiremu was noted for his contribution to the spread of the gospel in his own area of Wanganui. He is described in a poi chant by Archdeacon Kingi Ihaka (see A New Zealand Prayer Book - He Karakia Mihinare o Aotearoa, pages 154-156), which commemorates those Maori who were the first bearers of the gospel throughout Aotearoa:

Kei roto Wanganui		
ko Te Tauri		
Ka tae nga rongo		
And at Wanganui 
there is Wiremu Te Tauri
the first to introduce Christianity there.

For Liturgical Use
Wiremu Te Tauri of Ngati Tuwharetoa and Wanganui was for some time the head teacher for Richard Taylor. He was present at the tangi for the martyrs Te Manihera and Kereopa in 1847 and argued against utu. He said, “A minister was like a lofty Kahikatea tree full of fruit, which it sheds on every side around, causing a thick grove of young trees to spring up; so that although the parent tree may be cut down, its place is thus more than supplied by those which proceed from it.”
Sentence
Ka kopatapata iho taku whakaako, ano he ua, ka maturuturu iho taku kupu me te tomairangi; me te ua punehunehu ki runga i te tupou hou, me te ua ta ki runga i te tarutaru.
				Tiuteronomi 32:2
May my teaching drop like the rain, my speech condense like the dew, like gentle rain on grass, like showers on new growth.	Deuteronomy 32:2
Collects
E whakapai atu ana matou ki a koe e Ihowa,
mo tau pononga mo Wiremu Te Tauri
i kawe nei i te rama o tau kupu
a i marama ai te ara i waenganui o nga iwi
e noho ana i roto i te pouri;
whakahauorangia matou kia rite ki tau kupu,
kia whakakororiatia ai tou Ingoa Tapu. Amine.
Merciful God, 
by your grace your servant Wiremu Te Tauri 
bore the lamp of your word 
and faithfully proclaimed the good news; 
give us all life according to your word,
that we may glorify your holy name;
through Jesus Christ our Saviour.
Praise to you, God of Aotearoa,
for you raised up Wiremu
like a lofty kahikatea
around which a thick grove of trees springs up;
praise to you for the work he did
and those who came after him.
Psalms	93	119:105-112
Readings
Ezra 7:6-10		Ezra as a teacher
Acts 11:19-26		Teaching the faith
John 7:14-18		Teaching from God
Post Communion Sentence
No te ha o te Atua nga karaipiture katoa, he pai hoki hei whakaako, hei riri i te he, hei whakatikatika, hei whakaako ki te tika; Kia tino rite ai te tangata a te Atua, rite rawa mo nga mahi pai katoa.		2 Timoti 3:16,17
All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.	2 Timothy 3:16,17