T.W Ratana: Lantern in the dark.
Healer, prophet, agent of change
Throughout history, certain individuals with a passion for justice and a rare gift of insight have been able to motivate people through periods of great social change, often defying all odds and being greatly misunderstood in the process.
Tahupotiki Wiremu Ratana was such a man. After a profound vision on 8 November 1918, he was instructed by the Wairua Tapu (Holy Spirit) to liberate the Maori tribes from their old fears and superstitions.
An extraordinary gift of healing; praying in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit with help from the Holy and Faithful Angels, saw thousands restored from physical, mental and spiritual ailments.
Ratana visited every marae around the country, lifting ancient curses and challenging the people to unite under Ihoa o nga Mano (Jehovah of the Multitudes). He affirmed individual responsibility and a healthy spiritual and economic destiny for Maori, working together with other New Zealanders, for the future greatness of the country.
He gathered 40,000 signatures on a petition asking the Government and the Crown to restore the Treaty of Waitangi to its rightful place as the founding document of the nation. When this was initially rejected he took this petition to England in 1924.
Ratana’s pan-tribal movement and his political representatives kept the Labour Government in power for two terms. Although his petition to Parliament wasn’t acted on until 37 years after his death, long-standing grievances, including land confiscation dating back to 1840, are now being resolved.
Ratana (which means Lantern) once said: "In one of my hands is the Bible; in the other the Treaty of Waitangi. If the spiritual side is attended to, all will be well on the physical side." The books are still in the process of being balanced.
Writer: Keith Newman, author of Ratana Revisited – an unfinished legacy (Reed 2006) and Ratana the Prophet (Penguin 2009). Image: Paula Novak. A set of four cards, one featuring Samuel Marsden/ Tamihana Te Rauparaha and the other featuring T.W Ratana (as above) are available for $12 plus postage. Email [email protected]
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Throughout history, certain individuals with a passion for justice and a rare gift of insight have been able to motivate people through periods of great social change, often defying all odds and being greatly misunderstood in the process.
Tahupotiki Wiremu Ratana was such a man. After a profound vision on 8 November 1918, he was instructed by the Wairua Tapu (Holy Spirit) to liberate the Maori tribes from their old fears and superstitions.
An extraordinary gift of healing; praying in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit with help from the Holy and Faithful Angels, saw thousands restored from physical, mental and spiritual ailments.
Ratana visited every marae around the country, lifting ancient curses and challenging the people to unite under Ihoa o nga Mano (Jehovah of the Multitudes). He affirmed individual responsibility and a healthy spiritual and economic destiny for Maori, working together with other New Zealanders, for the future greatness of the country.
He gathered 40,000 signatures on a petition asking the Government and the Crown to restore the Treaty of Waitangi to its rightful place as the founding document of the nation. When this was initially rejected he took this petition to England in 1924.
Ratana’s pan-tribal movement and his political representatives kept the Labour Government in power for two terms. Although his petition to Parliament wasn’t acted on until 37 years after his death, long-standing grievances, including land confiscation dating back to 1840, are now being resolved.
Ratana (which means Lantern) once said: "In one of my hands is the Bible; in the other the Treaty of Waitangi. If the spiritual side is attended to, all will be well on the physical side." The books are still in the process of being balanced.
Writer: Keith Newman, author of Ratana Revisited – an unfinished legacy (Reed 2006) and Ratana the Prophet (Penguin 2009). Image: Paula Novak. A set of four cards, one featuring Samuel Marsden/ Tamihana Te Rauparaha and the other featuring T.W Ratana (as above) are available for $12 plus postage. Email [email protected]
Follow Bible & Treaty on Facebook
