Te Kitohi Pikaahu

The Right Reverend

Te Kitohi Pikaahu

ONZM
Bishop of Te Tai Tokerau (Northland-Auckland)
Pikaahu in 2021
ChurchAnglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia
Orders
Ordination1987 (deacon)
1988 (priest)
Consecration24 February 2002
Personal details
Born
Te Kitohi Wiremu Pikaahu

1965 (age 59–60)
NationalityNew Zealand
DenominationAnglican
ResidenceKawakawa, New Zealand
SpouseLynnore Pikaahu
Alma materSt John's College, Auckland (LTh), University of Oxford (MTh)

Te Kitohi "Kito" Wiremu Pikaahu ONZM (born 1965) is a Māori Anglican bishop. He has been the incumbent of the Episcopal polity of Te Pīhopatanga o Te Tai Tokerau since 2002.[1][2]

Originally from Taipā, Pikaahu affiliates to the Ngāpuhi, Ngāti Kahu, Te Aupōuri, Te Rarawa, Te Roroa and Ngāti Whātua iwi. He moved with his family to Auckland and became part of the Māori Anglican Church, and was confirmed at age 15.[3]

When he was consecrated bishop in 2002 at age 37, the Archbishop of Canterbury acknowledged Pikaahu as the youngest bishop in the worldwide Anglican Communion.[3]

Pikaahu has led Waitangi Day services for 20 years, and has advocated for the wellbeing of Māori and indigenous communities. He has led the promotion of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, providing a framework for Anglican leadership.[3] Pikaahu is one of the world's highest-ranking and longest-serving indigenous Anglican bishops and has chaired the global Anglican Indigenous Network since 2015.[4]

Pikaahu was chair of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia's Common Life Liturgical Commission from 2010 to 2016. He has been a member of the International Anglican Liturgical Consultation since 2007 and is chair of Te Runanga Whakawhanaunga I Nga Hahi O Aotearoa. He has been chaplain and sometimes kaumātua of the Māori Women’s Welfare League since 2007. He is foundation chair of Te Whare Ruruhau o Meri, a kaupapa Māori-based provider of crisis support services for victims of abuse, guided by the Te Tai Tokerau branch of the Anglican Church. He has been a member of the Police Commissioner’s Māori Focus Forum since 2014.[4] He is the Anglican Liaison Bishop for the New Zealand Defence Force Chaplains.[5] Pikaahu is a Te Kotahitanga representative on the governing board of St John's Theological College.[6]

In the 2021 New Year Honours, Pikaahu was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to the Anglican Church and Māori.[3][7]

References

  1. ^ Anglican Taonga
  2. ^ Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia
  3. ^ a b c d "New Year Honours: Bishop Te Kitohi Pikaahu made officer of NZ Order of Merit". New Zealand Herald. 31 December 2020. Retrieved 31 December 2020.
  4. ^ a b "Right Reverend Te Kītohi Pikaahu named Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit". Te Ao. Retrieved 31 December 2020.
  5. ^ "New Zealand Defence Force Chaplains". Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia. 31 December 2020. Retrieved 31 December 2020.
  6. ^ "The College, Governance". St John's Theological College. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  7. ^ "New Year honours list 2021". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 31 December 2020. Retrieved 31 December 2020.