The burning of Rangiātea,
7 October 1995

'You have destroyed the offspring of Tāne - the God of the forest - making bare and desolate the once beautiful abode and footstool of Rehua, his feathered children and friends.'

The Reverend Canon Paora Temuera, 1947.

Rangiātea was razed to the ground shortly after 3am on the morning of 7 October 1995. The cause of the fire is believed to be arson. Scores of people gathered to witness the destruction of the 145-year-old church.

Many of them had associations with Rangiātea that spanned its rich Māori/European history, and had participated in its most recent renovation and rededication only months earlier.

The local Māori tribes likened the burning of Rangiātea to the death of a sacred ancestor, referring to the charred remains as the tūpāpaku, the deceased.

Rangiātea's congregation found themselves searching for the meaning behind this great loss, and discovered that, although the body may be burned, the spirit of Rangiātea survives in everyone who bears its legacy.

'We will never be lost, the seed which is sown from Rangiātea.'

Rangiātea memorial service

On Sunday 8 October 1995, one day after the fire, the 'largest tangi in Ōtaki since the death of Te Rauparaha', was held on the site of Rangiātea.

Twenty clergy gathered to lead a crowd of more than 2,000 mourners in prayer and song. The Bishop Muru Walters conducted an emotional service in Māori and English, which was attended by descendants of Rangiātea's original builders. Speakers delivered heartfelt eulogies, mourning its loss and vowing to rebuild the church.