Mormonism, the Maori and cultural authenticity

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints launched a sustained missio n to the New Zealand Maori beginning in he 1880s. By the turn of the centur y, the church counted nearly a 10th of the total Maori population as member s. This article explores the ways in which Mormonism provided interested Ma ori with an unusually rich, culturally compatible resource for shaping and proclaiming their identity. The heart of that resource was the Book of Morm on, a Latter-day Saint volume of scripture which was read to broaden and de epen the perceived connection between the Maori and ancient Israel. The art icle also examines the way in which Maori prophecies were understood to ant icipate the arrival of Mormonism and thereby sanction its acceptance. As a result, there was a clear sense that in becoming Mormon one was not abandon ing Maori culture to become a brown Pakeha (European). The history of the M ormon-Maori interaction offers a compelling case study in how cultural conj unctures can yield an authentic hybrid.