A major new contribution to Māori theology and contextual biblical interpretation, published by Bloomsbury T&T Clark.
Tuia ki te rangi, tuia ki te whenua.
Tuia ki te here tangata, ka rongo te ao, ka rongo te pō.
Tui, tui, tuia ki te ora.
We are delighted to celebrate the publication of Jesus in Indigenous Māori Understanding: A Contextual Biblical Interpretation of Jesus, Land, Genealogy, and Identity, a new book by The Reverend Dr Wayne Te Kaawa, Acting Tikanga Māori Dean and Kaiwhakaako Matua, Senior Lecturer at St Johns Theological College.
Wayne is a leading voice in the whare kōrero (talking house) of Māori theology. This book reflects years of deep research and teaching stemming from his PhD in Theology at the University of Otago (2020). Having lectured in Māori Theology there from 2020 to 2024, he now brings that expertise into his work with our community at Hoani Tapu St Johns.
What the book explores
In Jesus in Indigenous Māori Understanding, Wayne offers a richly contextual Christology shaped by mātauranga Māori, engaging Jesus through the lenses of whenua, whakapapa, and identity.
A core thread of the book is Wayne’s exploration of Māori theological reflection within the framework of Atua, Whenua, and Tangata, with whakapapa as the binding thread and pinnacle of knowledge.
As Wayne shares in the video below, one key focus is listening to how Māori theologians describe who Jesus Christ is, and then applying whakapapa as a way of reading the genealogies of Jesus in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. The result is a thoughtful, grounded study that invites both Māori and non-Māori readers into an Indigenous way of seeing Jesus, and into a wider conversation about how Christianity has treated Indigenous peoples globally.
Watch Wayne introduce the book
Availability
The book is published by Bloomsbury T&T Clark and available now in hardback and ebook. A paperback edition will be released later in the year.
