The MĀORI Audio Bible
An ambitious 3 year project between Te Wānanga Ihorangi and Bible Society New Zealand
Te Wānanga Ihorangi and Bible Society New Zealand are coming together to launch a partnership that will see us eventually record the Māori Audio Bible. Ambitious in scope, this three-year project will see all 66 books from Te Paipera Tapu, the Māori Bible, professionally recorded, mastered, and distributed.
An Incremental Approach
portions of the Māori Audio Bible Will be Released as they are produced
The magnitude of the project, encompassing all 66 books of the Māori Bible, demands a thoughtful and incremental approach. The journey is divided into manageable phases, ensuring that each release is timely and appropriate. This approach also reflects the deep desire to involve the community in this transformative process. As each milestone is achieved – from the completion of the Gospels to the New Testament – the intention is to celebrate these accomplishments collectively. Ultimately, when the entire Māori Audio Bible is finalised, a grand celebration will mark the culmination of this labour of love and faith, that will uplift Te Paipera Tapu throughout Aotearoa.
Listen to a sample
Inā, nā te rongo te whakapono, ā, ko te rongo nā te kupu a te Karaiti - Rōma 10:17
Discover the backstory
Rev’d Te Karere Scarborough (Tumuaki | Co-Principal) from Te Wānanga Ihorangi has kindly provided relevant background, project, and partnership information for the Māori Audio Bible project through his answers to the questions below.
Relationship between Steve (Relationships Director at Bible Society New Zealand) and myself, studying te reo Māori together. And the desire to use the Māori Bible as an ongoing resource for faith and language revitalisation.
It represents a unity, that’s symbolic of Te Tiriti o Waitangi for sure. For us though as a Māori led kaupapa, we love the idea of partnering with the Bible Society but being able to drive the work from a Māori frame in order to bring about change and ongoing flourishing for our own people.
In chunks, with timely and appropriate releases. This isn’t a project that we will just finish and release. We’d like our communities to come on a journey with us too. After the Gospels are done, let’s celebrate. After the NT is done – let’s get together again. When the whole book is done, let’s really come together and praise God for his goodness.
2.5-3 years, a completed Māori Audio Bible available on all appropriate channels.
We are a faith-based Māori language school, and as such, this is one of the most important language resources we could get behind and get out there to communities. We are an oral people – and it only makes sense that this will be available to be ‘heard’ by our communities.
We have scraped together our 2 cents and put it alongside the Bible Society. But we need our communities to get behind us too. Recording, mastering, and distributing a high quality resource will take time and resources – so once the fundraising campaign is out there please get behind it.
Follow the Journey
Please fill in the form below to be notified About the latest Māori Audio Bible news and developments
YES
Yes, I would like to help support the production costs of the Māori Audio Bible.
APPEAL Code: MaoriAudio23
(For bank payments, please quote the Appeal code MaoriAudio23 in the Particulars bank field.)
SIMPLY USE THe SECURE FORM BELOW TO MAKE AN ONLINE DONATION
Donations of $5 or more are eligible for a tax credit. In the event that an appeal becomes oversubscribed, funds will be distributed where most needed.
Need support? Call us on 0800 424 253 or email us at donations@biblesociety.org.nz
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Te Wānanga Ihorangi – formerly known as Oati, began in 2018 and is a registered charitable trust. As a kaupapa, they are committed to the reclamation, preservation, and revitalisation of te reo Māori in Aotearoa. They see the flourishing of te reo and tikanga Māori as inherently tied to the spiritual, physical, and social well-being of their communities. Their programmes, curriculum resources, and media content are all aimed at supporting this mission.
A unique aspect of Te Wānanga Ihorangi is their commitment to seeing te reo Māori as the primary medium in which their hapori whakapono (e.g. Hāhi) express their faith and beliefs. This vision and mission are captured in their organisation whakatauākī:
Ko te reo te kauwaka o taku whakapono
(Te reo Māori is the sacred vessel of my faith)
Made up of whānau who come from Ringatu, Mihinare, Te Hāhi Iriiri, and Te Hāhi Pakipaki whakapapa; this whakapono-based language school will be the only one of its kind in Aotearoa.
