CultureGrams Worldwide Saints

HISTORY OF THE CHURCH IN NEW ZEALAND
Part 4: 1920-1947: General Authority Visits, President Matthew Cowley, World War II

IMPORTANT EVENTS IN NEW ZEALAND CHURCH HISTORY 1920-1954

1921 April - Elder David O. McKay tours New Zealand.
1931 February - Maori Agricultural College is destroyed by earthquake.
1933 July - Rufus K. Hardy is called to serve as mission president.
1934 October - Rufus K. Hardy is called to First Council of the Seventy.
1938 February - Matthew Cowley arrives to serve as mission president.
1938 April - Elders George Albert Smith and Rufus K. Hardy tour NZ.
1940 October - Missionaries withdraw because of World War II.
1945 October - Matthew Cowley sustained as an Apostle.
1946 February - Missionaries return to New Zealand.

VISIT OF ELDER DAVID O. MCKAY TO NEW ZEALAND

In early 1921, President George S. Taylor of the New Zealand Mission
announced that Elder David O. McKay of the Quorum of the Twelve would be
touring the mission. Elder David O. McKay was the first General Authority
to visit the Church in New Zealand. It was decided the annual Church Hui
Tau (conference) would be delayed until the Elder McKay's arrival. The
conference was held April 23-25, 1921 in Huntly, New Zealand.

At one of the meetings, a miracle took place. Elder Gordon C. Young, a
missionary attending the meetings, later described the event thus:

"[Elder McKay] spoke several sentences and then Stuart [Meha] would
interpret into Maori. Then he would make another statement in English and
Stuart would interpret. All at once everything was quiet, and all over the
congregation, the Maoris - not the Europeans but the Maoris-called out,
"Stuart, sit down, don't interpret; we can understand what the apostle is
saying." They didn't all speak English, and they didn't understand anything
President McKay was saying before, but now they were calling out to Stuart
to sit down. He was rather disconcerted . . . . Stuart didn't know what do
so he started to interpret again. The calls came again, "Stuart, sit down.
Don't interpret." So Stuart just sat down, and President McKay went on and
gave on of the most beautiful talks I have every heard in my life, and all
those people understood what he was saying." ("Unto the Islands" p. 304)

RUFUS K. HARDY CALLED TO SERVE AS MISSION PRESIDENT

Rufus K. Hardy, who had served as mission president more than 20 years
earlier, again was called to serve as president in 1933. He served in that
position for only 16 months when he was called to serve in the First
Council of the Seventy -- predecessor to the First Quorum of the Seventy.
Elder Hardy was the first of seven New Zealand mission presidents called to
be a General Authority.

MATTHEW COWLEY CALLED TO SERVE AS MISSION PRESIDENT

After Elder Hardy's departure, M. Charles Woods was called as New Zealand
mission president. Following the service of President Woods, Matthew Cowley
returned to New Zealand as mission president in 1938. Next week's part in
the series will cover more thoroughly the life and service of Elder Cowley.

When Matthew Cowley took over as mission president, he emphasized work
among the Maoris. This decision proved to be inspired because of the
responsibility that would be shouldered by local members with the advent of
World War II.

VISIT OF ELDER GEORGE ALBERT SMITH TO NEW ZEALAND

In 1938, along with the arrival of President Cowley, Elders George Albert
Smith and Rufus K. Hardy arrived to tour the mission. A conference was held
April 13-17, 1938 and was attended by more than 2,500 members and friends
of the Church. It was at this conference that President Cowley established
the emphasis on work among the Maori that he would follow for the remainder
of his mission, a mission that would last for more than seven years.

THE EFFECT OF WORLD WAR II ON THE WORK IN NEW ZEALAND

In June of 1940, President Cowley received word that due to the war no new
missionaries would be sent to New Zealand. Cowley calculated that with the
timely release of currently serving missionaries, the force of 66
missionaries in New Zealand would be reduced to only 4 within a year. But
before that year was up, all missionaries were called home. In October 1940
the remaining missionaries sailed for Hawaii, leaving President Cowley and
his family to support the work in New Zealand. They did so for the next
five years.

Although proselyting and supervisory travel were extremely limited during
this time, President Cowley reported "the activities of the Church
continued as usual under the leadership of the local Priesthood."

In 1945, President Cowley was released and returned to Salt Lake City,
Utah. Shortly after his arrival at home he was called to fill a vacancy in
the Quorum of the Twelve created by the death of President Heber J. Grant.

In February 1946, the first postwar missionaries arrived in New Zealand. By
April 1947, there were more than 50 missionaries serving. There was much
work to do following nearly seven years with no proselyting activity.

The early postwar missionaries devoted much time to tracking down members
who had moved from rural to urban areas; during the war years the
membership had migrated considerably. Missionaries were assigned to clear
up branch problems and to help with organizational changes.

NEXT WEEK: Apostle to the Polynesians -- Elder Matthew Cowley

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GEMS is grateful to R. Lanier Britsch for his support of this series.
Brother Britsch's book "Unto the Islands of the Sea, A History of the
Latter-day Saints in the Pacific" (Deseret Book, 1986) is available on
Deseret Book's electronic reference library, "GospeLink 2001." You can buy
"GospeLink 2001" online at http://deseretbook.com/ldsworld.tcl?sku=4028853

Elder Glen L. Rudd's "Short Collection of Items of History," available
through the New Zealand Missionary Society was used in compiling the
Important Events section of this message.

If you served a mission in New Zealand, you belong to the New Zealand
Missionary Society. To receive society mailings, send your contact
information to P.O. Box 12841, Ogden, UT 84414. For more information, see
http://www.mission.net/new-zealand/

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