Kereru Tarawhiti was born in Waikato in 1823. When he was a child Kereru was christened ‘Seth’ by Reverend Robert Burrows of the Mission School. The name Seth was later translated into Māori as Heta.
At age 16 Tarawhiti witnessed the arrival of Reverend Yates Ashwell, one of the few missionaries trusted by Māori. Ashwell would later become a mentor for Tarawhiti.
In 1858, Tarawhiti trained under Bishop Selwyn, George Kissling, and Sir William Martin at St Stephens in Parnell, Auckland. In 1860 Tarawhiti was deaconed and would play an instrumental role in the relationship between Māori, the Government and the Church in the land wars of the 1860s, particularly in the Taupiri, Waikato region.
In 1866 Heta was finally ordained as a priest by Bishop Selwyn at St. Pauls, Auckland.
He continued to serve the church until his death in 1898 and he was buried among chiefs on Taupiri Mountain.
In the archives, we have several letters written by Heta Tarawhiti spanning from 1867 to 1879. One letter was written to Selwyn and four letters were written to Ashwell.
ANG90/4/177 Letter from Heta Tarawhiti to Selwyn. 28 March 1867.
MIC\14\15\15 Yates Ashwell Letters, 1835-1879.
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