Pa Henare Tate, esteemed leader in the Catholic Church, dies

There were many great services held my Pa Henare Tate before he passed away. Here he pays tribute to Ralph Hotere's late mother Ana at Mr Hotere's tang in 2013. Photo/File

Pa Henare Tate, an esteemed leader in the Catholic Church, was a person of guidance who was dedicated to his faith.

Pa Tate, who is from Hokianga, died on Saturday at Rawene Hospital.

Whangaunga (relative) Rudy Taylor said Pa Tate would be sadly missed by those who depended on him for guidance.

"I had a chat to Pa Tate in the last five months when I became the chairman of the whanau trust of Hato Petera. I used to contact him all the time about the strategy and what we could do to keep it open and he would give me strong advice.

"He was a person of guidance. He would say 'I'm retiring, I'm retiring' but people kept telling him 'Pa, can you take our services' or 'Pa, can you take our marriage?' and he was always obliging."

Pa Tate, of Te Rarawa descent, was an ordained priest of the Catholic Church for "well over 50 years".

"Pa Tate held his own mana in being who he wanted to be and that was honouring his people in terms of his religion and that was Catholicism. He was supported by his home people and by his parents mainly because of the Catholicism that was in the Hokianga."

Mr Taylor said Pa Tate had led many great services - including christenings, marriages, 21st birthdays and funerals.

He moved to Auckland at Hato Petera College and played "a big role there".

He was also one of the driving forces behind the return and reinterment of Bishop Jean Baptiste Francois Pompallier, Mr Taylor said.

"To find out where Bishop Pompallier laid in France, that Pa Tate could make that journey to talk to them and bring the bishop's remains back to Hokianga - that was very important," he said.

Mr Taylor said he believed Pa Tate's service would be held at Motuti Marae in Hokianga.

Moe mai ra e Pa Henare Tate.