Disturbing, downright intrusive dreams directing my attention to the Maori last night.

Awakening with a feeling that I really didn't need to be dragged into something about which I knew very little, I immediately suspected Steven Malcolm Anderson's ghost of making mischief with my unconscious. I can't prove that, of course, but I have as much First Amendment right to speculate about the origin of my dreams as much as does anyone else. (Anyway, I hope it was Steven.)

But why the Maori? I mean, I know they're a warrior people possessed of an elitist religion, whose ferocity in battle and ritual cannibalism of their defeated enemies caused the Europeans to respect and honor treaties made with them.... All good things, of course, except maybe the cannibalism crosses a certain line. (Maybe there should be cultural dietary restrictions.)

Forgive my ignorance, but when I think of Maori, I tend to think of the anthropological stereotypes, and pictures like this:

But in all honesty, I've read nothing about the Maori recently.

Until today. I see that a lot of them are mad as hell. At Western culture. Apparently, in this instance, for abandoning the values they brought as a conquering people!

Here's a blog entry by a left wing New Zealand lesbian who contemplates (with much horror) a demonstration by angry anti-gay Maoris wearing black shirts which said "Enough is Enough!"

About 350 men and boys took part in a haka – a war dance. Kind of weird having war symbolism at a Christian event if you ask me, but then, no one did ask me.

The haka is designed to intimidate, and it was successful in that respect. Made me wonder if our sports teams should be allowed to use that sort of tactic on the field.

I really wish there had been a strong Maori response. A haka? Or is that fighting aggression with aggression (maybe Te Whiti and Tohu should be consulted on that one). I kept kicking myself for not rounding up some people from the kapa haka groups I’ve been a part of... but ultimately, it’s not me who can respond to that aspect of Tamaki’s doctrine… though I’ll be supportive in anyway I can. I really hope their will be a strong response from Maori. I’m worried that it will be left up to queer Maori people to offer any response… because those in the wider community might not be directly effected enough to care passionately enough to do anything.

Speaking of family... Tamaki was on 60 minutes saying that a family could only ever be a mother, a father and their children. Hellooooooo? Can someone please introduce the man to the concept of “whanau”?

That’s one of the (many) things that made me really sad: seeing a Maori person pushing such white ideals. It made me angry. My ignorant ancestors brought this disease, homophobia, to this land… Can't we claim intellectual property rights or something, and stop him from using it?! "Get your hands off my culture! And keep it away from me!"

Who scripts these things? Don't I have enough problems keeping track of the "Culture War" in this country? Why do I have to be directed into this by intrusive dreams?

The above entry was written over a year ago, but the issue isn't going away. A fundamentalist bishop (in the Destiny pentecostal church) of Maori descent named Brian Tamaki complains that New Zealand is under seige. And he blames (who else) the "Radical Homosexual Agenda":

A large percentage of Destiny supporters are Maori or Pacific Islanders and the party is standing candidates in all seven Maori seats, where it believes it has a realistic chance of attracting the vote.

However, broadcaster and former MP Willie Jackson, who attended the weekend's rally, said it was unlikely the party would win any Maori seats, which would go to the Maori Party or Labour.

"Their best chance would be if Tamaki stood. He has the 'X' factor."

Bishop Tamaki said he was not standing as a politician because he had not received the calling from God and had the higher role of leading his church.

Bishop Tamaki and Mr Lewis will be touring the country over the next weeks on their 'Nation under Siege' tour.

A DVD video, produced to correspond with the tour, has been sent to the Chief Censor for classification because it contains overt political and anti-gay content.

Bishop Tamaki's four reasons NZ is under siege:

* The Government has "gone evil".
* There is a "radical homosexual agenda".
* The media is "modern day witchcraft" and a vehicle for evil ideologies.
* The retreat of religion in NZ.

Good question.

Honestly, I'd never heard a word about it until today. New Zealand is so far away as to seem irrelevant. And the Maoris would seem largely of interest to anthropologists. I woke up thinking I'd do a little historical research to satisfy my curiosity, then forget the whole thing.

But when I read (from Dr Peter Lineham, Chairman of the Auckland Community Church) that the 9/11 Twin Towers are implicated, well, that gets my attention:

In the space of less than a year religion has gone from being at the bottom of the social agenda to the top! It has been an astonishing rise. And all because of Brian Tamaki and the 'Enough is Enough' march, it seems.

We can give too much credit to Tamaki for this. The media loves to hate Tamaki, just because he is so black and white. It makes a colourful story! But ever since the Twin Towers, religion has been the centre of a great deal of controversy, and the recent US election has confirmed this.

Mind you, the Destiny story is an interesting one, and I'm surprised that it took the media so long to discover it.

The most obvious aspect of Destiny phenomenon is its place in the colourful and highly politicised world of fundamentalist Pentecostalism. Pentecostals are not a new group in New Zealand. Pentecostalism has been here since the 1920s, although from early on it was divided into three sectarian denominations. Only in the 1960s did a modern 'Charismatic' form emerge. As the mainstream Protestant churches declined, it became a form of Christianity with a powerful appeal to contemporary people, who wanted a faith which fitted modern lives. It is highly individualised and commodified, yet it is sufficiently counter-cultural to appeal to those who want to be Christians in a very secular society. It has more recently become slicker and more internationalised, using a formula of handsome pastor and glamorous pastor's wife controlling an enterprise, often based in a warehouse, and attracting younger people through loud music and simple exhortation. The Destiny churches are a split from the old Apostolic denomination, which emerged after a power vacuum in their old denomination. Splits and new movements are very common in the Protestant world.

But Destiny is in some ways very different from other Pentecostal churches. The latest Destiny stories have focused on its growing links with Ratana, its presence at Waitangi, its Legacy march down Queen Street and the title of bishop which its founder and leader, Brian Tamaki has taken. The explanation for the title of Bishop is relatively clear. Brian Tamaki has in recent years been deeply influenced by the Black American religious tradition. He has spoken at the churches of the Baptist mega church leader, Eddie Long, and Eddie Long calls himself a bishop. Of course Tamaki has made himself ridiculous in the eyes of respectable middle class people who know that there is a little history behind such titles, but I don't suppose this will worry him or his followers. The development of Destiny over the past few months has focused on political issues, with growing links with the Ratana Church cemented at Waitangi. We must recall that it is Maori at heart, although not tribal Maori. It trains people in Kapa haka (and performed them all too vehemently at Waitangi); it captures the hearts of many Maori women, perhaps appealing particularly to detribalised Maori. And it has a political agenda which places treaty issues high on the agenda. (Emphasis added.)

Let there be no doubt, there are some deep tensions running through New Zealand society, troubles underneath the optimism, and fundamentally they are cultural differences. Culture and religion walk hand in hand. The issues facing us today involve a deep debate over values. We should never be confident that we know which side will win.

Elsewhere, Lineham portrays Destiny's appeal as communitarian in the extreme, with deep roots in identity politics:

Those drawn to churches like Destiny tend to be people who have been broken by the circumstances of life. Tamaki's passionate hostility to prostitution and homosexuality and his advocacy of a Christian society may be simplistic – but "enough is enough" has an appeal to those who have been stung by modern society. In South Auckland, Porirua, Gisborne and Rotorua, the levels of violence, broken homes and drug and alcohol abuse add relevance to the message. There have been some remarkable conversions at Destiny, as well as some remarkable failures.

....

Destiny has huge potential because it is unique in its appeal to Maori and Pacific Islanders. It is "black power", shaped in the American black pentecostal mould. The church recruits many young people from South Auckland through youth programmes, blending hip-hop culture with fundamental truths, and offering a substitute family. Some of the black-shirted marchers looked like former gang members, and probably were, for the church is a new gang.

Hard core communitarianism seems to have a way of not going away.

And anyone who thinks Destiny's form of pentecostalist communitarianism looks bad should consider the alternative. Islam is spreading among the Maoris:

A fascinating article in the Sunday Star Times today: radical Islam is being promoted among Maori prisoners in New Zealand, and is gaining a foothold, particularly among gang members.

The attraction of Islam to "downtrodden" groups (especially the soi-disant variety) is a well known phenomonon. It has finally been noticed in New Zealand.

The article focusses on an individual called Te Amorangi Izhaq Kireka-Whaanga, a Hallal slaughter-man and self-proclaimed fan of Osama bin Laden. He claims that one of the chief selling points of Islam among Maori inmates is hate for the west, and specifically NZ Pakeha.

One can see the attraction for many Maori convicts. On the positive side, there is discipline, order, a set of rules, and (best of all) a ban on alcohol and other intoxicants.

Unfortunately, Islam also tends to bring with it misogyny, homophobia, and legitimation of nihilistic violence (Kireki-Whaanga feels the attack in Beslan was Islamically legitimate). Most importantly, it can provide a religious justification for rage-fueled aggression.

And I thought the Maoris were a quaint sort of people idealized by anthropologists for introducing new sexual practices to the West!

Which begs the question of whose culture (and whose "Culture War") it is.