News

A Message From the Arise Board to Those Who Submitted to Pathfinding
2022-12-01

The Arise Board want to take this opportunity to apologise to you.

Firstly, we thank you sincerely for your willingness and courage in sharing your stories with us, as documented in the Pathfinding report.

Secondly, we acknowledge that this process has felt long and drawn out. We apologise that for many of you, there is a sense that you have been waiting for further response.

We want to apologise to each of you and your whānau for the hurt our church has caused you. Specifically:

• We apologise to current or former interns, staff and volunteers who felt manipulated or coerced to work hours or in roles that resulted in burnout, mental and physical health impacts. You were treated with dishonour and disrespect, and at times spiritually manipulated to your own detriment. We know proper processes were not always followed and for that we are sorry.
• We apologise to the volunteers across our congregation. We are sorry that our church expected you to pay to attend events while serving at a level that meant you couldn’t always participate. We are also sorry for unreasonable and unfair expectations placed on you.
• We apologise to those Ministry School students who experienced undue financial pressure and were given tasks that were not related to your studies or internship.
• We apologise to those who were harassed or a victim of inappropriate behaviour while a part of our church community. We didn’t journey with you to get the help, outcomes, or the support you needed. We are sorry.
• We apologise for those who experienced bullying, were shouted at, physically assaulted, or manipulated. We are sorry that you were treated unacceptably.
• We apologise to our diverse communities. Our church was intended to be welcoming to all, but for some, particularly those from other ethnicities – Māori, Pasifika, Filipino, Chinese to name a few – it wasn’t always the experience. We acted as if Pākehā culture was ‘kingdom’ culture and minimised Te Tiriti and those precious cultures represented by our treasured church family. For this we are sorry.
• We apologise to those that felt excluded due to their gender, age, appearance, marital status, mental health, or specific personal circumstances. Many of you felt excluded or with no pathway for restoration – even worse, some were maligned. For those whose challenges were minimised or not treated with due respect and confidentiality, we are sorry.
• We apologise to those who raised issues and were not listened to, and then were criticised for speaking up. We are sorry.
• We apologise to those who have felt “cut-off” and spoken badly of once they left our church family. It is not ok for a church you called your home to have treated you this way.
• We apologise that there has been insufficient transparency and accountability, in respect of your financial offerings.

Continuing the journey
We have begun the journey of re-building and creating a healthy culture, based on our love for Jesus our Messiah.

We will take actions to address the wrongs, support healing processes, restore relationships and as far as possible, bring closure to this painful season. We know that a “one size to fit all” approach will not work. We do not intend to prescribe what might work for you.

If there are any requests you have of us, we invite you to contact us at board@arisechurch.com.

We know that some people have been waiting to hear about follow up they requested when they made their submission into the Pathfinding review. With this in mind, please contact us if there is any action, we can take for you.

We commit to change – Tūturu whakamaua, kia tina, haumi e, hui e, tāike e!

Ngā manaakitanga, nā

Arise Board
Kylie Fletcher
Ben Kendrew
Joe Bundy-Cooke
Alistair Papali’i-Curtin
Alice Camaivuna
John Robertson
Anna Pasikale