New Mormon buildings in New Zealand paint a bright future, but some members lament loss of the past

Mormons in New Zealand gathered in Hamilton on June 17 for the dedication of a massive new LDS building — the David O. McKay Stake and Cultural Events Centre — whose purpose is both spiritual and cultural.

The new center sits on the edge of historic Temple View — a community of around 2,000 people, according to an LDS Church news release — "which received its name after the Latter-day Saints' New Zealand Temple was dedicated and opened in 1958."

Several other buildings were dedicated last week, too — including the refurbished Wendell B. Mendenhall Library, G.R. Biesinger Hall, Kai Hall and "First House," a building which was once home to Church College of New Zealand faculty

Henry B. Eyring, first counselor in the governing First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, flew across the globe from Utah for the occasion, as did apostle Neil L. Andersen and Bishop Dean M. Davies of the Presiding Bishopric.

In the service, Eyring described previous visits to the South Pacific nation, particularly the Mormon enclave at Hamilton. It was, he told the assembled Latter-day Saints, "a sacred place."

That view is shared by many in the region, which is why some devout Mormons have protested plans to demolish the college's sprawling campus.

Temple View, a suburb of Hamilton and a planned community about an hour outside Auckland, has housed a largely LDS population for decades, drawn by a common faith.

Church College of New Zealand, equivalent to an American secondary boarding school, became one of the premier educational institutions in the country, especially for Maoris.

It, like the temple, was built in the late 1950s by an all-volunteer crew of Maori Mormon workers, known as "labor missionaries," who lived on the site. With each nail and plank, these laborers constructed what they considered a holy place, while at the same time creating a cohesive, self-sacrificing core of devoted Latter-day Saints. They met, married and later sent their children to that school — and eventually became the nucleus of Mormon leaders in the region.

In 2006, officials at church headquarters in Salt Lake City closed the school, saying it no longer was needed.

The first word was that the campus would be razed, reduced to grazing land. After vehement objections by some locals, many of whose forefathers and mothers had been Mormon pioneers in the region, LDS leaders took a second look.

Saturday's dedication showcased the new plan, but critics remained determined to save the old David O. McKay Building, which had been the heart of the old campus.

Meshweyla Macdonald's grandfather was a labor missionary who helped erect Temple View. Her parents met at Church College and going there herself "changed her life," she told Salt Lake's City Weekly.

She represents the Temple View Heritage Society, which has pushed for preservation.

That group opposes the demolition of the David O. McKay Building, she said, "because it is wasteful of resources, disrespectful of the sacrifices made by the community in the construction of the college — it being one of the last surviving buildings — and it is ignorant of community needs.

Three years ago, the soft-spoken activist told The Salt Lake Tribune that "the community center touched everyone; the design was meant to be enduring; everything was perfectly set for communal living,"

Making her position public has opened Macdonald and the others to verbal attacks on social media from fellow believers, she said in an email this week. They expressed "rage" and called on the preservation group "to follow the prophet ... and express devotion and obedience to church leadership and their decisions."

During last week's dedication service, Andersen, according to the church's news release, "encouraged all to follow the counsel of living prophets and apostles."

So, the fight may be nearly over.

This week, the Hamilton City Council approved the demolition and removal of the cherished David O. McKay Building and the preservation group may not have the means to appeal.

Mcdonald's congregation is one of the two assigned to meet in the new stake center.

During Sunday services, the theme was gratitude, she said, "and how grateful we should be for the new facility the church has built for our use."

Ra Puriri, whose own history traces back to the Church College and who has worked to save and celebrate its history and impact, has paid a personal price for his opposition.

Shortly after his son returned from an LDS mission, Puriri lost temple privileges because of his activism. It broke his heart, the active Mormon said. "It was impossible to explain to my children."

Still, Puriri is proud of his efforts on behalf of the college, one of the places in the country back then where Maoris could get an education.

Without the work of the heritage society and critics, none of it would have been saved, he said. "This is not the end of the story — pushback is essential to change."

pstack@sltrib.com

Twitter: @religiongal