Converting the Maori People

Catholicism was introduced to New Zealand in 1838 by missionaries from France, who converted the indigenous Māori population. As settlers from the British Isles arrived in New Zealand, many of them Irish Catholics, the Catholic Church became a settler church rather than a mission to the islands' Māori people.

The Catholic church claims to have grown to be the largest Christian denomination in New Zealand, however, "Anglican" is the largest single Christian religious affiliation in the country. The prominence of churches in New Zealand's cities, towns, and countryside attests to the historical importance of Catholicism in New Zealand.