the church after the New Zealand Wars, its second vicar, Rev John Frederick Lloyd (who was also a chaplain in the wars) turned them down so "no jealousies of race or feelings of hostility should ever be permitted to enter, but where men should remember only that they are one in Christ". Church constitution While Anglicans carried some of the privileges of the Church of England to New Zealand, they struggled to devise a method of church organisation which took account of their new non-establishment status alongside other churches. In 1857, after 15 years of consultation, a constitution for the New Zealand church was finalised on the basis of voluntary compact. Links with the traditions of the mother-church in England were guaranteed in their worship, ministry and beliefs. At national and regional levels, bishops, and representatives from the clergy and laity met together but voted separately on church matters, ensuring that each group had an equal voice. The constitution resolved problems for the settler church but failed to deal adequately with the administrative and leadership needs of the Māori church. Regional identity Selwyn's diocese was progressively divided into sub-districts, beginning in 1856 when Christchurch became a new diocese; Wellington, Nelson and Waiapu (East Coast) followed in 1858, and Dunedin separated from Christchurch in 1869. Each diocese developed its own identity. The Christchurch diocese was heavily influenced by the English settlers who arrived with the Canterbury Association. Under its second bishop, Andrew Suter, Nelson developed an evangelical flavour which continued in the 21st century. Waiapu had missionary beginnings, holding its first four synods (official church conferences) in the Māori language. That missionary influence was overtaken by the New Zealand wars and the growth of settler influence. 20th and 21st centuries Despite Māori being a significant portion of the members of the Anglican church in the 19th and early 20th century, calls for a Māori bishop went unheard. Selwyn refused to ordain any Māori ministers despite ability, believing that anyone who was not trained in the Greek and Latin languages was inappropriate to serve as a bishop. After decades of lobbying from parishoners, and fears that more Māori would leave the church to join the Rātana movement, the first Pīhopa o Aotearoa (Bishop of Aotearoa), Frederick Bennett, was consecrated in 1928. By 1936 the proportion of Anglicans in the total population had dropped from half to 40%. Anglican numbers declined more sharply