Brian Raymond Tamaki (born 2 February 1958) is a New Zealand Christian fundamentalist religious leader, and politician. He is the leader of Destiny Church, a Pentecostal Christian organisation that advocates strict adherence to a fundamentalist view of biblical morality. Tamaki has been involved with various fringe political parties and movements, and since 2022 he has led the Freedoms New Zealand party. A perennial candidate, he has run for office several times but has yet to be elected.
Founded by Tamaki in the 1980s, the Destiny Church is known for its position against homosexuality, its patriarchal views, and for its calls for a return to biblical conservative family values and morals. Tamaki has also stated the COVID-19 pandemic is a sign the world has "strayed from God". This, alongside many comments he has made, has made him a controversial figure in New Zealand.
Tamaki's church and his political involvements have pushed a strong campaign that opposes COVID-19 vaccination, lockdowns and mask mandates since the pandemic began in New Zealand, and engaged in protests against mandates at Parliament, including the 2022 Wellington protest. In 2022 Tamaki was briefly imprisoned for breaching bail conditions as he took part in an anti-mandate protest in Christchurch.
Biography Early life In his autobiography Bishop Brian Tamaki: More than meets the eye, Tamaki makes the following statements about his early life:
Born in Te Awamutu as the eldest in a family of five, Tamaki spent his childhood years on the family farm, called "Te Manuka", in the rural area of Te Kopua. His mother was "devoutly religious", taking her sons to the Te Awamutu Methodist Church on Sundays. Tamaki describes his father as an alcoholic who showed no interest in fatherhood. Tamaki is of Tainui ancestry, from the Ngati Ngawaero and Ngāti Maniapoto tribes. During Tamaki's childhood the family moved from the farm to Te Awamutu and then on to Tokoroa in 1970. While in Tokoroa, Tamaki became interested in rugby union and a little later came to enjoy pig-hunting and participating in a rock band playing the pub circuit. Two of Tamaki's brothers, Doug and Mike, are tourism venture operators in Rotorua.
Tamaki dropped out of secondary school at fifteen, after, as he describes in his autobiography, dabbling in drugs, before completing the fourth form and took a labouring job in the forestry industry. In his teens Tamaki began a relationship with Hannah Lee and the unwed couple moved to Te Awamutu, where Tamaki worked on a dairy farm owned by his uncle and aunt. An incident occurred where Lee tried to stab Tamaki to death. It is reported that he had to lock himself in the bathroom but that the blade pierced through the door, nearly wounding him. Tamaki and Lee had their first child, in December 1978. Later at 21, Tamaki joined the Ngāruawāhia Apostolic Church. He lost his farm job and he and Lee returned to Tokoroa, where he attended the Tokoroa Apostolic Church. Tamaki became heavily involved with the church after pastor Manuel Renata baptised him in December 1979. Since Tamaki and his partner had not married, Renata would not allow him to carry out all the functions of the church. Tamaki and Lee then married at the Tokoroa Presbyterian Church on 22 March 1980. Fourteen months later they had their second child, a girl.
Destiny Church
In 1982 the Tamakis attended the Apostolic Church's Te Nikau Bible College in Paraparaumu, and also had their third child, Samuel. Tamaki became an ordained elder, and then (in September 1984) a pastor in the Tokoroa Apostolic Church. Tamaki went on to establish the Rosetown Community Church in Te Awamutu, the Lake City Church in Rotorua, City Church and then Destiny Church in Auckland.
On 18 June 2005 kaumātua and Destiny Pastor Manuel Renata ordained Tamaki as bishop of the Destiny Church movement (which at the time totalled 15 churches throughout New Zealand and Australia).
Tamaki advocates prosperity theology, which has been criticised as immoral and potentially dangerous.Grimshaw, Mike (January 2006). "Religion, terror and the end of the postmodern: Rethinking the responses ". International Journal of Baudrillard Studies 3 (1)
In 2017 Brian Tamaki and Hannah Tamaki moved into a 234 square metre house in Drury, South Auckland. While it is the residence of Brian Tamaki and his family they are not legally connected to the home and only reside there. In response to criticism that moving into a house of such size was an overreach of his wealth, Tamaki responded "Jealousy is part of the promotion of god".
In mid-April 2018, it was reported that Tamaki had sustained two second-degree burns to his face and body after a botched attempt to burn rubbish. Tamaki announced to members of his congregation that he was recovering and praised his wife and hospital staff for aiding his recovery.
In February 2021, The Otago Daily Times noted that he was being styled "Apostle Bishop" and that church members who paid various fees could be styled "Apostle's Sons".
In late July 2022, it was reported that Tamaki was facing a charge of careless driving after crossing the centre line and colliding with a car carrying two occupants near Rotorua on 6 May 2022. He pleaded guilty to careless driving and was ordered to pay reparations.
Church and politics
In 2004, Tamaki predicted the Destiny Church would be "ruling the nation" before its tenth anniversary in 2008. A year earlier, in 2003, several members of the Destiny Church started the Destiny New Zealand political party, led by Richard Lewis. The party fielded 42 candidates in the 2005 general election, but garnered 0.6 per cent of the vote, short of the 5 per cent threshold required to enter Parliament without winning an electorate seat. None of its candidates came close to being elected.
Destiny New Zealand was promoted by a nationwide tour and DVD labelled "A Nation Under Siege". Tamaki features in the DVD and accompanied the tour. The DVD shows Tamaki decrying what he sees as four problems with New Zealand society: "a Government gone evil, a radical homosexual agenda, the media: a modern day witchcraft" and "the retreat of religion in New Zealand".
In his autobiography Tamaki wrote a chapter titled "Spiritual Father – a long time coming", in which he described meeting "my spiritual father", Eddie Long, in 2002. In October 2003, Long visited New Zealand after Tamaki invited him to address Destiny Church members. Tamaki wrote, "the ease of our connection and the confirmation of a date was entirely in line with Kingdom principle – when God speaks, do it". Long travelled to New Zealand again subsequently and Tamaki usually met him each year at church conferences.
On 23 May 2019 Tamaki launched a new political party, Coalition New Zealand, led by his wife Hannah Tamaki. Coalition New Zealand would not be an explicitly Christian party but would oppose abortion and homosexuality. The name of the party was deemed potentially misleading by the Electoral Commission and was subsequently renamed to Vision New Zealand.
On 23 August 2022 Tamaki launched Freedoms New Zealand, a new umbrella political party which includes the New Nation Party, Vision New Zealand, and the NZ Outdoors & Freedom Party. On 13 May 2023, Tamaki announced that he would contest the 2023 New Zealand general election as the leader of Freedoms New Zealand.
During the 2023 general election held on 14 October, Freedoms NZ failed to get into Parliament, attracting only 9,586 votes (0.33%). Following the release of preliminary results, Tamaki defended the anti-abortion stance of the unsuccessful National Party candidate Simon O'Connor, describing New Zealand Christians as "gutless."
Media engagement At the Nelson meeting of the Destiny New Zealand "A Nation Under Siege" tour, Tamaki attacked the media, the government, the Green Party and Grey Power (a lobby group for the elderly), referring to the Greens as "pagans", Grey Power as "self centred" and the media as "modern day witchcraft".
In 2004 the Sunday Star-TimesSunday Star-Times (NZ)/29 August 2004 reported that Mr Tamaki "hijacked" $450,000 from elderly couple Barry and Marian Wilson. The Wilsons lent the money, which they had received from the sale of nautical clothing label Line7 in the mid-'90s, on the understanding that it was to be used to purchase a block of land in Rotorua for the construction of a church. It was reported that after almost 10 years and countless attempts to contact Mr Tamaki and his wife Hannah, the Wilsons had given up hope of ever recovering the full amount. The Sunday Star-Times asked Mr Tamaki for a response to a series of questions regarding the loan, but he declined to respond.
In 2004 Sunday broadcast a documentary of Tamaki and of the Destiny Church. Dr Philip Culbertson of the University of Auckland said: "As far as I can tell it's a cult".
In July 2005 Tamaki had directed "highly offensive abuse" at Newstalk ZB host Mike Yardley while off-air during an interview on 20 July. In his autobiography Tamaki denies that the abuse happened.
In May 2006 a poll ranked Tamaki the least-trusted of 75 prominent New Zealanders. In June 2006 Tamaki expressed opposition to Sue Bradford's private members Child Discipline Bill, which removed the legal defence of "reasonable force" for prosecutions of parents who have assaulted their children.Home Page – Challenge Publishing Society Ltd
In May 2007 the Reader's Digest "Most Trusted People"' poll again ranked Tamaki as New Zealand's least trusted of 75 prominent persons, followed by Ahmed Zaoui and Don Brash. He was again ranked least-trusted in 2012 in a list of 100, this time followed by Hone Harawira and Kim Dotcom.
In July 2008 TV3 broadcast "Inside New Zealand: The Life of Brian", a documentary by reporter Ross Jennings.Inside New Zealand: The Life of Brian, TV3, Thursday 17 July 2008 21:30. Retrieved 24 June 2009
In late April 2025, Tamaki and Destiny's "Man Up" domestic violence programme were the subject of a five-part TVNZ mini-series called Under His Command hosted by broadcaster John Campbell. The series interviewed 22 former and current Destiny Church members, who alleged that the church's Man-Up programme encouraged male domination and tolerated violence against wives. The documentary also alleged that Tamaki utilised rage against the gay, transgender communities and immigrants as a marketing tool.
Views and controversies
Cult allegations In a Close Up televised interview, Close-Up Interview TVNZ, Video. on the subject Tamaki denied that his church is a cult, stating that "if we are a cult then the Catholics, the Presbyterians, the Methodists, the Baptists, and the Pentecostals are all cults as well. Because we believe – we have the same actual orthodox tenets of belief."
Views on sexuality and marriage Radio Pacific host John Banks aired an interview with Tamaki that attacked a New Zealand AIDS Foundation's takatāpui (Māori for LGBT-person) HIV-prevention project, in which Tamaki referred to traditional Māori pre-colonial intolerance for male homosexuality, painting a picture of a society which, he states, exterminated gay and lesbian people. However, many Māori academic authorities question the basis for this statement.
The broadcasting of Tamaki's preaching against homosexuality on Television New Zealand has led to numerous complaints to the Broadcasting Standards Authority. Television New Zealand pulled the original opening episode of his series Higher Ground, because it "had language and phrases that did not meet industry standards of accuracy, fairness and balance".
Tamaki does not recognise the sex-reassignment surgery of the transgender former MP Georgina Beyer: Tamaki referred to Beyer in his autobiography as a male.