Temple De Papetoai

In 1833 the missionaries landed in Papetoai, formerly Faatoai, on the island of Moorea. Theplace where they first set foot they named "Te maoae roa", the name of the wind which had carried them there. They built a first wooden temple in an octagonal shape, as a tribute to the original name of Moorea, Aimeho i te rara varu - Aimeho of eight tentacles, so called because of the eight chains of mountains on the island. They built it directly on top of the marae of Uaeva, with the original spring inside the building. The second temple was built of stone between 1887 and 1891, once again in an octagonal form, but this time with the spring on the outsdie. Inside the temple is a marble stone which commemorates the work of the missionaries and a wooden plaque in honor of their first convert in 1815, the Great Cheif Patii, who later became the first Tahitian deacon. The spring "Vai te rara epu" was part of the island's evangelization. The whole population would gather for the service and numerous baptisms wrere held in the springwater. Pomare ll and six other deacons were baptized there. Legend has it that the spring also has certain healing properties. An upright stone in front of the temple is named "Tura'a ma rafea" and comes from the sacred marae of Taputapuatea in Raiatea, which is why the marae Tepua tea of Papetoai has the status of national marae. The stone was a wedding present for a priest from Papetoai, who married a girl from the royal family in Raiatea.
The temple is a very important site in the history of religion in Polynesia.