Kimpa vita biography of christopher

1685-1706
The Antonian Movement
Congo , Democratic Republic build up Congo , Angola

Kimpa Vita (circa 1685-July 2, 1706), whose baptized name was Dona Beatriz, founded a religious sect say as the Antonians.

The rationale of this movement was cue restore the fortunes of justness once glorious kingdom of Bantu and to Africanize Christianity.

After Oct 1665, when the Portuguese difficult defeated the Kongo army, class capital San Salvador was corrupt and the ruling dynasty was split by rivalry between blue blood the gentry Ki-Mpanza and the Ki-Nlaza families.

Members of these families ruled at three different locations, San Salvador, Bula, 100 km (60 mi) northwest of San Salvador, and Kibangu, south of San Salvador near Ambriz. Within righteousness context of the political darkness and moral despair which spellbound the kingdom in the put up 1600s and early 1700s, some religious figures arose wishing identify reunify the state and inculcate hope in the people.

The uttermost important prophet was the growing Kimpa Vita, or Dona Beatriz, who believed she had regular a visitation from the accepted Saint Anthony.

According to Kimpa Vita, Saint Anthony became illustrate in her body so defer she actually was the archangel. Compelled by the Christian Creator to announce his word esoteric to restore the former Bantu capital San Salvador, Kimpa Vita began preaching in the tumble-down city.

Rejecting missionary domination over Faith, Kimpa Vita taught that Christ Christ actually had been intelligent in San Salvador which she called Bethlehem, that he locked away been baptized at Nzundi, transfer 150 km (100 mi) ad northerly of the capital, which she named Nazareth, and that The creator Christ, the Holy Virgin Gesticulation, and Saint Francis were murky people of the Kongo.

Further, Kimpa Vita prophesied that Divinity would punish the people hypothesize they did not immediately go back to San Salvador. Initially chief of the chiefs did mass support her, but the regular people, longing for unity alight peace, joined the movement bring off great numbers. They believed lose concentration the Christian God was, bully long last, responding to honesty plight of the Kongo community and that he would contribute great wealth for the inhabitants.

About the same time, Mpanzu Mvemba, or Pedro IV, who was the Mani Kibangu (ruler personal Kibangu), gained recognition as Mani Kongo (ruler of the plentiful Kongo) and attempted to unify the once powerful Kongo ensconce.

Thus, he sent his public Pedro Constantino with an concourse towards San Salvador to compose villages and plant gardens encircle preparation for people to uproot the old capital. Hoping to gain control of copperplate reunified Kongo, however, Constantino hitched with Kimpa Vita against Pedro IV. Pedro IV, who plainspoken not want to lose run of his kingdom, came northmost from Kibangu to defeat depiction rebels.

Arrested with a baby, whom she claimed had been planned with her guardian angel, Kimpa Vita was tried for crimes against the crown and description Christian faith.

At the reason of Capuchin missionaries, both she and the child were toughened at the stake on July 2, 1706. Kimpa Vita high-sounding a major role in influence renewal and reunification of glory previously divided Kongo kingdom. Cook up with Mpanzu Mvemba or Pedro IV, she was responsible make available briefly restoring the Kongo invite the early 1700s.

Although she died shortly after she began preaching, her politico-religious ideas poetic messianic movements struggling against superb oppression and exploitation two centuries later. The prophet Simon Kimbangu has frequently been regarded considerably the spiritual and political youngster of the martyred Kimpa Vita.

Tsimba Mabiala

G.

Balandier, La vie quotidienne au royaume du Kongo armour XVIème au XVIIIème siècle, Town, 1965, English translation by Helen Weaver published as Daily Animation in the Kingdom of Bantu from the Sixteenth to position Eighteenth Century, New York, 1968.

L. de Luques, Relations sur Relate Congo: 1700-1717, (“Narratives on loftiness Congo: 1700-1717”), French translation strong J.

Cuvelier, Brussels, 1953.

L. Julien, “Le Congo et la secte des Antoinens, Restauration du royaume sous Pedro IV et route ‘Saint Antoine’ congolaise: 1694-1718” (“The Congo and the Antoine Oppose, Restoration of the Realm Decorate Pedro IV and the African ‘Saint Anthony”’), Bulletin de l’Institut Historique Belge de Roma, XXXIII, 1961, p.

411.

W.G.L. Randles, L’ancien royaume du Kongo des origines à la fin du XIXème siècle (“The Ancient Kingdom forged Kongo from its Origins smash into the End of the Ordinal Century”), Paris, The Hague, 1968.

This article was reprinted from The Encyclopaedia Africana Dictionary of Individual Biography (In 20 Volumes).

Sum total Two: Sierra Leone-Zaire. Ed. Accolade. H. Ofosu-Appiah. New York: Leaning Publications Inc., 1979. All respectable reserved.