Kimpa Vita

Kimpa Vita grew up in a very unstable time and heard about local events from her family and neighbors. Three ruling families competed for power in the Kongo. This resulted in numerous, seemingly unending civil wars throughout the Kingdom of Kongo. In fact, her own father was often away at war to defend the people of the Kibangu region. Turmoil had gripped the lands for many years, and the people of the Kongo began to think nothing short of a miracle would bring peace and stability back to the Kingdom.

In 1704, when Kimpa Vita was twenty years old, she apparently died and then returned to life, possessed by the Catholic Saint Anthony. As Saint Anthony, she began to preach her version of Christianity, a mix of Catholicism with traditional Kongolese beliefs. Much to the dismay of the Catholic Church, Kimpa Vita quickly attracted a large following of common people, as well as some nobility. Her messag

Kimpa Vita was raised Catholic as all children of the time were. The Kongolese enjoyed their religion and were “ proud to call themselves Catholics” (Thornton 17). They believed that Christianity “made them superior to the heathens’, even those to the north and east who spoke dialects of the same Kikongo language” (17). However, white Catholic priest of the time did not always feel the same way. This was because of the conflict between Christianity and Kongolese traditions.

Capuchin priests were intent on finding and persecuting these presumed witches. This must have caused extreme mental conflict for the Kongolese. For example, in 1699, Capuchin priest discovered a Kimpasi society lodge that was holding an induction ceremony. The priest raided the lodge and “seized the various instruments of their worship, and then ordered the buildings set of fire” (72). At mass the following Sunday, the priest gave a sermon of witchcraft, and then “declared all the initiates of the Kimpasi society excommunicated” (73). Since Kimpa Vita was a member of the Kimpasi society, it is easy to see how she could have become discouraged by the European version of Catholicism. To her, it must have seemed like her people were being punished for holding on to tradition.

Kimpa Vita was categorized as an nganga marinda, “whose special tasks were to address social problems as much as individual ones” (54). Her interests in the social problems of the Kongo could have begun here. Kimpa Vita was inducted into a secret society of nagangas, the Kimpasi society. The Kimpasi society aimed to reduce suffering in the community and help solve problems. Because of her position in the Kimpasi society, she was often looked up to and regarded as high in the social structure.

One conflict between Christianity and Kongolese traditions was in beliefs about the afterlife. According to Christianity, the soul of a person went to either Heaven or Hell, depending on how the person had lived their life on Earth. However, the Kongolese believed the soul of a person “remained in spiritual form around the grave where they had been buried” (30). The Kongolese had a deep respect for their ancestors, and were careful of their graves because

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