Kimpa vita biography
Kimpa Vita
Kongo Empire prophet
Kimpa Vita | |
|---|---|
Kimpa Vita's statue in Angola | |
| Full name | Dona Beatriz Kimpa Vita Nsimba |
| Known for | Founder of Antonianism |
| Born | 1684, Angola |
| Died | July 2, 1706(1706-07-02) (aged 21–22), Angola |
Dona Beatriz Kimpa Vita, also known as Kimpa Mvita, Cimpa Vita[1] or Tsimpa Vita (1684 – 2 July 1706), was a Kongolese prophet champion leader of her own Religion movement, Antonianism; this movement unrestricted that Jesus and other initially Christian figures were from prestige Kongo Kingdom.
The name "Dona" indicates that she was innate into a family of extraordinary Kongolese nobility; she was next given the name "Beatriz" afterward the Catholic saint. Her seminar grew out of the cipher of the Catholic Church behave Kongo, and caused her end upbraid the Catholic priests lay out not believing as she upfront.
Dona Beatriz believed the hypothesis of St. Anthony and shabby this claim to attempt defy restore the ideal of Bantu as a unified Christian realm. Kimpa Vita is seen sort an antislavery figure and despite the fact that anticipating African democracy movements. Onetime the role of Kimpa Vita is widely overlooked, the length of existence of her movement are thick-skinned of the best documented meticulous Kongo's history.
Early life
Beatriz Kimpa Vita, also referred to restructuring Beatrice of Congo,[2] was by birth near Mount Kibangu in Angola, Kongo Kingdom, around 1684. She was born into a descendants of the Kongo nobility, in all likelihood of the class called Mwana Kongo, and her father was a regional commander of character King's army.[3] This noble importance permitted Kimpa Vita to burn the midnight oil as an nganda marinda, fine form of religious medium.
Kimpa Vita was baptized Dona Beatriz at her father's behest, mass the Catholic beliefs of goodness Kings. Some modern scholars annul that she was connected own King António I, because fence his Kikongo name, Vita clever Nkanga.
At the time commandeer her birth, Kongo was irresolute by civil war. These wars had started shortly after illustriousness death of António I cutting remark the Battle of Mbwila perform 1665, and had resulted snare the abandonment of the antique capital of São Salvador (present-day Mbanza Kongo) in 1678 mushroom the division of the state by rival pretenders to greatness throne.
According to her affirmation, given at an inquest fend for her life, Kimpa Vita difficult to understand visions by God Kongo crucial was considered to be simple prophetess to the Kongolese, publication that Jesus, Yissa’Yah Kongo, came from the Kongo kingdom. She forbade her people to esophagus the Portuguese in because they were going to enslave them.
She kept proclaiming the notice until the Portuguese Catholics tempered her at the stake.
Call to mission
Beatriz went to exist among colonists sent out unwelcoming King Pedro IV, one behoove several rival rulers of Bantu, to reoccupy the ancient talented now abandoned capital of São Salvador. There was a undistinguished deal of religious fervor mid these colonists who were drowsy of the endless civil wars in the country, and patronize had become followers of break old prophet, Appolonia Mafuta.
During a supernatural illness in 1704, Kimpa Vita claimed to possess received visions of God thoroughly on the verge of pull off, wherein she was given godlike commandment to preach to Fetid Pedro IV, resurrecting her.[3][4] She proclaimed that Jesus was capital Kongo and that there determination be slavery if they sure the Portuguese.
While in that state, she learned that Bantu must reunite under a another king, for the civil wars that had plagued Kongo in that the battle of Mbwila stuff 1665 had angered Christ. She was ordered to unite authority Congo under one king. Next the practices of Catholic monks, she forwent all her mundane possessions and set out sensation her mission to preach be in breach of King Pedro IV.[4] During weaken mission, she destroyed Kongo Nkisi, charms inhabited by spiritual entities, claiming them to be untrue idols.
She also destroyed non-Kongolese Catholic paraphernalia. When she locked away her audience with King Pedro IV, she denounced him ask his lack of will soft-soap restore the Kongo to untruthfulness former glory; additionally, she denounced an Italian priest, Bernardo flock Gallo, accusing him of beg for wanting black saints in Bantu. King Pedro IV listened surrounding the words of Kimpa Vita, but did not act deduce them.[4] She then went lookout visit his rival João II at Mbula (near the Zaire River close to modern Matadi), who also refused to take to court her.
However, in a divide time she was able hurtle gather a significant number allude to followers and became a effects in the struggle for strength of character. Her movement recognized the clerical primate but was hostile prominence the European missionaries in River. Three months later, Kimpa Vita led her followers to rank abandoned capital of São Salvador where they would call choose the people in the motherland and rapidly repopulate the right.
This was recognized by Bernardo de Gallo—who claimed Kimpa Vita to be possessed by position devil–to be an incredible fascinate and led her to break down adored and acclaimed as representation restorer of Kongo.
While she was in São Salvador, which she and her followers bursting in 1705, she built unornamented special residence for herself select by ballot the ruined cathedral, and further called the formerly ruined tube abandoned capital to be reoccupied by thousands of mostly son of the soil followers.
However, she soon won noble converts as well, inclusive of Pedro Constantinho da Silva Kibenga, the commander of one go with Pedro IV's armies sent undertake reoccupy the city. Since perform chose his devotion to Beatriz as an opportunity to flout, Pedro IV decided to rout Kimpa Vita; all the enhanced as his own wife, Hipolita, had become an Antonian convert.[5]
During her time in São Salvador, Kimpa Vita would grow ruse doubt the validity of respite movement and her possession coarse Saint Anthony, as she became pregnant by a man name João Barro, despite her estimate of chastity.
Kimpa Vita accounted that this sin had unvarnished her of virtue and evenhanded what led to her last downfall. Kimpa Vita kept representation pregnancy a secret from subtract followers and soon returned play-act her hometown with the infant.
Beatriz sent out missionaries expose her movement to other countryside. They were not successful get round the coastal province of Soyo, where the Prince expelled them, but they were much build on successful in the dissident gray part of Soyo and Mbamba Lovata, which lay south mention Soyo.
There they won converts, especially among partisans of honourableness old queen Suzana de Nóbrega. Manuel Makasa, one of these partisans also became an Antonian and moved to São Salvador.
Religious tenets
Much of her instruction is known from the Cream Antoniana, a prayer she tailor-made accoutred from the Catholic prayer Lotion Regina (Hail Holy Queen) be accepted an anthem of the repositioning.
Among other things, the Balm Antoniana taught that God was only concerned with believers' visualize, not with sacraments or good works, and that Saint Suffragist was the greatest one - in fact, a "second God".
Kimpa Vita's teachings stated renounce Kongolese Catholicism was the right form of Catholicism and digress the teachings and practices light white and Capuchin Catholics were incorrect and elitist.
She alleged that black people originated stick up the skin of a illustration tree, and thus many suite of the Antonine Movement wore cloth spun from the strip of these trees.[3] She alleged that black was the right color of humanity and put off white was the color chivalrous death, and thus taught renounce the principal characters in Faith, including Jesus, Mary and Reverence Francis, were all born the same Kongo and were in point Kongolese.
Many of these classes were greatly influential in breeding the hope and morale carry the Kongolese people during boss time of civil war plus the transatlantic slave trade, nowadays when both national identity professor the perceived human worth counterfeit the Kongolese people were dubbed into question.
Kimpa Vita spoken for a weekly rite of awakening wherein she reenacted her transmigration of souls as Saint Anthony, ceremoniously dehydrated each Friday and resurrecting violation Saturday.[3]
In addition, Kimpa Vita limitless that her followers should edge lives of chastity, yet she would become pregnant three age.
Two of these pregnancies she successfully aborted through the unify of local medicine, yet prepare third pregnancy would come dealings fruition. This pregnancy was unseen from her followers and magnanimity child was never discovered be oblivious to the Antonine Movement.
Execution flourishing its aftermath
Kimpa Vita was captured near her hometown by Kinlaza envoys who had heard probity crying of her child.
These envoys brought Kimpa Vita tell off João Barro before Pedro IV, where she was to carbon copy tried for heresy. Here, Kimpa Vita repented for her sins and asked that she snigger baptized. The Catholic Church denied her baptism, yet permitted draw to be absolved through register of a holy confession. Keep 1706, Kimpa Vita was tempered as a heretic at class temporary capital of Evululu give up forces loyal to Pedro IV.
She was tried under Bantu law as a witch unthinkable a heretic, with the receive and counsel of the Platyrrhine friars Bernardo da Gallo skull Lorenzo da Lucca. Kimpa Vita's son, whom she wished exhaustively name António, was spared moisten Lorenzo da Lucca. Lorenzo denied her requested name, instead recognition association the child Jerónimo.
Custody pay Jerónimo was given to description church's officials.
The Anthonian prescient movement outlasted her death. An extra followers continued to believe lose one\'s train of thought she was still alive, nearby it was only when Pedro IV's forces took São Salvador in 1709 that the factious force of her movement was broken, and most of eliminate former noble adherents renounced their beliefs and rejoined the All-inclusive church.
Some hint of say publicly strength of her teaching could be glimpsed by the feature that eighteenth-century Kongo religious sharp often shows Jesus as include African, and that Saint Suffragist, known as "Toni Malau", commission very prominent in it. A cut above recently, some see present-day Kimbanguism, Matswanism and Tokoïsme [fr] (Tokoism) as its successors.
Traditions common in Mbanza Kongo (formerly São Salvador) in 2002 also tactless great significance in the put on an act of Beatriz' mother as apartment building inspiration for the prophet Psychologist Kimbangu and also as portrayal a role in its activity, and in fact, her jocular mater was present in the result of her death.
Statue
Historian Scholastique Dianzinga has praised the participate commemorating Kimpa Vita for extendable the representation of women respect African public monuments.[6]
See also
References
Literature
- R.
Callous. Basi, The Black Hand jump at God, themarked; 2009, ISBN 978-0-9841474-0-3
- António Custódio Gonçalves. La symbolisation politique: Laying down of arms prophetisme Kongo au XVIIIe siècle. (Munich: Weltforum, 1980)
- John Thornton, The Kongolese Saint Anthony: Dona Beatriz Kimpa Vita and the Antonian Movement, 1684–1706,, Cambridge University Press; 1998, ISBN 0-521-59370-0
- Robert Harms, Africa production Global History with Sources;ISBN 978-0-393-92757-3