Lumpa Church
Encyclopedia
The Lumpa Church, an independent Christian church, was established in 1953 by "Alice" Lenshina Mulenga in the village of Kasoma, Northern Rhodesia
(Zambia
). The church promoted a blend of Christian
and traditional religious values and practices, including a belief in the role of women as spiritual mediums.
The group began with the ideals of Alice Mulenga Lubusha who rechristened herself Alice Lenshina
or essentially "Alice Regina." The group was what could be deemed the "eradication movement" in African religion. It strongly opposed polygamy
and sorcery
.
By 1958 the organization adopted the controversial rejection of all earthly authority. It began having its own courts and refused to pay taxes or be registered with the state. This led to a confrontation soon after Zambia became independent, This violent confrontation led to the deaths of approximately 700 members and the arrest of Alice Lenshina. Alice was released in 1975, but imprisoned two years later for trying to revive the movement's strength. The Catholic Lay movement Legion of Mary
adopted some of their hymns and thus converted some of the former members, although the Lumpa Church itself is said to survive in a diminished and largely underground form.
Northern Rhodesia
Northern Rhodesia was a territory in south central Africa, formed in 1911. It became independent in 1964 as Zambia.It was initially administered under charter by the British South Africa Company and formed by it in 1911 by amalgamating North-Western Rhodesia and North-Eastern Rhodesia...
(Zambia
Zambia
Zambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west....
). The church promoted a blend of Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
and traditional religious values and practices, including a belief in the role of women as spiritual mediums.
The group began with the ideals of Alice Mulenga Lubusha who rechristened herself Alice Lenshina
Alice Lenshina
Alice Lenshina was a Christian religious leader who founded the Lumpa Church. She was born Alice Mulenga Lubusha in the Chinsali district of the northern province of Northern Rhodesia. Alice was the name she was given at baptism, while Mulenga was her traditional African name...
or essentially "Alice Regina." The group was what could be deemed the "eradication movement" in African religion. It strongly opposed polygamy
Polygamy
Polygamy is a marriage which includes more than two partners...
and sorcery
Magic (paranormal)
Magic is the claimed art of manipulating aspects of reality either by supernatural means or through knowledge of occult laws unknown to science. It is in contrast to science, in that science does not accept anything not subject to either direct or indirect observation, and subject to logical...
.
By 1958 the organization adopted the controversial rejection of all earthly authority. It began having its own courts and refused to pay taxes or be registered with the state. This led to a confrontation soon after Zambia became independent, This violent confrontation led to the deaths of approximately 700 members and the arrest of Alice Lenshina. Alice was released in 1975, but imprisoned two years later for trying to revive the movement's strength. The Catholic Lay movement Legion of Mary
Legion of Mary
The Legion of Mary is an association of Catholic laity who serve the Church on a voluntary basis. It was founded in Dublin, Ireland, as a Roman Catholic Marian Movement by layman Frank Duff. Today between active and auxiliary members there are in excess of 10 million members worldwide making it...
adopted some of their hymns and thus converted some of the former members, although the Lumpa Church itself is said to survive in a diminished and largely underground form.