Simon Kimbangu
Encyclopedia
Simon Kimbangu was a Congolese religious leader noted as the founder of Kimbanguism
. His followers consider him to be the special envoy of Jesus Christ as quoted in the fourteenth chapter of the biblical
Gospel of John
.
The son of a traditional religious leader, he became a Baptist
in 1915, and worked as a catechist for several years before beginning his own ministry in early 1921. According to his disciples, Kimbangu cured the sick, raised the dead back to life and his ministry developed a large following, causing suspicion amongst the Belgian authorities. His ministry of preaching and miraculous healing lasted from April to September 1921.
On 12 September 1921 he was arrested and charged with sedition
. Convicted, he was sentenced to death. However, his sentence was commuted to life imprisonment with 120 lashes. He died in prison on 12 October 1951.
During his thirty years of imprisonment, he continued to be regarded as a spiritual leader, despite being denied contact with his followers, and also became a symbol of Congolese nationalism.
In 1959, the Kimbanguist Church was recognized by the then Belgium government and could then conduct prayer freely. Today, the Kimbanguist Church is well established in many countries. However, when Kimbangu passed on, his son Joseph Diangienda took over the Church ministry. Joseph Diangienda (chief spiritual) organized the contemporary Church. Diangienda died on 22 March 1992 in Switzerland and his son, Simon Kimbangu Kiangani, is the spiritual leader based in the Church's headquarters in Nkamba.
Kimbanguism
Kimbanguism is a branch of Christianity founded by Simon Kimbangu in what was then the Belgian Congo . The church's name is the Kimbanguist Church , and is a large, independent African Initiated...
. His followers consider him to be the special envoy of Jesus Christ as quoted in the fourteenth chapter of the biblical
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
Gospel of John
Gospel of John
The Gospel According to John , commonly referred to as the Gospel of John or simply John, and often referred to in New Testament scholarship as the Fourth Gospel, is an account of the public ministry of Jesus...
.
The son of a traditional religious leader, he became a Baptist
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
in 1915, and worked as a catechist for several years before beginning his own ministry in early 1921. According to his disciples, Kimbangu cured the sick, raised the dead back to life and his ministry developed a large following, causing suspicion amongst the Belgian authorities. His ministry of preaching and miraculous healing lasted from April to September 1921.
On 12 September 1921 he was arrested and charged with sedition
Sedition
In law, sedition is overt conduct, such as speech and organization, that is deemed by the legal authority to tend toward insurrection against the established order. Sedition often includes subversion of a constitution and incitement of discontent to lawful authority. Sedition may include any...
. Convicted, he was sentenced to death. However, his sentence was commuted to life imprisonment with 120 lashes. He died in prison on 12 October 1951.
During his thirty years of imprisonment, he continued to be regarded as a spiritual leader, despite being denied contact with his followers, and also became a symbol of Congolese nationalism.
In 1959, the Kimbanguist Church was recognized by the then Belgium government and could then conduct prayer freely. Today, the Kimbanguist Church is well established in many countries. However, when Kimbangu passed on, his son Joseph Diangienda took over the Church ministry. Joseph Diangienda (chief spiritual) organized the contemporary Church. Diangienda died on 22 March 1992 in Switzerland and his son, Simon Kimbangu Kiangani, is the spiritual leader based in the Church's headquarters in Nkamba.
External links
- Bethel University site
- Encyclopædia Britannica
- Dictionary of African Christian Biography: Simon Kimbangu, article reprinted from An African Biographical Dictionary, copyright © 1994, edited by Norbert C. Brockman, Santa Barbara, California.