Antonianism

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Not to be confused with Antoinism.
Antonianism
Antonine sect
Catholic movement
RegionKingdom of Kongo
FounderBeatriz Kimpa Vita
Origin1704
Defunct1708
Members20,000

Antonianism, or Antonine sect (

Saint Anthony of Padua.[1][2] Beatriz became known for healing and other miracles. It was eventually suppressed by King Pedro IV of Kongo, and Dona Beatriz was burned at the stake as a heretic.[3]

Origins

Dona Beatriz (the Baptismal name of Kimpa Vita) was a young indigenous noblewoman born around 1684 in the Kongo.[3] The Kingdom of Kongo was the largest and most powerful kingdom in Central Africa, but its influence was waning; during the 17th century, Portugal became the dominant military and economic force in the region. The Portuguese had begun converting the people of the Kongo to Catholicism as early as the 15th century. The nobility of the Kongo and the commoners both practised Catholicism.[4]

Africans.[citation needed
]

After an illness in 1704, Dona Beatriz began to preach that she had been possessed by St. Anthony of Padua, who was a major Portuguese saint.

Teachings

Dona Beatriz "was trained as an nganga marinda, an individual who consults the supernatural world to solve problems within the community",

Ave Maria and Salve Regina that were more relevant to Kongolese modes of thought.[4]

Dona Beatriz prophesied a new golden age to her followers, one that would follow the end of European presence in the Kongo. European treasures would be found around the Kongo capital city of

Mbanza Kongo by her followers, and trees would turn to silver and gold.[3] Dona Beatriz acknowledged papal authority, yet her cult was hostile to European missionaries, teaching that they were "corrupt and unsympathetic to the spiritual needs of Kongolese Catholics".[4]

Political activities and suppression

The Antonians, led by Dona Beatriz, occupied the territory of

Capuchin monks.[4] The movement of Antonianism did not immediately die when she did and in 1708 twenty thousand Antonians marched on King Pedro IV, who eventually defeated them and restored his kingdom.[6]

Although the movement had a short life under the leadership of Dona Beatriz, artifacts have survived, including St. Anthony figurines made of "ivory, brass, and wood ... affixed to crosses, used as staff finials, and worn as pendants.... these images, called Toni Malau or "Anthony of good fortune" in

KiKongo, served to guard their bearers against illness and other misfortunes".[4]

References
  1. ^ Peter N. Stearns and William Leonard Langer. The Encyclopedia of World History: Ancient, Medieval, and Modern, Chronologically Arranged, 2001. Page 394.
  2. ^ John Thornton, The Kongolese Saint Anthony: Dona Beatriz Kimpa Vita and the Antonian Movement, 1684-1706 (Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 1998)
  3. ^
    ISBN 9780195301052
    .
  4. ^ a b c d e f g "Dona Beatriz: Kongo Prophet". Metropolitan Museum of Art. Retrieved December 14, 2012.
  5. ^ Bortolot, Authors: Alexander Ives. "Women Leaders in African History: Dona Beatriz, Kongo Prophet | Essay | The Metropolitan Museum of Art | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History". The Met’s Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. Retrieved 2023-05-08.
  6. ^ Bentley, Jerry and Ziegler, Herb. Traditions & Encounters: A Global Perspective on the Past. McGraw Hill, New York: 2006
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