The Jamaa and the Church. A Bantu Catholic Movement in Zaire

Abstract

Studies of independent religious movements in sub-Saharan Africa have been so numerous that one might expect little new to emerge. In The 3amaa and the Church, however, we are presented with the fascinating story of a prophetic movement in Zaire, the central characteristics of which indeed are novel. The most important is that the Jamaa ('family' in Swahili) was founded in 1953 not by rebellious citizens of Zaire, but by a Belgian priest, Placied Tempels. Within a few years several other Franciscan missionaries of Flemish origin had become deeply involved, and although the reaction of the Catholic hierarchy ranged from tolerance to outright hostility over the years, the movement remained within the Roman Catholic Church. The Jamaa took root in the most industrialised region of Zaire, the Union miniere mining complex of South Katanga (now Gecamines). Its lay membership was about ,600oo, with the Luba ethnic group heavily represented. The converts were formerly baptised Catholics, and part of the movement's attraction was the attempt to make the Church more meaningful to Africans. Tempels had grown dissatisfied with the colonial master-servant relationship characteristic of mission work. He sought a much deeper understanding of African culture, and out of this emerged the three central values of the Jamaa: life force, fecundity, and vital union. Throughout the study the reader is impressed at the extent to which the Jamaa affected not only many indigenous lay people, but also the Belgian priests themselves. The latter became less paternalistic, and more prepared to learn from their flock; the lay Jamists, in turn, appeared to become new men and women: secure, confident, and capable of a deep Christian love. The author stresses that in his viewpoint the Jamaa is more 'Christian' than almost any other prophetic movement in Zaire at which point I would have liked to have seen some comparative analysis. The study is based upon the author's participant observation during several field trips from I963 to I970. Willy De Craemer, a Jesuit priest of Flemish origin, and a trained sociologist, appears to have been eminently well-qualified for the job. Indeed, he is most convincing when analysing the degree to which Flemish-Belgian cultural factors have influenced Jamaa ideology and symbolism, and when discussing the complex reaction of the Catholic Church hierarchy to the movement. However, the author's strengths may also be the source of the book's weaknesses. First of all, there is a fairy-tale element to some of the discussion of the Jamaa belief system, and the extent to which the lives of the lay members have been transformed. One has the impression that it is all too good to be true. De Craemer may be perfectly correct in his description of the happy, secure families who have joined the Jamaa, and the degree of personal fulfilment that it has brought them. However, the analysis appears to be based mostly on what he has been told about the official ideology. There is very little material from personal observation regarding the degree to which the daily behaviour of the Jamists conforms with their statements of the salutary effect of the movement on their lives. 528 REVIEWS