Marie-Clémentine Anuarite Nengapeta

Blessed Marie-Clémentine Anuarite Nengapeta
Bl. Marie-Clémentine Anuarite Nengapeta
Virgin and martyr
Born	(1939-12-29)29 December 1939 Wamba, Haut-Uele, Orientale, Democratic Republic of Congo
Died	1 December 1964(1964-12-01) (aged 24) Isiro, Haut-Uele, Orientale, Democratic Republic of Congo
Venerated in	Roman Catholic Church
Beatified	15 August 1985, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo by Pope John Paul II
Feast	1 December

Marie-Clémentine Anuarite Nengapeta (29 December 1939 – 1 December 1964), born Anuarite Nengapeta, was a Congolese Catholic martyr and member of the Sisters of the Holy Family.

Her mother had all her children along with her baptized in 1945. Anuarite ran away from home to join the convent, despite her mother's disapproval. Her short religious life was dedicated to teaching and serving as a cook and sacristan. Nengapeta was killed during the nation's civil war during the Simba revolt in 1964 when Colonel Pierre Olombe killed her after she warded off his rape attempts.

Nengapeta is the first Bantu Catholic blessed, with her beatification occurring on 15 August 1985.

Life

Childhood

Nengapeta was born in Wamba in the Democratic Republic of Congo on 29 December 1939 to Amisi Batsuru Batobobo and Isude Julienne as the fourth of six daughters; she belonged to the Wabudu tribe. The fifth and sixth were twins. Her father – a former soldier – dismissed his wife in order to take another wife so that he might have a son, but she turned out to be sterile. As a child she forgave her father for leaving her mother. Nengapeta – and her birth mother – were both baptized together in 1945 and she took the name "Alphonsine". It seems she was baptized twice because her original certificate of baptism was lost. One sister was Léontine Anuarite.

Nengapeta once saw a goat get butchered and she refused to eat the meat because she said its blood was much like hers. Each time she finished school she went to help her grandmother with tasks. Once she began her schooling her registration had an error with her sister's name instead of the name she had been given at baptism. Her sister took her to register for her schooling but the Belgian religious sister who met them erred and signed her up with her baptismal name and sister's name. Therefore her name – just Nengapeta – is now viewed as Anuarite Nengapeta.

Religious

Nengapeta decided to pursue the religious life, for she admired the sisters and respected Sister Ndakala Marie-Anne. Her mother was against her vocation so she decided to do something about it after learning a truck arrived at the local mission to bring postulants to a convent. She did not tell her mother and instead boarded the truck unseen and went off to the convent. Her mother searched for a week but learned of what happened to her daughter from a village child; her mother was frustrated but did not demand her daughter return, knowing it was to be. The girl entered the religious life in 1959, assuming the name of "Marie-Clémentine" at her profession on 5 August. Her parents were at her profession celebration and gave two goats to the sisters to express their happiness, though her mother later wanted her to return home to give them financial support. There was one occasion when Marie-Clémentine attacked a hoodlum in anger when he was making overtures to one of the nuns.

Capture and death

In 1964 the Simba rebellion broke out across the nation and the Simba rebels opposed Westerners but also the indigenous monks and sisters because of their suspicion that these religious were cooperating with foreigners. The rebels stormed her convent on 29 November 1964 and loaded all 46 of them into a truck telling them, it was to make sure they knew their math and school subjects. They were told the truck would go to Wamba, though it set off instead for Isiro to Colonel Yuma Déo's compound. Colonel Ngalo, with the aid of the soldier Sigbande, tried to get her to be his wife and threatened her with death when she kept refusing. Ngalo turned to fellow Colonel Olombe (b. 1938) for his help in seducing her. For dinner on 30 November she had rice and sardines with a fellow religious and warned her sisters not to drink the beer. Olombe then sent the sisters off to bed and asked her to remain behind for he wanted her for himself. He insulted her when she refused his offers and so forced her and Sister Bokuma Jean-Baptiste into a car. The two tried to escape as he went back to the compound for the keys but he caught and began beating them. Bokuma fainted after he broke her arm in three places, while he called some rebels to stab Nengapeta before pulling a revolver and shooting her in the chest.

Olombe ordered some sisters to remove her from his sight but she was still breathing for several minutes before she died around 1:00am on 1 December 1964. Between the blows she had the strength to tell her attacker: "I forgive you, for you know not what you are doing". Her remains were buried in a common grave but were exhumed eight months later and reburied. Her remains were later exhumed in December 1978 and it was found she had an image of the Mother of God in her right hand. Her remains – after exhumation – were then moved to the Isiro Cathedral. Olombe was sentenced to death in 1965 but escaped from prison. He returned to prison and his sentence was commuted to life imprisonment in 1966, though he received a pardon in 1971.

The Anuarite Woman of Courage Prize

The Anuarite Woman of Courage in the D.R.C. Prize was established in 2009, named after the late sister to honor her courage and strength. The prize is meant to recognize and honor the vital contribution of women to the development of democratic values in the nation. On an annual basis a cash prize is awarded to a Congolese woman who helped to make her area a better place through hard work and dedication.

Beatification

The beatification cause commenced under Pope Paul VI on 14 April 1977 and she became titled as a Servant of God. A cognitional process was opened in the Isiro-Niangara diocese from 13 January 1978 until later in 1978. Her writings received theological approval on 9 May 1980 before the Congregation for the Causes of Saints validated the cognitional process on 12 February 1982. The cause's officials sent the Positio in 1983 before theologians approved the cause on 21 February 1984 as did the C.C.S. on 17 April 1984.

Pope John Paul II approved this cause on 9 June 1984 and beatified Nengapeta on 15 August 1985 during his visit to Zaire. She is the first Bantu woman elevated to the altars with her beatification. To the left of the altar sat the late sister's parents. The pope expressed that he also forgave her killer. There were around 60,000 people at the beatification and it was rumored that her killer was present, as was President Mobutu Sese Seko.

Her killer tried to secure a meeting with the pope to express his great remorse but it was denied. Joaquín Navarro said the audience was refused because the former colonel made the request through a news editor who interviewed him. One source said a contributing factor was that he was considered to be unstable.

The current postulator for this cause is Fr. José Antonio Pérez Sánchez.

She is a patron of the African Jesuit AIDS Network.

References

^ "Anuarite Nengapeta Marie-Clémentine". Dictionary of African Christian Biography. Retrieved 13 April 2017.
^ "Blessed Alphonsine Anuarite Nengapeta". Saints SQPN. 30 November 2016. Retrieved 13 April 2017.
^ "African martyr beatified, her killer forgiven". Chicago Tribune. 16 August 1985. Retrieved 13 April 2017.
"Africa Jesuit AIDS Network marks its first decade". www.News.va. Archived from the original on 19 October 2017. Retrieved 13 July 2017.

External links

v t e Saints of the Catholic Church
Dicastery for the Causes of Saints Stages of canonization: Servant of God → Venerable → Blessed → Saint
Virgin Mary	Mother of God (Theotokos) Immaculate Conception Perpetual virginity Assumption Marian apparition Titles of Mary Joseph (husband)
Apostles	Andrew Barnabas Bartholomew James of Alphaeus James the Great John Jude Matthew Matthias Paul Peter Philip Simon Thomas
Archangels	Gabriel Michael in the Catholic Church Raphael
Confessors	Anatolius Anthony of Kiev Athanasius the Confessor Chariton the Confessor Dominic Edward the Confessor Francis of Assisi Francis Borgia Homobonus Lazarus Zographos Louis Bertrand Maximus the Confessor Michael of Synnada Paphnutius the Confessor Paul I of Constantinople Peter Claver Salonius Sergius of Radonezh Theophanes the Confessor Pio of Pietrelcina
Disciples	Apollos Mary of Bethany Mary Magdalene Priscilla and Aquila Silvanus Stephen Timothy Titus Seventy disciples
Doctors of the Church	Gregory the Great Ambrose Augustine of Hippo Jerome John Chrysostom Basil of Caesarea Gregory of Nazianzus Athanasius of Alexandria Cyril of Alexandria Cyril of Jerusalem John of Damascus Bede the Venerable Ephrem the Syrian Thomas Aquinas Bonaventure Anselm of Canterbury Isidore of Seville Peter Chrysologus Leo the Great Peter Damian Bernard of Clairvaux Hilary of Poitiers Alphonsus Liguori Francis de Sales Peter Canisius John of the Cross Robert Bellarmine Albertus Magnus Anthony of Padua Lawrence of Brindisi Teresa of Ávila Catherine of Siena Thérèse of Lisieux John of Ávila Hildegard of Bingen Gregory of Narek Irenaeus
Evangelists	Matthew Mark Luke John
Church Fathers	Alexander of Alexandria Alexander of Jerusalem Ambrose of Milan Anatolius Athanasius of Alexandria Augustine of Hippo Caesarius of Arles Caius Cappadocian Fathers Clement of Alexandria Clement of Rome Cyprian of Carthage Cyril of Alexandria Cyril of Jerusalem Damasus I Desert Fathers Desert Mothers Dionysius of Alexandria Dionysius of Corinth Dionysius Ephrem the Syrian Epiphanius of Salamis Fulgentius of Ruspe Gregory the Great Gregory of Nazianzus Gregory of Nyssa Hilary of Poitiers Hippolytus of Rome Ignatius of Antioch Irenaeus of Lyons Isidore of Seville Jerome of Stridonium John Chrysostom John of Damascus Maximus the Confessor Melito of Sardis Quadratus of Athens Papias of Hierapolis Peter Chrysologus Polycarp of Smyrna Theophilus of Antioch Victorinus of Pettau Vincent of Lérins Zephyrinus
Martyrs	Abda and Abdisho Boris and Gleb Charles de Foucauld Canadian Martyrs Carthusian Martyrs Child Martyrs of Tlaxcala Christina of Persia Devasahayam Pillai Dismas the Good Thief Forty Martyrs of England and Wales Four Crowned Martyrs Gerard of Csanád Great Martyr The Holy Innocents Irish Martyrs John Fisher Korean Martyrs Lorenzo Ruiz Martyrs of Lübeck Luigi Versiglia Martyrology Martyrs of Albania Martyrs of Algeria Martyrs of Cajonos Martyrs of Compiègne Martyrs of Drina Martyrs of China Martyrs of Gorkum Martyrs of Japan 21 Martyrs of Libya Martyrs of La Rioja Martyrs of Damascus Martyrs of Laos Martyrs of Natal Martyrs of Otranto Martyrs of Prague Martyrs of Sandomierz Martyrs of the Spanish Civil War Martyrs of Zenta Maximilian Kolbe Óscar Romero Pedro Calungsod Perpetua and Felicity Peter Chanel Pietro Parenzo Philomena Saints of the Cristero War Stephen Teresa Benedicta of the Cross Titus Brandsma 17 Thomasian Martyrs Thomas Becket Thomas More Three Martyrs of Chimbote Ulma Family Uganda Martyrs Vietnamese Martyrs Valentine of Rome Victor and Corona Zanitas and Lazarus of Persia
Missionaries	Augustine of Canterbury Boniface Damien of Molokai Evermode of Ratzeburg Francis Xavier François de Laval Gregory the Illuminator Junípero Serra Nino of Georgia Patrick of Ireland Remigius
Patriarchs	Adam Abel Abraham Isaac Jacob Joseph Joseph (father of Jesus) David Noah Solomon Matriarchs
Popes	Adeodatus I Adeodatus II Adrian III Agapetus I Agatho Alexander I Anacletus Anastasius I Anicetus Anterus Benedict II Boniface I Boniface IV Caius Callixtus I Celestine I Celestine V Clement I Cornelius Damasus I Dionysius Eleuterus Eugene I Eusebius Eutychian Evaristus Fabian Felix I Felix III Felix IV Gelasius I Gregory I Gregory II Gregory III Gregory VII Hilarius Hormisdas Hyginus Innocent I John I John XXIII John Paul II Julius I Leo I Leo II Leo III Leo IV Leo IX Linus Lucius I Marcellinus Marcellus I Mark Martin I Miltiades Nicholas I Paschal I Paul I Paul VI Peter Pius I Pius V Pius X Pontian Sergius I Silverius Simplicius Siricius Sixtus I Sixtus II Sixtus III Soter Stephen I Stephen IV Sylvester I Symmachus Telesphorus Urban I Victor I Vitalian Zachary Zephyrinus Zosimus
Prophets	Agabus Amos Anna Baruch ben Neriah David Elijah Ezekiel Habakkuk Haggai Hosea Isaiah Jeremiah Job Joel John the Baptist Jonah Judas Barsabbas Malachi Melchizedek Micah Moses Nahum Obadiah Samuel Seven Maccabees and their mother Simeon Zechariah (prophet) Zechariah (NT) Zephaniah
Virgins	Agatha of Sicily Agnes of Rome Angela of the Cross Æthelthryth Bernadette Soubirous Catherine of Bologna Brigid of Kildare Catherine Labouré Catherine of Siena Cecilia Clare of Assisi Eulalia of Mérida Euphemia Faustina Kowalska Faustina and Liberata of Como Genevieve Hiltrude of Liessies Joan of Arc Kateri Tekakwitha Lucy of Syracuse Maria Goretti María de las Maravillas de Jesús Narcisa de Jesús Patricia of Naples Rosalia Rose of Lima Teresa of the Andes Teresa of Calcutta Trasilla and Emiliana Ubaldesca Taccini Josephine Bakhita
See also	Calendar of saints Four Holy Marshals Fourteen Holy Helpers Martyr of charity Military saints Athleta Christi Miles Christianus Church Militant Seven Champions Virtuous pagan
Catholic Church portal Saints portal

v t e Catholic martyrs in defensum castitatis
Translation: "in defense of chastity"
Maria Goretti (1890–1902) Karolina Kózka (1898–1914) Albertina Berkenbrock (1919–1931) Antonia Mesina (1919–1935) Benigna Cardoso da Silva (1928–1941) Elena Spirgevičiūtė (1924–1944) Teresa Bracco (1924–1944) Anna Kolesárová (1928–1944) Pierina Morosini (1931–1957) Veronica Antal (1935–1958) Marie-Clémentine Anuarite Nengapeta (1939–1964) Isabel Cristina Mrad Campos (1962–1982) Lindalva Justo de Oliveira (1953–1993)
Catholicism portal

Categories: