The Church of the Democratic Republic of Congo
By Wessel J. Smit
20th March 2007

The following article is based on the December 2006 travels and ministry of Wessel J. Smit in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Wessel J. Smit is of the Republic of Namibia.

The first part is about Samuel Njunge Nyerere who is a missionary with ACMI in Kinshasa, DRC. The second parties based on Wessel’s opinion of the people and the church of the DRC.

Part 1:

Pastor Samuel Junge Nyerere
Communauté Cretienne International
Kinshasa

Pastor Samuel became a Missionary in 1999. He spent several years in the Sud Kivu province as a church planter for the Missionary organization African Christian Missions, based in Nairobi, Kenya. African Christian Missions has approximately 40 Missionaries based in various countries in Africa.

Pastor Samuel has proven to be a very dedicated and thorough servant of the Lord Jesus Christ, planting 15 churches in the Sud Kivu province during the space of about 6 years. These churches can be found in the Sud Kivu towns of Musheni, Bukavu, Kamituga, Mwenga, Kakolokelo, Tubimbi, Kavumu, Muhumgu, Essans, Kitutu, Kakemenge, and Marale. Christian Primary and Secondary schools associated with these churches are in the towns of Marale, Tubimbi, Muhumgu, Essans, and Epe Baraka, while there is a Discipleship Training School in Bukavu and a Bible School in Kamituya.

During the Congolese civil war, an incident which almost cost him his life got him involved with the military. He moved to Kinshasa where he now ministers to members of the military, in the living quarters of Army Base Kokolo.

The church elders of Communauté Cretienne International are all involved in the military, and committed to winning the armed forces for Jesus Christ. The acting Pastor is Mr. Gabriel Vundisa, the Secretary is Mr. Talalo Saly and working with church finance is Mr. Kasongo Kaembe, while Madame Carol Meya is involved in Social Services and Madame Cecile Kata ministers to the women.

Pastor Samuel is of the opinion that the DRC as a country is under a curse. As proof he showed me selected verses from Deuteronomy 28.

Verse 28 – 33:
“The LORD will afflict you with madness, blindness and confusion of mind. At midday you will grope about like a blind man in the dark. You will be unsuccessful in everything you do; day after day you will be oppressed and robbed, with no-one to rescue you. You will be pledged to be married to a woman, but another will take her and ravish her. You will build a house, but you will not live in it. You will plant a vineyard, but you will not even begin to enjoy its fruit. Your ox will be slaughtered before your eyes, but you will eat none of it. Your donkey will be forcefully taken from you and will not be returned. Your sheep will be given to your enemies, and no-one will rescue them. Your sons and daughters will be given to another nation, and you will wear out your eyes watching for them day after day, powerless to lift a hand. A people that you do not know will eat what your land and labor produce, and you will have nothing but cruel oppression all your days…”

Verse 43-44:
“The alien who lives among you will rise above you higher and higher, but you will sink lower and lower. He will lend to you, but you will not lend to him. He will be the head, but you will be the tail”

Verse 54:
“Even the most gentle and sensitive man among you will have no compassion on his own brother or the wife he loves or his surviving children…”

He pointed out certain facts to underline this:

Foreign mining prospectors who come to the DRC manage to get rich fairly easily from the minerals they manage to extract while local miners often only meet their ruin. American and European mining companies walk off with most of the mineral income of the land.

There are no organic milk to be found in the country as all the milk are made from powder milk mixed with water. There is no meat either and all meat is imported into the country. This is because during the civil war cattle were taken by the armed forces and rebel forces without compensation to the farmers, and as a result their businesses have collapsed and they have lost faith in cattle-farming.

There are accusations of cannibalism against some well-known and powerful individuals in the country, who refuse to give an account of themselves, but instead try their best to destabilize the country to try and avert attention from themselves.

The Bas Congo and Bandundu provinces have the highest occurrences of devil-worship and the strongest resistance to the Gospel. The only Pastors there whose churches are growing are those who are involved in witchcraft. Powerful witches are often contacted by Pastors wishing to get rich from a ‘dynamic’ ministry. These Pastors in turn, fiercely resist Missionaries with curses and charms. Pastors who are committed to serving the Lord Jesus Christ in Spirit and truth often get attacked while preaching. They may get knocked to the ground, or their pulpit or sound equipment catches fire. As a result, rebuking of evil spirits, praying against the works of the Devil, and a highly emphasized usage of the Name of Jesus Christ are common in churches.

Pastor Samuel and I both rejoiced greatly for the huge gains we made, both in the military and in taking the first steps toward establishing a Mission Station. We hope to continue working together in this fashion. We pledged to stay in contact and maintain a brotherly relationship of trust.

E-mail the writer | Back to Top | Next Page »»»