As the world marked Christmas, a unique celebration unfolded in a candlelit room in western Kenya. Worshippers dressed in white gathered to honour the birth of a figure they revere as the "Black Messiah." This event centred on the Legion Maria church, an African religious movement with a distinct interpretation of the divine incarnation.
The Christmas Celebration in Nzoia
During the Christmas festivities in Nzoia, one of the movement's places of worship, followers prayed before a photo of Mama Maria, the African woman who co-founded their faith. The atmosphere was one of deep reverence for their spiritual leader. Hours before the gathering, AFP journalists met a man who introduced himself as Prophet Stephen Benson Nundu. He carried a framed photograph of Baba Simeo Melchior, the central figure hailed as the Messiah, who gazed from the picture with clasped hands and a large medallion.
"Today is a great day, because the Virgin Mary gave birth to King Jesus in the world of black people," Prophet Nundu declared, encapsulating the core belief of the celebration.
Legion Maria: Origins and Beliefs
Legion Maria, also known as Legio Maria in the Luo language, traces its formal founding to 1966. However, its website notes spiritual roots going back to around 1938. In that period, a "mystic woman" reportedly appeared to several Roman Catholics, delivering messages about "the incarnation of the son of God as a black man."
One of the movement's co-founders, Simeo Ondetto, who later became known as Baba Simeo Melchior, is described as the "returned son of God" and the church's "eternal spiritual leader." The movement now claims a following of millions across Kenya and eight other African nations, including Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Timothy Lucas Abawao, the deputy head of the church, was keen to distinguish Legion Maria from being labelled a cult. "A cult essentially is an organisation which… believes in the leader. But we believe in Jesus Christ, and we believe in God," he explained to AFP.
A Messiah for Africa: The Theology of Colour
The theology of Legion Maria is firmly rooted in the African experience. Deputy head Timothy Lucas Abawao elaborated on this during the Christmas celebrations. He stated that "Baba Messiah came for Africans" and that his followers genuinely believe he is "truly Jesus Christ."
"He took on the colour of the Black man, so that the Black man could understand him in his own language and receive salvation," Abawao said. This perspective was echoed by another follower, Odhiambo Ayanga, who spoke to AFP. Ayanga stressed that God, "as he came for the white, he also came for the black." He added, "He went for the Asian, as he went for other races, God came for us all. That’s why in Africa, he has to be black."
Legion Maria in a Wider African Context
Legion Maria is not an isolated phenomenon in African religious history. Several other movements across the continent have also centred on a black divine or messianic figure.
- In South Africa, Isaiah Shembe's followers say he received divine instructions in 1913 to establish the Nazareth Baptist Church. Many within the church view him as a messianic figure. Though he died in 1935, the church still boasts several million members.
- In the former Belgian Congo, Simon Kimbangu is believed to have performed a miraculous healing in 1921, sparking the beginnings of the Kimbanguist church. He was later convicted of endangering the colonial state and spent thirty years in prison until his death in 1951.
- In Nigeria, the Brotherhood of the Cross and Star regards its late founder, Olumba Olumba Obu, as "the Holy Spirit" and "the Triune God," according to its official website.
The Christmas celebration by Legion Maria highlights the dynamic and diverse landscape of African Christianity, where traditional biblical narratives are often interwoven with local cultural and social contexts to create unique expressions of faith and identity.
