The Catholic Church in Burundi is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome.
There are about four million Catholics—around two-thirds of the total population. There are seven dioceses, including two archdioceses.
Main source:and Air University
The first attempt to spread Catholicism to the Burundians was at Rumonge on July 30, 1879, and lasted until May 4, 1881, when the two White Fathers, Deniaud and Promaux, were killed by the Burundians. More White Fathers returned in 1884, but this time to Bujumbura. Once again they had to leave due to the violence instigated by Arab slave traders. A third attempt near Buzige in 1891 was also thwarted by the slave traders. In a fourth attempt in 1896, Fathers Van Der Burght and Van Der Bresen were only able to stay six weeks and then had to flee. However, they returned to Burundi near Buzige in November 1896. A few years later, in January 1898, Father Van Der Bresen died from a fever, and that same day the mission station was burned to the ground by a violent storm. Subsequently, Father Van Der Burght left the following month. [1]
The first permanent mission in Burundi was established on May 5, 1898, at Mugera. Muyaga was burned down twice by a chief who considered the Fathers to be enemies, once on the 14th of August 1898, and another the 18th of March 1899. Nevertheless, it was rebuilt again in May 1899. Another separate mission was established at Mugera in February 1899. A man by the name Mwami Mwezi IV Gisabo tried to run them off his property by the use of charms and supernatural threats, but he was told by another sorcerer that he should stop because Imana would protect them. Missions continued to pop up in places such as Buhonga in 1902, Kanyinya 1904, Rugari 1909, and Buhoro 1912. All of these missions started during the German colonial rule from 1896 to 1916. [1]
When Belgium took over colonial rule from the Germans in 1916, more emphasis was placed on aiding the Catholic agenda. In the time period between 1916 and 1962, the year of Burundi's independence, Catholicism grew from 5,759 members to 1,517,817. Much of the health and education work was done through the Catholic Church. The Catholic Church was financed and supported exclusively through the Belgium colonial power until 1946, then the Protestant Church was able to garner some support, but was not nearly as prominent or important to them as the Catholic Church. [1]
During the colonial period, the Catholic Church did not promote ethnic divisions, but the Belgiums and Germans primarily favored the Tutsi when it came to mission services. The Rwandan Catholic Church to the north of Burundi, was also in favor of the Tutsi during the colonial period, but again the Catholic Church in Burundi remained largely unbiased. By the 1930s, Tutsi chiefs started converting to the Catholic faith like wildfire, and the Hutu were growing in numbers also.
Today, the Catholics in Burundi either are Tutsi, Hutu or Twa, and live in communities throughout the country. [2]
Despite having a previously large number of Tutsi chiefs convert to Catholicism, it was unable to convert the Tutsi King Mwambutsa. During the 1970s and 1980s, the Catholic church supported the Hutus, and as a result, the government revoked some of the privileges and powers which they had previously enjoyed, for example; "religious gatherings were prohibited without prior approval, the Church’s youth movement was banned, Catholic schools were nationalized, and the Catholic radio station and newspaper were closed". [2]
In 1987, all of this changed when power flipped into the hands of a Catholic as the result of a military coup, and Catholics were able to enjoy their previous freedoms.
The horrors of the Rwandan genocide left a stain on the Catholic Church as a whole, and even though the Burundi Catholic Church did not participate in the genocide, the Tutsis accused it of being a hindrance to their goals and the Hutus claimed that the Church was not doing enough to counter the discrimination which the Tutsis were practicing against them. [2]
Main Source: U.S. Department of State
At the beginning, close ties existed between the Catholic Church and the Belgium government, but there were complaints from the Catholics that the government was too secular and could do more, nevertheless, they were pleased to have the Belgiums in power rather than the Germans. [1]
Because the Catholic Church has such a powerful role within the country, during stressful political times has acted either as a balancer or an instigator to mounting tensions. A recent example in 2015 is when the then President, Pierre Nkurunziza, agreed to do a third term, when the constitution clearly stated only two terms were allowed. The Catholic Church did not shy away in reminding the President this, but he came back naming them "sponsors of terrorism". [3] However, following this slander the Church continued to press for peace and solving the conflict without bloodshed. [3]
In 2018, the Regulation and Conciliation of Religious Confessions was established as a sort of safety measure to make sure religious organizations complied with laws. In 2020 however, the Catholic Church chose to resign from partaking in the membership, and instead met with the government for a separate agreement. [4]
President Evariste Ndayismimiye, who is a Catholic, reached out to the Catholic Bishops in July 2020 to ask for support in government projects. While Burundi is formally a secular state, in practice a lot of things are influenced and overseen by the Catholic Church. For example, embassy officials regularly meet with Catholic religious leaders in order to discuss improving religious freedom in the country. [4]
The education was from the early onset, run by the Catholic Church, and it was expected during that beginning time that if a child went to school he would need to become Catholic. Also, boys were generally the only ones attending school during the initial days of the Catholic Church in Burundi. In turn, the Protestant Church started their own schools. [1]
Now, the official curriculum includes religion and morality classes, of which students can choose from. The religion classes are either taught with Catholic instruction, Protestant, or from Islam, and if they decide none of the above, morality classes are a substitute. [4]
The Catholic Church has typically discouraged the use of other indigenous medicines from healers. [5] Caritas Burundi is an organization founded by the Conference of Catholic Bishops of Burundi on May 20, 1962. It has been significant in the fight against Malaria by distributing insecticide-treated mosquito nets, and has also has helped deal with the effects of AIDS. [6] Another Catholic sponsored organization that has helped in the medical aspect as well as education, is Centre d'Entraide et de Developpement. [1]
During the early period of the Catholic Church, Catholics allowed people to drink beer and fermented juice such as banana juice or kaffir corn juice, whereas the Protestants did not. [1] Furthermore, if someone was baptized they were expected to attend services and confessions, if that person refused to pay their dues to the church or did not partake in confessions and sacraments, then their children would not be baptized. In addition, if a man took a second wife or divorced his wife, he was considered removed from the Church. [1]
In 1915, the number of baptized Catholics were 5,769. [1] According to estimates done in 2019 by the U.S. Department of State, the population in Burundi stands roughly at about 12.2 million, of which 62% identify as Catholic. [4]
The BurundiNational Defence Force is the state military organisation responsible for the defence of Burundi.
Burundi originated in the 16th century as a small kingdom in the African Great Lakes region. After European contact, it was united with the Kingdom of Rwanda, becoming the colony of Ruanda-Urundi - first colonised by Germany and then by Belgium. The colony gained independence in 1962, and split once again into Rwanda and Burundi. It is one of the few countries in Africa to be a direct territorial continuation of a pre-colonial era African state.
The Tutsi, also called Watusi, Watutsi or Abatutsi, are an ethnic group of the African Great Lakes region. They are a Bantu-speaking ethnic group and the second largest of three main ethnic groups in Rwanda and Burundi.
Louis Rwagasore was a Burundian prince and politician, who served as the second prime minister of Burundi for two weeks, from 28 September 1961 until his assassination on 13 October 1961. Born to the Ganwa family of Burundian Mwami (king) Mwambutsa IV in Belgian-administered Ruanda-Urundi in 1932, Rwagasore was educated in Burundian Catholic schools before attending university in Belgium. After he returned to Burundi in the mid-1950s he founded a series of cooperatives to economically empower native Burundians and build up his base of political support. The Belgian administration took over the venture, and as a result of the affair his national profile increased and he became a leading figure of the anti-colonial movement.
Mwambutsa IV Bangiricenge was the penultimate king of Burundi who ruled between 1915 and 1966. He succeeded to the throne on the death of his father Mutaga IV Mbikije. Born while Burundi was under German colonial rule, Mwambutsa's reign mostly coincided with Belgian colonial rule (1916–62). The Belgians retained the monarchs of both Rwanda and Burundi under the policy of indirect rule.
Jean-Baptiste Bagaza was a Burundian army officer and politician who ruled Burundi as president and de facto military dictator from November 1976 to September 1987.
The Burundian Civil War was a civil war in Burundi lasting from 1993 to 2005. The civil war was the result of longstanding ethnic divisions between the Hutu and the Tutsi ethnic groups. The conflict began following the first multi-party elections in the country since its independence from Belgium in 1962, and is seen as formally ending with the swearing-in of President Pierre Nkurunziza in August 2005. Children were widely used by both sides in the war. The estimated death toll stands at 300,000.
The Kingdom of Burundi or Kingdom of Urundi was a Bantu kingdom in the modern-day Republic of Burundi. The Ganwa monarchs ruled over both Hutus and Tutsis. Created in the 17th century, the kingdom was preserved under German and Belgian colonial rule in the late 19th and early 20th century and was an independent state between 1962 and 1966.
Islam is a minority religion in Burundi where approximately 90 percent of the national population are followers of Christianity. Between 2–5 percent of the population identifies as Muslim, according to a 2010 estimate by the United States Department of State. The same year, the Pew Research Centre estimated that there were 230,000 Muslims in Burundi, equivalent to 2.8 percent of Burundi's 8.4 million inhabitants.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Burundi:
Joseph Cimpaye was a Burundian politician and writer.
Burundi, officially the Republic of Burundi, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley at the junction between the African Great Lakes region and East Africa. It is bordered by Rwanda to the north, Tanzania to the east and southeast, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west; Lake Tanganyika lies along its southwestern border. The capital cities are Gitega and Bujumbura, the latter being the country's largest city.
Ethnic groups in Burundi include the three main indigenous groups of Hutu, Tutsi and Twa that have largely been emphasized in the study of the country's history due to their role in shaping it through conflict and consolidation. Burundi's ethnic make-up is similar to that of neighboring Rwanda. Additionally, recent immigration has also contributed to Burundi's ethnic diversity. Throughout the country's history, the relation between the ethnic groups has varied, largely depending on internal political, economic and social factors and also external factors such as colonialism. The pre-colonial era, despite having divisions between the three groups, saw greater ethnic cohesion and fluidity dependent on socioeconomic factors. During the colonial period under German and then Belgian rule, ethnic groups in Burundi experienced greater stratifications and solidification through biological arguments separating the groups and indirect colonial rule that increased group tensions. The post-independence Burundi has experienced recurring inter-ethnic violence especially in the political arena that has, in turn, spilled over to society at large leading to many casualties throughout the decades. The Arusha Agreement served to end the decades-long ethnic tensions, and the Burundian government has stated commitment to creating ethnic cohesion in the country since, yet recent waves of violence and controversies under the Pierre Nkurunziza leadership have worried some experts of potential resurfacing of ethnic violence. Given the changing nature of ethnicity and ethnic relations in the country, many scholars have approached the topic theoretically to come up with primordial, constructivist and mixed arguments or explanations on ethnicity in Burundi.
Religion in Burundi is diverse, with Christianity being the dominant faith. Catholicism is the largest Christian denomination in the country.
Christianity is the majority religion of Burundi. It is estimated to be the religion of between 75–94 percent of the Burundian population. Of these, the majority are Catholics and Protestants make up the remainder. The religion first entered the country under European colonial rule (1890–1962) and remains popular. There are estimated to be 557 separate Churches registered in the country.
Kabgayi is just south of Gitarama in Muhanga District, Southern Province, Rwanda, 25 miles (40 km) southwest of Kigali. It was established as a Catholic Church mission in 1905. It became the center for the Roman Catholic Church in Rwanda and is the site of the oldest cathedral in the country and of Catholic seminaries, schools and a hospital. The church at first supported the Tutsi ruling elite, but later backed the Hutu majority. During the 1994 Rwandan genocide thousands of Tutsis who had taken refuge here were killed. Some survivors admire the courage of many priests who helped them during those difficult days, like Father Evergiste RUKEBESHA and many others. Later, some Hutus including three bishops and many priests were killed by the rebels RPF soldiers. A mass grave beside the hospital is marked by a memorial. Inside the Basilica are kept the bodies of the three bishops killed by FPR rebels. Two of them were refused by the Rwandan government to be transferred in their own cathedrals.
Léon-Paul Classe, M.Afr. was a Catholic priest who was Vicar Apostolic of the Apostolic Vicariate of Ruanda, in what is now Rwanda, from 1922 until his death in 1945. During his time as a missionary priest and then bishop a great many Rwandans were converted to Christianity. Classe was influential in persuading the Belgian colonial administration to favor the Tutsis as a ruling caste in the country over the Hutu majority.
The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Bujumbura, Burundi.
The Ikiza, or the Ubwicanyi (Killings), was a series of mass killings—often characterised as a genocide—which were committed in Burundi in 1972 by the Tutsi-dominated army and government, primarily against educated and elite Hutus who lived in the country. Conservative estimates place the death toll of the event between 100,000 and 150,000 killed, while some estimates of the death toll go as high as 300,000.
The Bugesera invasion, also known as the Bloody Christmas, was a military attack which was conducted against Rwanda by Inyenzi rebels who aimed to overthrow the government in December 1963. The Inyenzi were a collection of ethnically Tutsi exiles who were affiliated with the Rwandan political party Union Nationale Rwandaise (UNAR), which had supported Rwanda's deposed Tutsi monarchy. The Inyenzi opposed Rwanda's transformation upon independence from Belgium into a state run by the ethnic Hutu majority through the Parti du Mouvement de l'Emancipation Hutu (PARMEHUTU), an anti-Tutsi political party led by President Grégoire Kayibanda. In late 1963 Inyenzi leaders decided to launch an invasion of Rwanda from their bases in neighbouring countries to overthrow Kayibanda. While an attempted assault in November was stopped by the government of Burundi, early in the morning on 21 December 1963 several hundred Inyenzi crossed the Burundian border and captured the Rwandan military in camp in Gako, Bugesera. Bolstered with seized arms and recruited locals, the Iyenzi—numbering between 1,000 and 7,000—marched on the Rwandan capital, Kigali. They were stopped 12 miles south of the city at Kanzenze Bridge along the Nyabarongo River by multiple units of the Garde Nationale Rwandaise (GNR). The GNR routed the rebels with their superior firepower, and in subsequent days repelled further Inyenzi attacks launched from the Republic of the Congo and Uganda.
