Unruly Ideas: A History of Kitawala in Congo

Unruly Ideas: A History of Kitawala in Congo explores the complex relationship between politics, religion, healing, and violence in Central African history, using the religious movement Kitawala as a lens. It challenges the traditional view of Kitawala as a male-dominated, anti-colonial insurgency and reveals that its teachings and activities are concerned with the morality of power on state, communal, and individual levels. The book offers a conceptual history of power that investigates how communities and individuals in the region have historically imagined, sought, wielded, and policed the morality of its uses. It also raises important questions about the project of writing histories of places like eastern Congo and interrogates the embodied and gendered nature of field research.

Format: Hardback
Length: 308 pages
Publication date: 31 October 2023
Publisher: Ohio University Press

Unruly Ideas: A History of Kitawala in Congo delves into the intricate tapestry of the Congolese religious movement Kitawala, tracing its origins from its colonial inception in the 1920s to its ongoing presence in some of the most conflict-ridden regions of the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Drawing upon a wealth of original oral, ethnographic, and archival research, Nicole Eggers employs Kitawala as a prism to explore the intricate interplay between politics, religion, healing, and violence in Central African history. Initially perceived by scholars and popular historians as a male-dominated, anticolonial insurgency, Kitawala's teachings and activities extend beyond the confines of the Belgian colonial state. A closer examination of the oral and archival evidence reveals that Kitawalists were and continue to be concerned with the morality of power at various levels—state, communal, and individual. Moreover, Kitawalist doctrine is characterized by its unruly nature, giving rise to a multitude of interpretations that diverge significantly from Watchtower Christianity. Rather than presenting a singular case study of a particular religious movement, Unruly Ideas emerges as a conceptual history of power that investigates how communities and individuals in the region have historically conceived, sought to attain, wielded, and enforced the moral boundaries of power. By centering its inquiry on these themes, the book offers valuable insights into the complex dynamics of power, resistance, and transformation in Central Africa.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780821426074