Personal and Universal
Fr Laurent Mpongo | 2015 Issue 1
The basic human function of honoring and burying one’s dead is a personal one. It also often involves one’s family, church, and community. Local custom and traditional attitudes have their parts as well. This is the story of an elderly woman of our parish, who had just celebrated her 90th birthday when she passed away in November. She left behind five children and several grandchildren. Her brother and sister lived over 550 miles away from Kinshasa, and they are from an area where people have to walk or canoe for substantial distances before reaching any appreciable roadways to Kinshasa.
Informed by phone, the younger sister of the deceased gave the instruction to not bury the dead in her absence or the absence of the elder brother, who lived an even further distance away. Therefore, the body of the deceased had to remain in the mortuary for nearly two weeks, allowing for the relatives’ travel before the funeral.
As is custom in Kinshasa, the family and friends of the deceased do not go to work on the day of the funeral. They instead assemble at the place where the funeral will be held, keeping what is known as a funeral watch. African tradition inspires dancing and singing during the watch, which helps to ease the trauma and the somber character of death. Those present attempt to provoke an atmosphere of gaiety, with the jokes and pleasantries that they share.
The body of the deceased is typically presented in a tent-like place, which is dressed somewhat as a chapel for the occasion. It is usually in an open space, between the houses and pavements, along a busy road. Those who have come for the watch sit on both sides of the “dressed chapel,” under the canopies that are prepared for them.
Funeral watches are very lively. In one sense, there is a certain level of elevated grief and emotion: gospel music is played loudly, and it provokes many of the women seated around the coffin to moan and cry. They will then dance to the rhythm of the music around the coffin, shaking a rose held in the hand. Soon they are joined by other women and girls, all who proudly swing around the coffin. And then the watch can turn celebratory: where folk dances greatly amuse the community. A folk dance appreciated by the participants usually has a precise and meaningful message. There are songs that remind, according to the Creator, that we will all face death: nevertheless, each in his or her own time, and in his or her own way. Then there may be a song that provokes the particular experiences of people. There is one that retraces the journey of people from Inongo (a region in the interior country) to Kinshasa. Upon hearing that particular song, men and women from Inongo cannot resist, and those who are able will join the dancers with excitement. This kind of excitement and comradery seems to reduce the traumatizing effects of death. One could say that the funeral gathering tradition here turns what could be gruesome and sorrowful, into somewhat of a feast instead.
In the case of our 90-year-old friend, we of course remember along with the cultural aspects of the ceremony, the fact that the she was a very devoted Catholic Christian. For this reason, her family not only organized traditional ceremonies, but also a Eucharistic celebration. The vicar was invited to celebrate Mass where the funeral watch was being held. A choir to animate this liturgy was mainly comprised of the grandchildren of the deceased. All sang with enthusiasm and joy. The Eucharist indeed gave consolation to the grieving family members and friends.