Our Lady of Fatima of Kinshasa

Marian Invocation of Kinshasa (Archdiocese of Kinshasa)
Recognized by the Church

The devotion to Our Lady of Fatima was introduced into the Congo by the missionaries (probably Belgian) during the 20th century, in the context of the great global spread of Fatima. In Kinshasa it has a very frequent parish, in some sources called Marian "urban sanctuary," although this character is devotional and does not contain a formal diocesan decree that houses it as a sanctuary.

Main data

Origin and history

The devotion to Our Lady of Fatima was introduced into the Congo by the missionaries (probably Belgian) during the 20th century, in the context of the great global spread of Fatima. In Kinshasa it has a very frequent parish, in some sources called Marian "urban sanctuary," although this character is devotional and does not contain a formal diocesan decree that houses it as a sanctuary.

The image and the sanctuary

The parish of Notre-Dame de Fátima in Kinshasa is located, according to various parish sources, in the Gombe area; the precise location varies in the sources and is not always reliable. It is active with intense youth pastoral and Marian movements, and functions as a place of prayer and confession. There is no documented description of the headline image.

Sponsorship and coronation

It is dedicated to Our Lady of Fatima, an advocation fully recognized by the universal Church. There is no specific canonical city patronage or canonical coronation of its image in available sources.

Party and devotion

La fiesta se celebra el 13 de mayo, memoria de Nuestra Señora de Fátima. Los informes pastorales señalan que es lugar de confesión y de oración por la reconciliación del país, con vigilias marianas prolongadas en tiempos de crisis sociopolítica. Se recogen testimonios personales de conversión, «liberación del miedo» y reconciliaciones familiares, propios de la piedad popular y no de hechos extraordinarios oficialmente investigados.

Link to the Rosary

Fatima is, par excellence, the advocation of the Rosary: the Virgin asked there for the daily prayer of the Rosary for peace. In this parish of Kinshasa the Rosary is the heart of the Marian vigil and of the prayer for peace and reconciliation of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.