Anuarite Nengapeta

Alphonsine Anuarite Nengapeta was born on December 29, 1939, in Wamba. Entering the Diocesan Congregation of the Sisters of the Holy Family of Kisantu, she took religious vows in 1959, adopting the name Sister Marie-Clémentine and serving as a teacher and sacristan.

In November 1964, during the Simba rebellion, rebels abducted the sisters and transported them to Isiro. When Colonel Pierre Ngalo demanded she become his wife, Anuarite steadfastly refused to violate her vows. Beaten and stabbed on December 1, 1964, she whispered to her executioner: 'I forgive you, for you know not what you do.' Beatified in Kinshasa in 1985, she is revered across Africa.