Spirit possession and healing in modern Zambia : an analysis of letters to Archbishop Milingo

This article is based on research into the healing ministry of Monsignor Emmanuel Milingo, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Lusaka from 1969 to 1983. On the basis of an analysis of a collection of some 250 letters written to the Archbishop in 1979 and 1980 by people in need of spiritual healing or guidance, it examines the relationship between spirit possession and the request for healing and social class, Christianity, urban life, ethnicity, and gender. It further discusses the pathology of spirit possession, the limits of traditional healing, and the politics of possession, and concludes that the recent growth of spirit possession and healing in Zambia indicates a failure of both the Church and the State. The case of Milingo shows that the Church does have the potential to deal with popular spiritual needs, but is unwilling to do so because of the problems this would pose in the political and theological spheres. Notes, ref