O jornalista Armindo Laureano, conhecido pelo seu trabalho na televisão, rádio e imprensa escrita, foi o mais recente convidado do programa Mar de Letras. Neste episódio, Laureano trouxe à discussão o seu mais recente livro, intitulado Há Dias Assim…, uma compilação de editoriais do semanário angolano Novo Jornal. A obra reflete sobre temas atuais, realçando a importância do jornalismo na construção de uma sociedade mais crítica e plural.
Durante os 33 minutos do programa, Laureano discutiu o papel do jornalismo como pilar essencial para a formação de uma consciência social mais informada, especialmente num contexto de diversidade cultural como o angolano. O autor destacou como os editoriais do Novo Jornal procuram questionar e iluminar os temas que afetam diretamente a vida dos cidadãos da República de Angola, sempre com uma visão crítica e independente.
Mar de Letras, um magazine temático da RTP dedicado à literatura lusófona, continua a trazer para o centro do debate a cultura e a história dos países de língua portuguesa, sem perder de vista as suas diferenças e riquezas culturais. Armindo Laureano foi o destaque do episódio 36, em exibição na RTP África e RTP Internacional, com novas transmissões programadas para os dias 12, 13, 14 e 16 de outubro de 2024.
Este encontro entre literatura e jornalismo reforça a relevância dos media na sociedade contemporânea, sublinhando o compromisso de Armindo Laureano com a liberdade de imprensa e a divulgação de ideias que promovem o diálogo e a reflexão.
Próximas emissões:
09 de outubro de 2024, 21:33, RTP África
12 de outubro de 2024, 18:30, RTP Internacional Ásia
13 de outubro de 2024, 06:30, RTP África
13 de outubro de 2024, 16:30, RTP Internacional Ásia
14 de outubro de 2024, 02:45, RTP África
16 de outubro de 2024, 23:00, RTP Internacional Ásia
24 de outubro de 2024, 03:30, RTP Internacional
O jornalista angolano Armindo Laureano durante o lançamento do livro de editoriais em Lisboa
THE WISE MAN AND THE CHEST “Every teacher of the law who has become a disciple of the kingdom is like the head of a household, who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.” (cf. Mt 13:52)
I The family of Maurício Francisco Caetano “Mafrano” has undertaken the noble task of collecting the scattered texts from newspapers and private and public archives of this man who, in my view, was an upright Angolan, a transparent nationalist, a researcher of our culture, and a straightforward writer on cultural anthropology. This is not a nostalgic exercise, but a necessary contribution to the national cultural fabric that, ultimately, concerns us all, who should collaborate in preserving the values conveyed by the various subcultures of our country. Personally, I welcomed the initiative, and I thank you for the opportunity to do so publicly, for, as the philosopher Terence said, “whatever is human belongs to me”; in this case, everything written about the Kimbundu genius is part of me, as I am Umbundu.
II Pope Paul VI — now St. Paul VI — known as “The Pope of Africa,” said in one of his messages to the African continent:
“Many traditions and rites once regarded as strange and primitive are now seen by ethnologists as integral parts of particular social systems that deserve to be studied and respected.” (Apostolic Letter Africae Terrarum, 1967)
This statement is almost verbatim echoed by the Ad Gentes (AG) Decree of the Second Vatican Council, a decree we eagerly awaited to bring the much-desired breath of fresh air to the process of Evangelisation, as the same Pontiff would say: “An evangelisation that does not touch a people’s culture is a superficial decoration.” As an elder who worked with “Mafrano,” I express my joy for this first volume and the subsequent ones on “Mafrano’s” profile and his anthropological writings. I also want to say to his family, “Well done!” for this initiative, which will allow us all to experience the joy described in the Gospel of St. Luke when the woman gathers her friends and neighbours to say, “Rejoice with me because I have found the coin I had lost.” (cf. Lk 15:8-9)
III I will summarise in four points my simple yet profound recognition of Maurício Francisco Caetano:
Maurício and the Second Vatican Council
Pope John XXIII — now St. John XXIII, called “The Good Pope” — announced the convening of the council that would be known as Vatican II (1958–1965). The Catholic world rejoiced. The objectives of the council were gradually outlined and clarified, as the Constitution Sacrosanctum Concilium (SC) would express in its preamble. While the general public expected the council to shake off the dust that had clung to the institutional church over five centuries (from the Council of Trent to the 20th century), and open windows for fresh air to enter, “the strong wind of the Spirit that sweeps away centuries-old mould,” as John XXIII said, it was indeed the greatest event of the century. Intellectuals were called to collaborate, directly or indirectly, and all the faithful were invited to pray and fast. Maurício Caetano was both a faithful and an intellectual: He prayed and collaborated. At this time, we were still Portuguese. The Metropolis timidly dictated the paths of preparation. Angola was facing the Colonial War. The political power increased control over the colonies, especially after the independence of Congo-Leopoldville, now the Republic of Congo, on 30 June 1960. Oppress, repress, suppress were the verbs that weighed on intellectuals, believers or not, Catholic or Protestant. However, as St. Paul says, “the word of God is not chained” (2 Tim 2:9). Some of the Catholic laity of the time rose to the level of their “creed,” particularly in the Capital, where prominent figures like Maurício Caetano, Mendes da Conceição, and António Burity da Silva (senior) became familiar to us, living in the Central Plateau, through the newspaper O Apostolado, or the gatherings organised by the Catholic Church in the Capital or the districts (now provinces). During this preparation period for the council, its celebration, and its aftermath, the only reliable sources of information came to us through the French-speaking press. Since French was the foreign language taught in Angolan seminaries after Portuguese, this was of great value to Maurício and all of us in following the century’s greatest event: Vatican II. Our proximity to the two Congos helped bridge the gap left by the Metropolis. Congo-Leopoldville already had a strong Catholic University led by Belgian Jesuits, Lovanium.
Maurício, the Conciliator
I will never forget this trait of our “Mafrano” as we evoke his memory. I arrived in Luanda in 1974 as an auxiliary Bishop. I was 40 years old. A dreamer and timid, confident yet unsure, in large assemblies I sought familiar faces, which I didn’t always find. One of those faces would have been “Mafrano’s,” because in the various provincial meetings, his family, like others such as the Espírito Santo Vieira family or that of Bishop Emílio de Carvalho, welcomed me into their homes and greatly helped me navigate those who questioned the appointment of a bishop from the Central Plateau (Umbundu) to the capital city (Kimbundu). Maurício Caetano had a special opportunity to demonstrate his conciliatory charisma. It was during my first pastoral visit to Golungo Alto in 1975, before the proclamation of Independence. We met there, providentially, I would say: he in the service of the State in the finance field, I in pastoral ministry. During the customary formal greetings, I felt relieved when I shook his hand, as I did with the others. After dinner, he came to the parish residence. He brought a timely word and confided in me: “Tomorrow, at the meeting with the parish’s key figures, don’t be alarmed if someone asks for a ‘point of order’ during the Q&A session. It’s a group of ‘revolutionary youth’ who will ask permission for a parish consultation point, which is a polite way of saying, a public trial of the parish priest. When the young man finishes speaking, I too will request a ‘point of order’ so that you won’t have to respond.”
No sooner said than done. When he spoke, with the authority recognised by the older catechists and the youth who knew him well, “Mafrano” drew upon tradition, the history of the MPLA, without forgetting biblical arguments. He finished with two or three questions that silenced the so-called “revolutionary” group. Relief for the elders who had no courage to contradict the youth and risk being called reactionary, obscurantist, etc. After the silence that followed this layman’s committed exposition, I had little more to say than to thank everyone for coming to meet the new Pastor and to give them the final blessing.
Maurício, the Christian Scribe
Inspired by Vatican II, “Mafrano” read and implemented the Gaudium et Spes (GS) Constitution, particularly where it says: “More and more men and women of every group and nation are becoming aware that they are the artisans and authors of their own community’s culture.” (Gaudium et Spes, 1965, n. 55). “Mafrano” answered, “present!” Although he did not leave us a book, what he left scattered in newspapers and archives forms a collection now published in four volumes, of which we are currently presenting the first. A distinguished student of the Luanda Seminary, where he studied Philosophy and Theology, colleagues and teachers nicknamed him the “library rat.” He once confided in me that for him, the long holidays were a continuation of his formation. “The library continued in listening to the ‘elders’, and they too felt gratified and entrusted me without hesitation with their secrets,” he said.
Maurício, the Artisan of our Culture
In weeks of study or in specific conferences on cultural anthropology, Maurício Caetano had to be present. Father Raul Assua, a Basque priest and author of the book A Cultura Bantu, admired “Mafrano” and enjoyed discussing topics of mutual interest with him. It was interesting to hear them, especially when the discussion heated up: one would refer to an African author, the other would confirm the phenomenon in question with firsthand experience. In the end, we all benefited. I witnessed this in 1977. I invited Maurício to lead the study topic at our Diocesan Pastoral Assembly. The theme was: Traditional Marriage and Its Implications in Canonical Marriage. We received a masterful and interesting presentation that lasted an entire day, and the following morning, we drew conclusions and recommendations to apply throughout the pastoral year. “Mafrano” proved himself to be a master, a scribe who, as St. Matthew says, took old and new treasures from his chest, illuminating them with the light of the Gospel. Starting from the “Alambamento” (traditional dowry), he guided us through to the “Separation of Spouses” by divorce or death. He provoked dialogue: accepted criticism like a wise man, clarified the doubts and prejudices of listeners like a teacher and educator. We saw him take notes of opinions different from his own, and the more he admitted his limitations, the more he won everyone’s admiration. We were in the presence of an artisan of our culture. Father César Viana (from Kibala), a young and dynamic member of the Pastoral Secretariat, delivered a heartfelt and deserved tribute to the speaker in his closing remarks. “Mafrano,” true to himself, replied with a proverb common to many African subcultures that, when translated, roughly says:
“We, the elders, the scholars, prepare for you, the young, rustic sandals for you to walk toward the land where you will find everything, including shoes; wear these shoes, but never forget the sandals.”
CONCLUSION I conclude, happily, by bearing witness to someone whose memory I personally wish to be eternal.
— Eternal like the word munthu, mu- (person) + -nthu (being), which once appeared in history and left (and continues to leave) traces, like a river that does not change its name but whose waters flow to the sea (kalunga), giving life from generation to generation; — Eternal, for these “sandals” that the “Mafrano” family has now gathered. They were forgotten in the corners of our house (Angola), but they still speak of the anthropologist and his time; — Eternal, for the contribution made to implementing the great lines of Vatican II and other post-conciliar documents like Evangeli Nuntiandi (1975), through articles and conferences.
Well, my friends: in the global city, we know there are winners, losers, and survivors. Like Maurício Caetano, however, we will know how to say: Present! National reconstruction depends on the reconstruction of each one’s identity (the awakening to munthu), in our case within Lusophony. In the history of the Catholic Church in Angola, there were men who believed in that munthu. On a religious level, I would recall the name of Ernesto Lecomte, a French Spiritan priest, who, in becoming “black with the blacks,” as advised by the founder of his congregation, managed to translate into some of our languages the catechism of St. Pius X, which guided us to the current Catechism of the Catholic Church. For all this, and keeping in mind the social and anthropological studies emerging throughout Angola, I place on Maurício Caetano’s lips the words with which Pope Francis ends his Apostolic Exhortation, Christus Vivit, addressed to young people and the entire people of God:
“The Church needs your enthusiasm, your intuitions, your faith. We need you. And when you arrive where we have not yet reached, have the patience to wait for us.” (Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation Christus Vivit, 2019, n. 299)
A Faculdade de Letras da Universidade de Coimbra realizará a apresentação do livro “Autores e Escritores de Angola 1642-2022“ (Edição 2024) no Anfiteatro IV. O evento contará com a presença dos autores Sedrick de Carvalho e Tomás Lima Coelho, além do editor João Ricardo Rodrigues. Esta obra, uma colaboração entre a editora Perfil Criativo, de Portugal, e a Elivulu, de Angola, revela mais de três séculos da rica tradição literária angolana.
Convite
A Elivulu Editora e a Perfil Criativo, os autores Sedrick de Carvalho e Tomás Lima Coelho e o editor João Ricardo Rodrigues convidam V/ Exa para a apresentação da terceira edição actualizada da obra «Autores e Escritores de Angola 1642 – 2022» (Ed. 2024), a ter lugar no dia 15 de Outubro de 2024, às 11H, na Faculdade de Letras da Universidade de Coimbra.
Local: Anfiteatro IV da Faculdade de Letras da Universidade de Coimbra | Largo da Porta Férrea, 3004-530 Coimbra.
The family of Mauricio Francisco Caetano and the editor of Perfil Criativo – AUTORES.club are delighted to invite you for the presentation of the collection «The Bantu in Mafrano’s vision – Almost memories» which will take place on Saturday, 9th November 2024 at Birkbeck University of London, at 3:00 pm.
Location: BIRKBECK UNIVERSITY OF LONDON, Malet Street, Bloomsbury, WC1E 7HY.
Date: 9th November 2024
Arrival: 2:30 pm
Start: 3:00 pm
The Portuguese collection «Os Bantu na visão de Mafrano – Quase memórias» (The Bantu in Mafrano’s vision – Almost Memories), a posthumous cultural anthropological trilogy, with more than 700 pages, will be presented on Saturday, 09th November 2024, at the Birkbeck University of London, Malet Street, Bloomsbury, WC1E 7HY, from 14:30-18:00.
Prepared since February 2024, this cultural event aims at gathering a significant audience, including representatives of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP), African culture experts, academics, Linguists, literary agents, cultural institutions, and media players interested in African culture.
«Os Bantu na visão de Mafrano – Quase Memórias» is centered on the life, culture, and pre-history of the Bantu people of this southern African country, compiled from newspapers and magazines published from 1947 to 1982.
The city of London was elected to hold this event because of its well-known historical and cultural relevance and to also explore possibilities of a potential translation of this anthropological trilogy into English. The family of the late Mauricio Caetano “Mafrano” believe that the English version will allow a wider dissemination in the United Kingdom, as well as in other countries, that could access this historical and cultural publication.
In Africa, Bantu people spread across 24 countries and approximately 200 ethnic groups, including South Africa, Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, the Congos (DRC and Brazzaville), Gabon, Lesotho, Mozambique, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe,
The first volume of this collection was launched in April 2022 in Lubango City, Huila Province, Angola, by Dom Zacarias Kamwenho, the Emeritus Catholic Archbishop of Lubango and winner of the «Sakharov Prize 2001,» who wrote the preface. One month later, the book was also launched in the capital, Luanda.
This collection includes themes like the use of “ngolokele” (the telegraph) among the Bantu peoples since ancient times; ancestral writing; professional training; marriage rituals; political tradition; Bantu place names and their legend; the Bantu philosophy on death and the origin of man; reports from Cabinda; dietary habits and beliefs, and other topics on anthropology, archaeology, and Customary Law based on traditional structures.
Born in the city of Dondo, Province of Cuanza-Norte, in Angola, Mauricio Caetano, “Mafrano”, was educated since his childhood by an African Canon José Pereira da Costa Frotta, from São Tomé and Principe, who admitted him in a catholic school, after discovering he was an orphan boy of only five years.
Along 36 years of vast literary production and research activities, “Mafrano” wrote about the bantu civilization, including similar contact points with the classical Greco-Roman mythologies. He also built comparative dialogues, shared experiences, and scientific views to enable readers to travel in a comparative regard through various countries, such as Germany, China, the United States of America, France, Italy, Portugal, and the United Kingdom. The American anthropologist Franz Boas (1858-1942) and the spanish Raul Ruiz de Asua Altuna (?-2004) are two of the experts quoted by Mafrano in his studies and research.
Before the independence of Angola, on 11th November 1975, Maurício Caetano worked as a teacher and a tax officer, starting a long professional career in General Finance and Accounting Services until being appointed National Director at the Ministry of Finance. “Mafrano”, as he was mostly known, was also one of the founding members of the Union of Angolan Writers (UEA). He was also a teacher of Portuguese and Philosophy in prestigious educational institutions, such as the «Liceu Ngola Kiluanji,» the «Makarenko Institute,» the «PIO XII Institute,» and the Institute of Religious Sciences of Angola (ICRA).
According to historical writings, the author initiated his literary activity in 1947 at the Independent Newspaper «Angola Norte,» published in the Northern Province of Malanje. Mafrano. He also published his studies and reflections in «Revista ANGOLA», a magazine from the African National League in Angola, and in other national newspapers such as «O FAROLIM,» «O APOSTOLADO», «O ANGOLENSE», «TRIBUNA dos Musseques» among others. He worked closely with the first President of Angola, António Agostinho Neto, the Cardinal Dom Alexandre do Nascimento, and siblings, Mário and Joaquim Pinto de Andrade, who were leading figures of Angolan nationalism.
Dom Zacarias Kamwenho, Emeritus Archbishop of Lubango and Sakharov prize winner, prefaced this collection in 2001. As of today, the «Os Bantu na visão de Mafrano» has been presented in Mozambique, São Tomé and Príncipe, Cape Verde, Portugal, and by video conferences at the universities of Curitiba and Rio de Janeiro, in Brazil.
O semanário angolano “Novo Jornal” destacou na sexta-feira 13 de Setembro de 2024 a forte presença de autores e leitores de Angola na Festa do Livro em Belém, realizada com o apoio da Presidência da República nos jardins do Palácio de Belém.
A presença angolana foi especialmente notável, destacando-se autores como Armindo Laureano, Victor Torres, Sandra Poulson, Eugénio Costa Almeida, Sedrick de Carvalho, Jonas Nazareth, Xavier de Figueiredo, Luzia Moniz e Tomás Lima Coelho, que enriqueceram o evento com um diálogo profundo entre autores e leitores. No sábado, 7 de setembro, personalidades de destaque de Angola, como Irene Neto, filha do primeiro presidente angolano, e José Van-Dúnem, antigo Ministro da Saúde, estiveram presentes, reforçando a relevância da participação de Angola no evento.
O jornalista angolano Armindo Laureano, autor do livro de editoriais do semanário Novo Jornal, afirmou: “Foi a maior e mais marcante presença angolana na Festa do Livro em Belém. Foram momentos especiais em que autores e público estiveram juntos”. A importância deste encontro foi igualmente destacada pelo escritor Jonas Nazareth: “Uma tarde memorável, com a calorosa receção do Presidente da República Portuguesa, Prof. Doutor Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, participando ativamente na festa.”
Nos quatro dias da Festa do Livro em Belém 2024, o Presidente da República de Portugal, Prof. Doutor Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, promoveu encontros especiais entre autores de Angola e leitores de ambos os países, reforçando a ponte cultural entre Portugal e Angola. Entre os dias 5 e 8 de setembro, os Jardins do Palácio de Belém transformaram-se no palco de um dos maiores eventos literários de Portugal, com a presença de 68 editores e livreiros, que representaram 228 marcas editoriais em 122 bancas. O programa contou com mais de 300 atividades culturais, incluindo debates, lançamentos de livros, sessões de cinema e concertos, além de 280 autores que participaram em sessões de autógrafos.
A presença angolana foi especialmente notável, destacando-se autores como Armindo Laureano, Victor Torres, Sandra Poulson, Eugénio Costa Almeida, Sedrick de Carvalho, Jonas Nazareth, Xavier de Figueiredo, Luzia Moniz e Tomás Lima Coelho, que enriqueceram o evento com um diálogo profundo entre autores e leitores. No sábado, 7 de setembro, personalidades de destaque de Angola, como Irene Neto, filha do primeiro presidente angolano, e José Van-Dúnem, antigo Ministro da Saúde, estiveram presentes, reforçando a relevância da participação de Angola no evento.
O jornalista angolano Armindo Laureano, autor do livro de editoriais do semanário Novo Jornal, afirmou: “Foi a maior e mais marcante presença angolana na Festa do Livro em Belém. Foram momentos especiais em que autores e público estiveram juntos”. A importância deste encontro foi igualmente destacada pelo escritor Jonas Nazareth: “Uma tarde memorável, com a calorosa receção do Presidente da República Portuguesa, Prof. Doutor Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, participando ativamente na festa.”
Durante o evento, João Ricardo Rodrigues, da editora Perfil Criativo, sublinhou a oportunidade de apresentar ao público português “uma Angola que acontece fora de Angola”, com autores emergentes e temas de grande relevância cultural e histórica. Esta edição da Festa do Livro foi mais do que um sucesso editorial; foi um verdadeiro ponto de encontro entre culturas, memórias e novos horizontes literários, destacando a importância de dar voz em Portugal a autores dos países de língua portuguesa.
Victor Torres, autor angolano e memorialista, deixou o evento com uma nota de gratidão: “Foi um dia maravilhoso, em excelente companhia, sempre a dignificar Angola!”
Num ambiente de grande afluência de leitores e autores, a Festa do Livro reafirmou o seu compromisso com a promoção da leitura e do livro, criando oportunidades para novos encontros e diálogos, fortalecendo, assim, a partilha cultural entre Portugal e Angola.
A família de Maurício Francisco Caetano, o editor da Perfil Criativo | AUTORES.club e a organização do evento convidam V/ Exa para o lançamento oficial do primeiro e do segundo volumes da colectânea «Os Bantu na Visão de Mafrano – Quase Memórias» a ter lugar no dia 9 de Novembro de 2024 na Birkbeck University of London, às 15:00.
The family of Mauricio Francisco Caetano, the editor of Perfil Criativo | AUTORES.club and the Organization of the event are delighted to invite you to our upcoming event, the book launching of «The Bantu in the Mafrano’s vision – Almost memories» which will be held on Saturday 9th November 2024 at Birkbeck University of London, at 3:00 pm.
O antigo preso político, jornalista, editor e autor, Sedrick de Carvalho, autografou o livro de memórias “Prisão Política”. Muitos leitores manifestaram interesse em perceber o modelo do sistema judicial e prisional na República de Angola.
A encerrar este grande encontro de quatro dias o grupo Finka Pé apresentou e autografou, na Festa do Livro em Belém 2024, o livro “Finka Pé. O feitiço do batuque“. Os leitores de Lisboa queriam ver e ouvir a voz do batuque. Infelizmente o grupo não foi autorizado a tocar e a dançar. Frustrado, o público presente no Palácio de Belém revelou interesse em visitar a casa do Finka Pé.
7/9/2024 — Festa do Livro em Belém recebeu milhares de leitores de Lisboa para uma grande sessão de autógrafos com os autores de Angola nos jardins da Presidência da República:
Leitor Henda Vieira Lopes com o médico Luís Caetano filho de Mafrano
LUÍS CAETANO em representação do falecido MAURÍCIO FRANCISCO CAETANO (1916-1982) autor dos livros “Os Bantu na visão de Mafrano — Quase Memórias” primeiro e segundo volume.
