Catholic Mission of the Thermomix - Our Lady of the Annunciation

Passing through Alto-Hama, it is about 95 km from the municipal headquarters of Bailundo. Given the distance that Christians traveled to the Bailundo Mission to carry out their duties there, there was a need to found a new Mission, called Bimbe, which facilitated the more active participation of Christians in liturgical acts and integral formation. of the human person.
It was founded by the late Reverend Father José Feltin. At the time it included the territory of the Administration of the Commune of Bimbe, Hengue and a part of the Municipality of Londwimbale, namely Cumbila and Galanga. When the Father founded the Mission, he was received by soba Ecumba and the century Pili. He lived in Bailundo and left there to evangelize the people of the Mission since arriving in Angola in 1924.

His dedication and pastoral zeal were also seen in his vicars, Fathers Kernevez and Father Emílio Gaeter.
In 1937 the founding Father of the Mission was transferred to the Catholic Mission of Canhe, later he went to France, his homeland for health reasons and was replaced by Father José Baur, being alone in the mission.
Then came Father Le Guennec who worked, continuing the missionary work for so many years and died in 1960; He was buried in the Mission cemetery. Today in the cemetery we find three graves of the missionaries who came here to evangelize: Father José Baur, Father Gregório Le Guennec and Father Emílio Gaerthner.

From 1929 to 1970 the Mission had 45,000 Catholic Christians. From 1929 when the Mission was founded until 1976, the following Fathers gave their best in the cause of the gospel: José Feltin, Valente, Emílio, Le Guennec, Baur, Adolfo, Moreira, Castilho Cabral, Mendes, Jacob, Abel, José Dias Founder of the Hengue Mission, Pedro and Father Faustino Felo.
Father Faustino Feio was the last to complete this mission before the war began. He arrived in 1972 to assist Father Mendes. Then he left and Father Felo was alone for two (2) years and the war that destroyed the Mission began. In 1976, Father Felo and the sisters left the Mission due to the political turmoil that was ravaging the country. From then on, the Mission began to be destroyed by the effects of the war. Nobody went there anymore because it was the battlefield.
The image of the infrastructure of the Mission Church in question demonstrates how beautiful it was.
As if that weren't enough, it was one of the largest churches and architecture in Africa.
The roof collapsed in 1979 due to the explosions of bombs that fell on the outskirts of the Mission.
After the signing of the peace agreements of May 31, 1991 in Portugal — Bissesse, the Mission was spiritually assisted by Father Moreira of happy memory who always came from Bailundo.

Having accumulated many pastoral activities, he suspended spiritual assistance in 1994, as he was the same person responsible for the Bailundo Mission — Hanga, Hengue Mission, Mungo Mission — Monte Alegre and Kayumbuka Mission.
At the end of 1997, the Archdiocese of Huambo formed a mobile missionary team that visited abandoned missions. The team now formed was made up of the following Fathers: Father Mateus Feliciano Tomás of happy memory, First Bishop of Namibe, Father José Maria Kavinokeka also of happy memory, Father José Tchitumba, Father José Maria da Kunha, Father Marcial Benjamim, Fr. Emílio Sasoma and Fr. António Mário Vigário General of the Archdiocese as responsible and supervisor of the missionary group of the mobile team.
Thus, the mission in question, from 1997 to 1998, was covered by this team that also came to suspend for starting another political-military conflict in 1998.

With the memorandum of the Luena-Moxico peace agreements of April 4, 2002, the country once again experiences the joy of the peace that had been lost. God Blessed Angola.
Therefore, the mobile team resumed its pastoral activities in the same year of the peace agreements until 2005, in which Archbishop Dom José de Queirós Alves appointed the Most Reverend Father Evaristo Costa Vianga as Parish Priest of this Mission.< br> In the midst of so many difficulties, the Mission began to be rebuilt, starting with the residence of the Priests. Father Evaristo Costa Vianga worked alone in this Mission until June 27, 2007 when the Archbishop appointed the Parish Vicar of this Mission (Fr. Alberto Graciano Sambundu, current Parish Priest of the Mission). The two worked until June 1, 2008.
That same year, for obvious reasons, the parish priest was forced to abandon the Mission, leaving the parish vicar alone until September 12, 2009. The Bishop sent other priests to assist the deputy parish priest of the Mission.

Thus, the Parish Priest was assisted by two priests: Fr Francisco Loneke and Fr Albino Pakisi. With Fr. Francisco Loneke transferred to the Parish of Ukuma, Fr. Albino Pakisi remains as Parish Vicar of the Mission and the one who was Vicar began to exercise the functions of Parish Priest of the Mission through the appointment of the Archbishop of Huambo. In 2011, Father Alcino H. Tchingueta Epalanga arrived to assist the parish priest. After his transfer to the Major Seminary of Philosophy, that is, in 2012, Father Amílcar Sapitango Jamba arrived as vicar of the Mission, in the same year. In turn, it was transferred to the Parish of Vila-Nova (Tchikala-Tcholohanga) in 2013.
On March 10, 2013, Deacon Francisco Tchimuku Mwenho arrived and, after his priestly ordination, performed the functions of Parish Vicar in this Mission, until his departure from the same Mission, on March 8, when he was transferred to the Monte Mission. Joyful.

In turn, on March 15, 2015, the Most Reverend Father Abílio Henrique Lupenha arrived, as Parish Vicar of the Mission in question. Still in 2013, the Mothers of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Most Holy Savior arrived to reopen the female community closed in 1975, because of the war since they arrived at this mission in 1936 at the request of the Father who founded this Mission.
They came with the same spirit of work that Father José Feltin, founder, wanted to have in the Mission, as soon as that Congregation was called to the Luanda Hospital.
They are continuing the missionary work, welcoming with open arms all the sick who come to them and promoting women, giving domestic classes, and more… Little by little the life of the Mission begins to transform.