millenarianismon Earth founded by Simon Kimbangu, who considered himself a prophet
while his followers interpreted him as a messiah who brings redemption
and salvation. Kimbangu sparks a nationalist movement that he neither
intends nor can control. He dies in jail in 1951 hailed by his people as a
black messiah. In contrast to the messianic movements, prophetic cults
center around a divinely inspired individual whose leadership is con-
firmed by visions, dreams, or supernatural inspiration. The Milne Bay
Prophet Cult in New Guinea begins with a native prophet, Tokerau, who
foretells the approach of a terrifying cataclysm that will destroy every-
thing and then be followed by a time of plenty and the return of dead
ancestors. Because a plentiful supply of food is expected, the people are
instructed to consume all garden produce and to slaughter and eat all their
pigs. The people abandon their homes and follow their prophet inland to
be safe from the predicted disasters.
Cargo cult is a term applied to millenarian movements on the Pacific
islands. People believe that goods will arrive in the form of cargo consist-
ing of Western commodities. They also believe that European ships, air-
planes, trade articles, and military equipment could not be made by
humans, but rather that they come from some supernatural source. Thus
cargo cult ritual activity is designed to bring such goods to the cult mem-
bers, who construct airstrips for planes and large storage houses to deposit
the new supplies. The new order is inaugurated by a cataclysm that forces
the whites to leave, be killed, or enslaved.
Because the world is alien and irredeemable, introversionist move-
ments represent a withdrawal from the world. The Handsome Lake
Movement of the Iroquois led by a Seneca prophet in 1799 is an example
of this type. This particular movement synthesizes Indian and Christian
elements. The Peyote cult among Native American Indians is another
example in which the chewing of peyote, a non-addictive, hallucinogenic
substance that grows at the roots of cactus plants, functions to provide
visions and healing power.
Millenarianism is a religious movement determined by cultural and
environmental factors. It is historically significant because it affirms a
need for escape from the present, dire situation by attempting to abolish
the present, return to a primordial time of peace and plenty, and renew
and reform society. It accomplishes these types of things by reinterpret-
ing the origin myth and projecting a return to origins into the future at
which point the end time is realized and the world is renewed along with
its culture, society, and political life.
Further reading: La Barre (1970); McGinn (1979, 1993); Ray (1976); Wilson
(1973)