Dear Friends,
The life of one of our brothers in music was cut
short on Tuesday December 20th. Mitete Nzubamunu was a gifted musician
whose life was ended tragically through violence while trying to earn a few
extra dollars to support his family.
Throught his life, Pastor Mitete reached out to all people through his music, faith and teaching. He composed and performed music about peace, love and brotherhood among all peoples.
While in the City of Pittsburgh, Pastor Mitete was a wonderful Minister, artist and musician who performed his spiritual music to lift the lives of so many. He played the guitar and drums with various musical groups from Congo and here in Pittsburgh with UMOJA African Arts Company, the Pitt African and Drum Dance Ensemble and Afrika Yetu, Inc.
Pastor Mitete Nzubamunu was born on November 29, 1953 in Mushia in the Democratic Republic of Congo formerly Zaire in Africa. His father Mr. Nzubamunu was a military officer in the army, as a result, Pastor Mitete was given an opportunity to travel around the Country at a very young age, where he got involved with the music ministry and youth choir in Kokolo military Camp in Kinshasa. While in Kokolo Military Camp he joined Group de La Croix, one of the legendary choirs of Congo which became Group Evangelical, whose members moved from Camp to the area within the City of Kinshasa in 1976 to form Le Groupe Reveilles, a group which later turned many of it's members into Pastors (ministers).
Pastor Mitete Nzubamunu also attended Pentecostal seminaries with various American missions in Congo including La Borne with Pastor Jacques Vernon. In 1983 he formed his own church “Eglise de Jerusalem”, which later in 1989 was joined with the Assemblies of God.
Pastor Mitete
and other Ministers in Kinshasa later joined together
to form the EPRC (Eglise Pentencotist et de Reveille du
Chirst au Congo). Pastor Mitete later joined the Full
Gospel Association of Business People an organization which facilitated his
travel to the United States of America in 1996. After visiting
and sharing his dream with Rev. Lorran Mann, he then become a
full-time member of the Pentecostal Church of God in Christ were he
was ordained to become one of the ministers working with Rev.
Mann.
In 2005 he was ordain Bishop of Pentecostal Church of God in Christ of Congo, a duty that he assumed while still in the United States pending the time of consecration to office. Under this role he was the spiritual leader of about 40 Churches whom he continued to help from America.
Pastor Mitete was also pastoring the African Christian United Fellowship Church in Pittsburgh which was established in 2002.
Pastor Mitete is survived by a wife Menga Nzubamunu and eight children (age range of the children from 9 years to 29 years old), and three grand-children.
Pastor Mitete’s dream was to build a bridge between the African church with the American church.
I also would like to ask for your help. As many of the news agencies have reported, Pastor Mitete did not have life insurance. The costs for his preparation and transportation to Congo along with the cost to accompany his body to Congo are estimated to be $25,000.
Please help us to let Pastor Mitete travel home this final time.
News story from the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
News story from the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
