In 1509, King Afonso I of the Kongo Kingdom embraced Catholicism, leading to the transformation of his kingdom into a Catholic Christian state. This conversion fostered the development of a unique African Christian culture, characterized by its own saints, artistic expressions, and devotional practices. The Kongo's Christianization had profound implications for the region's cultural identity and its interactions with European powers, as it established a framework for religious and political alliances.

Kongolese Christianity produced distinctive oral and written devotional literature; the tradition of Beatriz Kimpa Vita (burned 1706), who received visions and preached in vernacular, anticipates later African religious poetry, intertwining spiritual and cultural identity in poetic expressions.