| Notre-Dame de la Sagesse | |
| Religious Affiliation: | Catholic Church |
| Location: | Lemba, Kinshasa |
| Rite: | Roman Rite |
| Province: | Archdiocese of Kinshasa |
| Country: | Democratic Republic of the Congo |
| Functional Status: | Active |
| Leadership: | Abbot Georges Njila |
| Website: | Notre-Dame de la Sagesse |
| Architecture Type: | Parish church |
| Architecture Style: | French Baroque and Neoclassical |
Notre-Dame de la Sagesse (meaning "Our Lady of Wisdom"), contracted as NODASA, is a Roman Catholic parish church located on the University of Kinshasa's campus in the Lemba commune, Democratic Republic of the Congo.[1] [2] [3] Operating under the auspices of the Doyenné Notre Dame de la Sagesse, it provides pastoral ministries to professors and students associated with the University of Kinshasa and Institut Supérieur des Techniques Médicales (ISTM-Kinshasa). It is the mother church for approximately 46,000 Catholics, including 34,000 students, 8,000 teachers, and their families. NODASA fosters symbiotic interfaith relations with adherents of Protestantism, Kimbanguism, Islam, and those embracing esoteric disciplines.
Established concurrently with the founding of Lovanium University (now the University of Kinshasa) in January 1954, the parish attained canonical status in 1957 with an ecclesiastical edifice boasting approximately 1,300 seats. Following the nationalization of the university in 1971, it continued its pastoral activities, evolving into a territorial parish with jurisdiction over the University Campus.
Architecturally, NODASA combines Western architectural styles with a fish-shaped design, emblematic to the "Ichthys" symbol of the first Christian tenets.[4] [5] The parish also features a center erected in 1965 and augmented in 1989, serving as a presbytery with clergy apartments, a technologically equipped informatics hub, and an expanse designated as the parish's horticultural garden.
NODASA is subdivided into 16 organizational structures known as Basic Living Ecclesial Communities (Communautés Ecclésiales Vivantes de Base; CEVB), which support various commissions and movements.[6]
NODASA commissions include:
NODASA movements include: