Career
Lourenço, claiming to be descended from kings of Kongo and Angola, travelled to Rome in 1684 to protest to the Pope against slavery. His petitions, which presented a firsthand account of the cruelties inflicted by slavery, supported by Capuchin missionaries, convinced the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith and led directly to the March 20th, 1686 condemnation by Pope Innocent XI.