South African man, opponent of witchcraft, could be recognized as martyr
March 12, 2012
A South African businessman who was killed in 1990 by proponents of witchcraft could be recognized as a martyr.
Benedict Daswa was killed when he refused to participate when neighbors sought to hire a witch doctor to assign blame for lightning strikes in the village.
“We believe he was killed in hatred of the faith which he professed privately and publicly,” says Bishop Joao Rodrigues of Tzaneen—using the words that describe a martyr’s death. The bishop has prepared a report on the case for submission to the Vatican.
A report on the case by The Citizen of Zaire is inaccurate in some respects. Benedict Daswa would be not necessarily be recognized as a saint if he is beatified. And the while the Pope approves any final decisions on beatifications, the file on the case will be submitted to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.
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