Year-end Review 2008

by Gunther Simmermacher · Published December 29, 2008 · Updated December 9, 2009

JANUARY
The Vatican announces that at least 20 Catholic workers were murdered or sacrificed their lives for others in 2007. In South Africa, they include Sr Anne Th�le, who died on April 1 trying to rescue patients in a hospice fire, and Fr Allard �Mako who was murdered on October 5.

The anti-human trafficking desk of the Southern African Catholic Bishops� Conference (SACBC) begins operation.
Some 1,5 million attend a rally for traditional family life in Madrid, Spain.
Indian bishops demand an inquiry into Christmas season attacks on Christians in Orissa state.
Archbishop Buti Tlhagale of Johannesburg describes as �shameful� the political interference in the justice system, especially in cases involving African National Congress president Jacob Zuma and national police commissioner Jackie Selebi.
Bishop Francis Quinn, retired of Sacramento, California, issues an apology to Miwok Indians for their mistreatment by the Church two centuries ago.
Pope Benedict cancels a visit to Rome�s Sapienza University following a letter of protest by 67 academics and protest threats by students.
Spanish-born Fr Adolofo Nicolas, 71, is elected superior-general of the Jesuits.
Fr Stefan Hippler, chaplain of the German-speaking Catholic Community of the Cape Pensinsula, is awarded the Erich K�stner Prize of the Dresden Press Club for his work in HIV/Aids.
Pope Benedict reformulates a Tridentine prayer which Jews have said is offensive.
Addressing the SACBC�s first plenary session of the year, conference president Archbishop Tlhagale warns of �moral decay� in South Africa after political and business scandals.

FEBRUARY
The SACBC condemns a raid on a Johannesburg Methodist church that houses more than 1300 refugees.
Fr Sithembele Sipuka, rector of St John Vianney Seminary, is appointed bishop of Mthatha.
Zimbabwe�s Catholic Justice and Peace Commission calls for a postponement of the March 28 elections, citing concerns about impediments to a free and fair poll.
Fra Andrew Bertie, grandmaster of the Knights of Malta, dies on February 7 in Rome at 78.
Lourdes celebrates the 150th anniversary of the first of St Bernadette�s visions of Our Lady.
A priest in Algeria, Fr Pierre Wallez, is sentenced to a year in prison for praying with Christians in Cameroon. The sentence is immediately commuted to parole.
Three people are killed in the criminal kidnapping of Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho. The archbishop found dead two weeks later. In May, a man is sentenced to death for killing the archbishop.
MARCH
Disbanding the Directorate of Special Operations, or Scorpions, for political reasons would be �regrettable�, SACBC secretary-general Fr Vincent Brennan says.
The new 24-bed Emaus retreat centre opens in Umzimkulu, KwaZulu-Natal, at the mission where Abbot Franz Pfanner spent the last years of his life.
The first church in 1400 years opens in the Arab state of Qatar.
The body of St Padre Pio is exhumed for public display between April and October.
Representatives of the Vatican and of 138 Muslim scholars who wrote to Pope Benedict in October 2007 to establish a Catholic-Muslim forum for dialogue.
Chiara Lubich, founder of the Focolare movement, dies on March 14 at 88.
The Jesuit Refugee Service calls on Southern African governments to address xenophobia, which is �of epidemic proportions throughout our region�.
Mgr Xolelo Thaddeus Kumalo of Bethlehem is appointed bishop of Eshowe, KwaZulu-Natal.
For the first time, the number of Muslims (if all sects are combined) exceeds the number of Catholics globally, the Vatican says.
Archbishop Pius Ncube, formerly of Bulawayo, apologises for an affair he had with a woman.
At Easter, Pope Benedict confirms a former Muslim journalist highly critical of Islam. As controversy breaks out, the Vatican stresses the journalist�s opinions do not reflect those of the pope.
APRIL
South Africa�s Independent Communication Authority of South Africa (Icasa) turn down Radio Veritas� application for a vacant medium wave frequency.
Celebrating the 40th anniversary of the Community of Sant�Egidio, Pope Benedict honours modern martyrs, Catholics and non-Catholics. The anniversary is also celebrated in a four-day meeting in Johannesburg.
Pope Benedict visits the United States, stopping in New York City, Washington and Boston. During the trip he addresses the United Nations and meets with survivors of clerical abuse.
Bishop Kevin Dowling of Rustenburg says that the political values that gave rise to South Africa�s democracy in 1994 may no longer be reflected by the country�s future leaders.
Churches in KwaZulu-Natal call for South African and SADC intervention in Zimbabwe after the farce surrounding the March election results and renewed violence against opposition supporters.
A Sri Lankan human rights activist priest, Fr Mariampillai Xavier Karunatnam, dies in a car bomb attack.
Cardinal Wilfrid Napier condemns China�s crackdown on Tibet.
Fernando Lugo M�ndez, a former bishop, is elected president of Paraguay.
Church leaders around the world call for goverment intervention to curb spiralling food price increases.
Fr Denis Fahy, Cape Town-based former chaplain to author Evelyn Waugh, dies on April 27 at 88.
MAY
Church leaders in South Africa and the Vatican condemn a spate of attacks on foreign nationals throughout South Africa. Many Catholic parishes, institutions and organisations open their doors to the victims of xenophobic attacks.
Archbishop Tlhagale warns that a June presidential run-off election in Zimbabwe is impossible �without an immediate end to intimidation, violence and torture�. Later opposition candidate Morgan Tsvangirai pulls out of the elections, citing violence against his supporters.
United action by churches, trade unions and other organisations prevented a Chinese ship with arms destined for Zimbabwe from docking in Durban harbour.
The Catholic Institute of Education hosts 470 religious education teachers at a conference in Durban.
The archdiocese of Pretoria celebrates the 60th anniversary of its status as a diocese.
The Church officially recognises a 17th century Marian apparition in Laus, France.
Catholic aid workers say they were stopped from helping victims of Cyclone Nargis in Burma by severe travel restrictions.
The Vatican curia�s first senior cardinal from Africa, Cardinal Bernardin Gantin from Benin, dies in Paris at 86.
Catholic priests in Zimbabwe say they are being targeted by soldiers and pro-Mugabe militias.
A 7m high statue of Our Lady is unveiled by Maronite Cardinal Nasrallah Sfeir at Mulbarton, Johannesburg. It replaces a statue that was destroyed by lightning three years before.
The Rural Education Access Programme, an SACBC associate body, is awarded the prestigious Gold Impimelelo Innovations Award.

JUNE
The Vatican issues a formal decree warning that a woman who attempts to be ordained to the priesthood and the person attempting to ordain her are both automatically excommunicated.
Fr Graham Rose of Johannesburg is appointed new bishop of Dundee, KwaZulu-Natal.
Pope Benedict announces that the Shroud of Turin will go on public display in 2010.
The 49th International Eucharistic Congress is held in Quebec City, Canada.
Nicaraguan Father Miguel d�Escoto Brockmann, who is not permitted by the Church to exercise his priestly ministry, is elected head of the United Nations General Assembly.
Fr Massimo Biancalani of Durban receives Italy�s most prestigious honour, the knighthood to the Order of the Italian Star of Solidarity, for his pro-life work and ministry to Durban�s Italian Catholics.
Meeting Pope Benedict in the Vatican, DR Congo president Joseph Kabila responds to the pope�s question: �What is the situation in your country?� by saying: �A bit better.�
In a statement, the bishops of Southern Africa say that Zimbabwe�s President Robert Mugabe and his Zanu-PF should not be recognised by governments �as the legitimate government� of the country. In the run-up to the one-man run-off elections, thousands of Zimbabweans were violently persecuted, including several priests.
Fr Michael Deeb OP is appointed new coordinator of the SACBC�s Justice & Peace Commission.
The Year of St Paul is launched in the Vatican. It will run until June 2009.
JULY
Colombian hostage Ingrid Betancourt is rescued after six years in captivity. She travels to Lourdes to give thanks for her rescue, which she ascribed to a miracle, and later meets Pope Benedict in Rome.
World Youth Day in Sydney, Australia, draws hundreds of thousands of young Catholics from around the world. Some 350,000 people attend the closing Mass, celebrated by Pope Benedict, and 200,000 the vigil the night before. While in Australia he meets with survivors of clerical abuse, saying that �victims should receive compassion and care, and those responsible for these evils must be brought to justice�.
Cardinal Wilfrid Napier of Durban tells Australian TV that the distribution of condoms does not lower the rate of HIV infections.
The Southern Cross publishes a letter written from prison by Nelson Mandela to the late Archbishop Stephen Naidoo of Cape Town.
Bishop Barry Wood, SACBC liaison bishop for Justice and Peace, accuses government and big business of cooperating in making prices of basic foods and energy unaffordable to the poor.
The Anglican communion begins its stormy Lambeth Conference against the backdrop of deep division over issues such as gay and women bishops.
Pope Benedict tells Iraq�s Prime Minister Nouri al-Malik that he would like to accept his invitation to visit Iraq.
The Church laicises Paraguay�s President Ferando Lugo Mendez.
AUGUST
Meeting in Mariannhill for their second plenary session of the year, the bishops of Southern Africa discuss South Africa�s 2009 elections, Catholic schooling and the voice of the laity, among others.
The Pastoral Forum for the Laity takes place in Durban, taking forward resolutions made at the forum a year before.
The bishops� Catholic Parliamentary Liaison Office tells a parliamentary hearing to consider legislation concerning the Scorpions �free from party political considerations and with a view to to what is good for the nation as a whole�. Parliament later ignores the advice.
The SACBC criticises plans to close camps for the victims of xenophobic attacks in May.
Veteran Marriage Encounter leader Veronica Charleston dies on August 10 in Johannesburg at 70.
St Augustine College in Johannesburg, South Africa�s Catholic university, announces the introduction of a Bachelor of Commerce degree as of January 2009.
All Catholic churches in Beijing open their doors to the public for the Olympic Games.
The Vatican rules that the word �Yahweh�, the Hebrew word for God, must not be �used or pronounced� in songs or prayers in the Mass.
South African boxing legend Vic Toweel, a Catholic, dies on August 15 in Australia at 80.
Pope Benedict warns that racism is still alive in modern society and urges the Church to help overcome all forms of intolerance.
US presidential candidate Barack Obama announces Catholic senator Joe Biden as his running mate in the November election.
Violence breaks out against Christians in India�s Orissa state following the killing of a Hindu leader by Maoist rebels. Priests are among the almost 40 dead, and several Church workers, including a nun, are raped. About 4,200 Christian homes and dozens of Christian churches and institutions are looted and destroyed.
SEPTEMBER
Pope Benedict visits Lourdes and Paris to mark the 150th anniversary of the Marian apparitions in Lourdes.
SACBC secretary-general Fr Vincent Brennan warns against �over-legislating� religious freedoms after the faculty of Stellenbosch University issues its draft �Charter of Religious Rights and Freedoms for South Africa�.
The Vatican goes green as 2,400 solar panels are installed on the roof of the Paul VI Audience Hall.
It is announced that South African scripture expert Teresa Maria Wilsnagh has been appointed among 37 observers, 19 of them women, at the Synod of Bishops on the Bible in October.
Two men are sentenced to 25 years each for shooting Pretoria priest Fr Kieran Creagh CP in February 2007.
The Vatican disciplines Fr Tomislav Vlasic OFM, a spiritual director to the visionaries in Medjugorje.
The Church in Zimbabwe hails the power-sharing deal signed by Robert Mugabe and Morgan Tsvangirai. The optimism is short-lived.
Following Thabo Mbeki�s removal as South African president, Archbishop Tlhagale calls for greater respect for democracy by the ANC-led alliance and for a full investigation into alleged corruption relating to South Africa�s arms deal.
Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille praises the Catholic Women�s League during a banquet in Cape Town to mark the organisation�s annual general meeting.
A South African Missionary of Charity, Sr Rafqa Simpson, is appointed superior of one of Mother Teresa�s order�s convents in Kolkata, India.
Anglican Bishop David Beetge of Highveld, joint head of the International Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission, dies on September 27 at 59.
Johannesburg archdiocese holds its diocesan synod.
OCTOBER
The World Synod of Bishops on the Bible takes place at the Vatican.
The Vatican�s secretary of state, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, blames the economic crisis on greed for short-term profits with risky investments.
English officials exhuming the body of 19th century Cardinal John Henry Newman find it has completely disintegrated.
Mgr Jan Jaworski, former chaplain to the Polish Community and frequent Southern Cross contributor, dies on October 8 at 88.
Cardinal Napier expresses concern over tension between ANC factions erupting into violence.
The first native Indian saint, Alphonsa Muttathupandathu, is canonised in the Vatican.
The Vatican announces three alternative Mass dismissal lines.
The parents of St Th�r�se of Lisieux, Louis and Marie Z�lie Martin, are beatified in Lisieux.
Four Salesians are stabbed and assaulted during a robbery at Bosco Youth Centre in Walkerville, near Johannesburg.
Sr Emmanuelle, the Belgian-born �ragpicker of Cairo� nun, dies in France on October 20, just before her 100th birthday.
The Capuchin-run Damietta Peace Initiative receives the 2008 peace award by the Interfaith Foundation of South Africa.
NOVEMBER
Pope Benedict will visit Cameroon and Angola in connection with the Synod of Bishops for Africa next year.
The World Union of Catholic Women�s Organisations meets for the first time in South Africa, at Hartebeespoort, Pretoria.
Bishops in the DR Congo are calling for international intervention as the civil war in the north-east of the country there heats up.
The Vatican issues guidelines on psychologically evaluations of candidates for admission to seminaries.
Pope Benedict appoints Bishop Mandla Paul Khumalo of Witbank to succeed retiring Archbishop George Daniel in Pretoria, and Fr Jos� Luis Ponce de Leon as bishop of Ingwavuma, KwaZulu-Natal.
Representatives from Islam and the Vatican meet in Rome and pledge future cooperation for peace.
South African parishes prepare for the responses at Mass, coming into effect on November 30.

DECEMBER 2008
According to new regulations, public funding for independent schools is conditional on these performing equal to or better than the provincial averages in state schools.
The Vatican states its opposition to the United Nations endorsing a universal declaration to decriminalise homosexuality because it fears such a declaration might create pressure to legislate for same sex marriages.
Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow, head of the Russian Orthodox Church, dies on December 5 at 79.
Some 188 Japanese martyrs from the 17th century are beatified in Nagasaki.
Archbishop Pius Ncube, an outspoken critic of Zimbabwe�s government who resigned as head of Bulawayo archdiocese, says that the Vatican has banned him from making political statements.
Cardinal Wilfrid Napier of Durban calls for the international isolation of Zimbabwe�s President Robert Mugabe.
A 32-page Vatican instruction, Dignitas personae, warns that some recent developments in gene therapy and embryonic stem-cell research violate moral principles.
In a pastoral letter, the bishops of Southern Africa condemn �the scourge� of human trafficking.
Durban Catholic Tatum Keshwar becomes Miss South Africa. In a January 2009 interview with The Southern Cross she talks about the importance of the faith in her life.
SABC 2 transmits the papal Christmas Mass live from the Vatican. The broadcast was arranged by the Social Communications Office of the SACBC.
On New Year�s Eve, Pope Benedict appoints Bishops Jan de Groef and Stanislaw Dziuba to the dioceses of Bethlehem and Umzimkulu respectively. Bishop Dziuba is installed on March 14, Bishop de Groef on March 28.