Year of Pilgrims of Hope Marks a Decade Since Blessed Benedict Daswa’s Beatification

Kati Dijane and Bishop João Rodrigues of Tzaneen Diocese
By Kati Dijane – The road to sainthood can be long and intense or a smooth sail, depending on a number of factors, one of them being the request by Rome for a favour granted through the intercession of a person being promoted. Information on the favour received would then be sent to Rome where it would investigated by the Pope before being declared a miracle.
With this in mind, and in honouring the 10-year anniversary of the beatification of Blessed Tshimangadzo Samuel Benedict Daswa, the Far East Rand Catholic News recently took a five-hour long drive from the Archdiocese of Johannesburg to Tzaneen Diocese in Limpopo to meet and chat with the local driving forces behind Blessed Daswa’s journey to becoming a saint. These included His Lordship, João Noé Rodrigues, the bishop of Tzaneen, and Father John Kennedy SVD, the chaplain for the Blessed Daswa pilgrims. We also had a telephone conversation with Sister Tshifhiwa Munzhedzi OP, the promoter of the cause for the canonisation of Blessed Daswa.
A conversation with the Bishop
Having hit the ground running on being one of the drivers of the cause for the beatification of Blessed Daswa upon his appointment as the shepherd of the diocese in 2010, Bishop Rodrigues says he had to learn more about the man whose application for the cause had been sent to the Vatican. The confirmation and declaration of Blessed Daswa’s martyrdom from the pontiff gave way to the historic event on 13 September 2015 that drew thousands of witnesses, as well as local and worldwide media attention to the humble diocese. Over the years, people took an interest in knowing more about Blessed Daswa, which resulted in the need for the bishop to appoint a promoter for the cause.
Central to the devotion of Catholics, says Bishop Rodrigues, are relics, which are parts of a deceased holy person’s body or belongings kept as an object of reverence. The centuries-old Catholic tradition felt like something new to many locals, who celebrated the first official feast day of Blessed Daswa on 1 February 2016 when his relics were exposed in the diocese. Among the number of favours granted through his intercession on that day, one that stood out to the bishop and his team was that of the healing of a pilgrim. “That was another indication of how important the relic is to the devotion and intercessory ministry of the person who is declared blessed or a saint,” he said, emphasising that people had to be catechised about the relic as a form of remembrance to the person instead of it being mistaken for witchcraft, something Blessed Daswa vehemently opposed and ultimately paid the price for with his life.
The favour in Rome’s office
The Cape Town-born bishop said his team had been hard at work interviewing people and gathering evidence for the particular favour they sent to Rome to be investigated. They did this well into the unfavourable conditions Covid-19 brought at that time. During the interview, Bishop Rodrigues added that he also followed up with the cardinal prefect of the Dicastery for the Causes of the Saints, Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, during his visit to Rome to meet with Pope Francis two years ago. Cardinal Semeraro said that they were now in the process of preparing for the consulta médica [medical consultation], where they are investigating the health-related favour.
The added benefit to Blessed Daswa’s road to sainthood, says the bishop, is that Cardinal Stephen Brislin, the recently installed Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Johannesburg, is also a member of this particular dicastery, which could help the local team move things forward.

Bishop João Rodrigues of Tzaneen holds up the decree of beatification of Bl Daswa in 2015. The tomb of Bl Benedict Tshimangadzo Daswa in the church of the Assumption in Nweli, near Thohoyandou. (inset)Sr Tshifhiwa Munzhedzi, the promoter of the canonisation cause of Bl Daswa.
Spreading the devotion
The bishop added that while there are efforts to have Southern Africa’s first saint, the important part of this journey is to spread and grow devotion to God through Blessed Daswa’s intercession. Even some schools have also recognised and taken inspiration from Blessed Daswa’s role in the teaching profession and pay homage to him, the bishop said.
Bishop Rodrigues highlights Blessed Daswa as a symbolic golden thread that binds the youth and teachers, as the former teacher loved and cared for the youth and dedicated his profession to empowering them. Young people in the region, through their pilgrimages, have shown devotion to Blessed Daswa, which the bishop alludes is encouraging to see. “The title of patron of teachers links with young people, which is a great value. Without teachers, we are lost, as we need education,” he says, adding that the goal should also spread the devotion of Blessed Daswa to young people.
Another positive part the bishop sees when it comes to this cause is the men being inspired by Blessed Daswa to be active and cooperative in many parishes, a movement he hopes to see grow.
A growing Catholic community
Bishop Rodrigues mentioned that Tzaneen is one of the last dioceses in South Africa to be evangelised. Many of the community members, like Blessed Daswa, who was a Lemba – a tribe with Jewish ancestry, are first-generation Catholics. From this point of view, the bishop adds that he is encouraged by the growing response of the Catholics in the diocese, who are embracing the faith. “It’s great to see that the church in Southern Africa is alive, and to have a martyr and saint in this region confirms the power of God’s grace.”
A conversation with Father John Kennedy and Sister Tshifhiwa Munzhedzi
Father Kennedy says that as a chaplain, he meets the spiritual needs of the pilgrims who come to the Daswa shrine in Nweli, near Ṱhohoyanḓou. He is also the vice-postulator, appointed by the bishop in 2023. “My role as a vice-postulator entails interviewing people who claim to receive favours and miracles from the intercession of Blessed Benedict Daswa, which I record and send to Rome for further investigation. In other words, I am the mediator between the diocese and Rome. So, if there is any development with regard to the canonisation, they let me and the bishop know.”
Since 2019, the priest has been working behind the scenes as part of the team that promotes devotion to Blessed Daswa and follows up with Rome on his canonisation.
About the update on the progress of the canonisation, he says there has been a snail’s pace in terms of communication from the Roman postulator who is our link with the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, but there is hope that the matter is being attended to.
Promoting a worthy cause
Meanwhile, Sister Tshifhiwa, who has served in her role since July 2017, says her job is to make Blessed Benedict Daswa known among the Catholic community and promote devotion to him, as Southern Africa’s first martyr and soon-to-be saint.
“Since 2017, when I started in my office, I must say the number of pilgrims coming to celebrate the feast day of Blessed Benedict Daswa on 1 February in our diocese has grown. Although Covid-19 and the resultant lockdown interfered, the number of pilgrims has been growing over the last few years. Last year, we also had a priest from Zambia who came to visit Daswa’s shrine, as they are planning to build a church and name it after him to spread devotion to him in his country of Zambia, where he works,” she said.
The chaplain and sister averred that there have been a number of favours they heard of and received from the faithful across the Southern African region. However, one that has been sent to Rome in May 2021 for further investigation is health-related, as the bishop mentioned earlier. Since then, Rome has requested and received more information regarding this favour and Southern Africa is now waiting in anticipation and prayer for feedback from the dicastery.
“Language is another contributing factor in the delay, as we communicate and send all the required documents in English, which then have to be translated to Italian when they reach Rome,” the team explained.
Although a decade might seem long, the priest and sister say there is progress. “All we can do is wait,” they say, adding, “The Holy Spirit is at work and things will happen according to God’s will.”
Witnessing a man of God
Meanwhile, Sister Tshifhiwa mentions that she and Blessed Daswa “Were not from the same community, but belonged to the same parish of Sibasa. She attended youth workshops in the parish around the time Blessed Daswa was active in the parish.” However, she still says she does not know him personally.
A miracle of a shrine?
The bishop says although the spread of Blessed Daswa’s devotion is encouraging, the lack of financial resources has impeded the development of a bigger shrine in honour of Daswa in the diocese. Help from outside the diocese is needed as well to see this vision materialise. But hope is on the horizon. Also, since the dynamics of land ownership in Tshiṱanini are quite difficult, Father Kennedy says this makes it hard even for the local church to have a title deed in the area. “Building a shrine on a land we don’t own is a major challenge, as things could go south in the future. Also, getting financial assistance from potential sponsors had proven difficult without official land ownership.
Southern Africa’s blessed, ten years later
While 2 February marks 35 years since Blessed Daswa’s gruesome martyrdom, 13 September will mark 10 years since his beatification. It’s a moment worth honouring, and for those who can make it to the Diocese of Tzaneen, Sister Tshifhiwa is inviting pilgrims of hope to the Sibasa parish and Our Lady of Assumption Catholic Church, in Ṅweli, which Daswa helped build, for a big celebration. “We are lucky that the 13th of September, the exact day of his beatification anniversary, will be on a Saturday, so we are hoping people will come in numbers!”
For more information regarding the devotion of and pilgrimage to Blessed Daswa’s shrine, please email:
Father Kennedy at
Sister Tshifhiwa at (Cell: 076 570 8843 and WhatsApp)
To donate to help towards this course, please deposit to the following account
PLEASE INCLUDE THE ACCOUNT NUMBER
- Promotion Account
NAME: Diocese of Tzaneen – Benedict Daswa
BANK: Standard Bank
Current Account No.: 330 911 538
BRANCH: Tzaneen
BRANCH CODE: 052-749
SWIFT CODE: SBZAZAJJ
- Development Account
NAME: Diocese of Tzaneen –Project A
BANK: Standard Bank
Current Account No.: 330 906 313
BRANCH: Tzaneen
BRANCH CODE: 052-749
SWIFT CODE: SBZAZAJJ
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