Today I want to share the story of a Blessed that I just heard of for the first time very recently. He was beatified in 2015, so he is a recent addition to the canon of Blesseds.
Benedict Daswa was born as Tshimangadzo Samuel Daswa in 1946. He was born in South Africa as a member of the Lemba people, who followed Jewish rituals and laws. He worked as a herd boy before he attended school. After his father's accidental death, it fell to him to provide for his family and pay for his siblings schooling.
Daswa was exposed to Roman Catholicism through a friend he met while living with an uncle in Johannesburg. After two years of instruction, he was baptized on April 21, 1963. He took the name Benedict because he was inspired by St. Benedict of Nursia.
Daswa became very active in the church, serving as a teacher and catechist. He worked with adolescents and families. He helped to build the first church in his area and later became the principal of the school. He married in 1974. He and his wife had eight children. He valued his family and assisted his wife with household chores, which was unheard of in that area at that time.
In November 1989, heavy rains and lightening strikes plagued the area. Hi village suffered strong storms again a couple of months later and the elders decided that the lighting occurred due to magic. They demanded a tax from all of the residents to pay for a sangoma to "sniff out" the witch who caused the storms. Daswa declined to pay the tax, saying that the storms were just a natural phenomenon. On February 2, 1990, while driving someone to the next village, he found his way blocked by a downed tree. As he attempted to clear the road he was ambushed by a mob of young men. He was stoned, beaten and clubbed over the head. Boiling water was poured over him in his ears and nostrils after he was attacked to ensure that he was dead.
Benedict Daswa's feast day is February1. He is patron against the occult, against witchcraft and for persecuted Christians.
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