Zimbabwean bishops reportedly approve beatification cause of lay missionary
FREE Catholic Classes
The bishops' conference of Zimbabwe approved Wednesday the opening of the cause for canonization of John Bradburne, a lay missionary to the area in the 1970s, according to a report.

Highlights
Catholic Online (https://www.catholic.org)
5/2/2019 (6 years ago)
Published in Asia Pacific
Keywords: Zimbabwean bishops, reportedly approve, lay missionary
Harare, Zimbabwe, (CNA) - Independent Catholic News reported May 1 that the bishops had given their approval unanimously, and that the cause will be launched Sept. 5.
Bradburne was born in 1921 in England, the son of an Anglican clergyman. He served in the British army in World War II, and he converted to Catholicism in 1947 after staying with the Benedictines of Buckfast Abbey.
He wished to become a monk at Buckfast, but had not been long enough in the Church, and he became a wanderer throughout Europe and the Middle East. He was a prolific poet. He stayed at other Benedictine abbeys, with Carthusians, the Congregation of Our Lady of Sion, tried living as a hermit on Dartmoor in England, and became a Third Order Franciscan in 1956.
Through a Jesuit friend in the British colony of Southern Rhodesia (present-day Zimbabwe), Bradburne came to serve at the Mutemwa Leper Settlement, spending the last 10 years of his life there.
Southern Rhodesia declared independence in 1965, and the Rhodesian Bush War was fought from 1964 to 1979 among the white minority government, the Marxist Zimbabwe People's Revolutionary Army, and the Zimbabwe African National Union (ZANU).
As ZANU forces approached Mutemwa, Bradburne was urged to leave, but he insisted on remaining. He was kidnapped, and murdered Sept. 5, 1979.
He had confided in a Franciscan priest that his wishes were to serve leprosy patients, to die a martyr, and to be buried in the habit of St. Francis.
According to Independent Catholic News, two people have claimed miraculous cures through Bradburne's intercession: a woman in South African who regained the use of her legs, and a man in Scotland cured of a brain tumor.
The Jonn Bradburne Memorial Society is supporting the an investigation into his life and viritues. It wishes to raise GBP 20,000 ($26,600) for the investigation. The group was led by Bradburne's niece, Celia Brigstocke, until her death in August 2018. Brigstocke's eldest daughter, Kate Macpherson, now leads the efforts.
---
'Help Give every Student and Teacher FREE resources for a world-class Moral Catholic Education'
Copyright 2021 - Distributed by Catholic Online
Join the Movement
When you sign up below, you don't just join an email list - you're joining an entire movement for Free world class Catholic education.
-
- Easter / Lent
- Ascension Day
- 7 Morning Prayers
- Mysteries of the Rosary
- Litany of the Bl. Virgin Mary
- Popular Saints
- Popular Prayers
- Female Saints
- Saint Feast Days by Month
- Stations of the Cross
- St. Francis of Assisi
- St. Michael the Archangel
- The Apostles' Creed
- Unfailing Prayer to St. Anthony
- Pray the Rosary

‘Do not yield to the temptation to think that evil can prevail’

Catholic Faithful Join Nine‑Day Novena for Peace Amid Gaza’s Deepening Humanitarian Crisis

Tennessee Priest Pleads Guilty to Sex Crimes, Will Serve Seven Years in Prison
Daily Catholic
Daily Readings for Wednesday, July 16, 2025
St. Carmen: Saint of the Day for Wednesday, July 16, 2025
A Parent's Prayer for Their Children: Prayer of the Day for Wednesday, July 16, 2025
Daily Readings for Tuesday, July 15, 2025
St. Bonaventure: Saint of the Day for Tuesday, July 15, 2025
- Act of Charity: Prayer of the Day for Tuesday, July 15, 2025
Copyright 2025 Catholic Online. All materials contained on this site, whether written, audible or visual are the exclusive property of Catholic Online and are protected under U.S. and International copyright laws, © Copyright 2025 Catholic Online. Any unauthorized use, without prior written consent of Catholic Online is strictly forbidden and prohibited.
Catholic Online is a Project of Your Catholic Voice Foundation, a Not-for-Profit Corporation. Your Catholic Voice Foundation has been granted a recognition of tax exemption under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Federal Tax Identification Number: 81-0596847. Your gift is tax-deductible as allowed by law.