Ghana Catholic Bishops institute annual Mass towards the beatification of Cardinal Peter Dery

The Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference (GCBC) has issued a pastoral directive to priests to celebrate Holy Mass on every year on the 7 Marchfor the cause of the beatification of the Servant of God, Cardinal Peter Porekuu Dery.

Mass for Cardinal Dery at St Gregory the Great Major Seminary, Parkoso

The directive issued by the President of the Conference, Bishop Matthew Kwasi Gyamfi, also urges the faithful to unite in prayer, “asking the Lord to grant the grace of his beatification.”

The cause for beatification

The process toward Cardinal Dery’s beatification began in June 2013, when the Church in Ghana announced plans to open the cause for the late cardinal during a memorial Mass held at the Tamale Jubilee Park.

Subsequently, a formal request was submitted to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints on 15 June 2013 to begin the process of examining his life and virtues.

The Vatican issued the “nihil obstat” (“nothing stands in the way”), on 13 July 2013, kickstarting the investigation. Accordingly, Cardinal Dery received the title “Servant of God,” the first official step in the path toward sainthood in the Catholic Church.

Diocesan Investigation

The Diocesan phase of the cause opened on 9 May 2015 in the Archdiocese of Tamale. The inquiry was tasked with collecting documentation about his life, ministry, and reputation for holiness, as well as testimonies from people who knew him.

By June 2016, investigators had interviewed 45 witnesses in several dioceses, including Tamale, Damongo, Yendi, Navrongo-Bolgatanga, and Wa.

This stage gathers evidence on whether the candidate lived a life of heroic virtue, which would allow the Church to declare him “Venerable.” If a miracle attributed to his intercession is later approved, he could then be beatified and given the title “Blessed.”

First indigenous Priest

Cardinal Dery born on 10 May 1918 at Zimuopare (Ko), near Nandom in the Upper West, was ordained into the Priesthood on 11 February 1951, becoming the first indigenous Priest from the Upper West Region.

On 3 November 1959, when the diocese of Wa was erected, he was appointed first Bishop on 16 March 1960 and received his episcopal ordination on 8 May 1960.

He was the first to introduce liturgical inculturation into his diocese and founded numerous schools and a minor seminary.

In 1972 he was appointed Apostolic Administrator of Tamale, and for two years carried out his duties in both dioceses until he was appointed Bishop on of Tamale on 18 November 1974. When Tamale was raised to an archdiocese, he was named the first Archbishop on 30 May 1977.

Cardinal Dery became Archbishop emeritus of Tamale, 26 March 1994. Created and proclaimed cardinal by Pope Benedict XVI in the consistory of 24 March 2006. Cardinal Peter Poreku Dery died on 6 March 2008, in Tamale, at the age of 89.

Gabriel Asempa Antwi - Accra
Source: vaticannews.va/en