The Murder of Fr Louis Blondel in Diepsloot

Monday, 07 December 2009

Father Louis Blondel was shot dead in his presbytery in Diepsloot during the night 6th/7th December 2009. Four people had allegedly broken into Presbytery. Father Louis, 70, was member of the Missionaries of Africa, a french society of Catholic missionaries dedicated to serving the people of Africa.

Three of the intruders were boys who got in through a window, which they had forced open, while an older man waited outside. Father Guido Bourgeois, who lived in the house with Father Louis was the first to wake up. He was robbed of 50 rand and his cellular phone. The intruders then went to Father Louis' bedroom and shot him when he opened his bedroom door. Father Guido ran into the kitchen and managed to block the door with the fridge. He started screaming to wake the neighbours. Some neighbours came out but were forced back inside as there was more shooting.

After the intruders fled, Father Guido came out and discovered Father Louis Blondel lying dead in his room. The police arrived quickly as did Father Sean O'Leary, the superior of the Missionaries of Africa in South Africa.

Louis Blondel was born in the north of France. He spent the early years of his missionary life in Tanzania. In 1987 he moved to South Africa and began to work in the Archdiocese of Johannesburg. He took up residence in Zondi Parish in Soweto. He also taught Philosophy at St Peter’s Seminary, Hammanskraal. Six years later he took a keen interest in the development of the Orange Farm area. In this he was a true pioneer. He found the first plot, built a community house, a church and a trade school. Over the years he built another eight outstations. Along with the buildings was the establishment of vibrant communities that have expanded over the years. In 2008 ago he moved to Diepsloot in the Archdiocese of Pretoria where had he built a church and community house.

According to Father Sean O'Leary, Father Louis Blondel had big plans for the area. "Alas, these plans were not to be" he said. "Louis returns to his maker as a true pioneering missionary who dedicated all his life to the poorest of the poor. He remains one of our unsung heroes."

Father Louis Blondel is the fourth Catholic priest to be murdered in South Africa this year.

The funerals will be on Saturday at 11am in Diepsloot.

We ask for your prayers for Father Louis, his family and confreres and the many communities whose life he touched.


Please excuse me if I use the word savage to describe the people who did this to Fr Blondel.

If you recall, during the so called apartheid years, the Catholic church protected savages like these. They stood up for the ANC and any other terrorist organisation and the terrible deeds, like the murdering of innocent women and children for the sake of peace.

Diepsloot is made up of a mixture of Zimbabwean and South African rebels. The Zimbabweans called it Xenophobia when they are killed in a foreign country. What do we call it when they, in turn, murder our priests.

The death penalty is too lenient for savages such as these. however, God help them when they reach the great white thrown and have to answer for this dastardly deed My heart goes out to this unfortunate man and his family.

How do the rest of the world see these murders. The majority of the religious people in South Africa, as throughout the world, are Roman Catholic. How do we propose to provide protection during the 2010 World cup to the innocent and helpless.

Catholic priests are the lowest paid people throughout the world. They receive a stipend of no more than R350-00 per month. They work long hours for no satisfaction. They protect the innocent as well as the guilty. They keep the "Seal of the Confession". This means even if you commit murder and you confess to a priest, he cannot reveal it to the authorities. He is prepared to be jailed for his beliefs.

How does the ANC answer to this deed. This church protected them by even hiding arms caches for them. They went through trials and tribulations, with the SAPS, for the ANC. AND this is how they get paid back.

I am Roman Catholic. I know the faults of my church. I know the history of my church. I get angry when this happens.

This is the fourth Catholic Priest Murdered this year. Why is the government so silent on these murders. I belong to the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference. This is how I find out about such dastardly deeds.

Its a shame our government has to be so devious that they cannot tell us the truth.