Owen McCann
Encyclopedia
Owen McCann was a South Africa
n cardinal
of the Roman Catholic Church
. Archbishop of Cape Town
from 1951 to 1984, he was elevated to the cardinalate
in 1965.
, and studied at Saint Joseph College in Rodenbosch, University of Cape Town
, and Pontifical Urbaniana University
in Rome
. He was ordained
to the priesthood
on December 21, 1935. In 1941, he became editor
of The Southern Cross, South Africa's national Catholic
newspaper
, and held this post until 1948; he again became editor in 1986, this time for a five-year period. He did pastoral
work in Cape Town from 1948 to 1950.
On March 12, 1950, McCann was appointed Apostolic Vicar
of Cape Town
and Titular Bishop
of Stectorium. He received his episcopal consecration
on the following May 18 from Archbishop Martin Lucas, SVD
, nuncio
to South Africa. Upon Cape Town's elevation to a diocese
on January 11, 1951, McCann was appointed Archbishop of Cape Town
, the first of metropolitan
rank. Between 1961 and 1974, he served as President of the Southern African Catholic Bishops Conference
(SACBC). McCann attended the Second Vatican Council
, at which he was elected to the Commission for Bishops and made four written and four oral submissions in his own name and five written ones as president of the SACBC.
McCann was created Cardinal Priest
of Santa Prassede
by Pope Paul VI
in the consistory
of February 22, 1965, becoming the first South African to receive the red hat. He was one of the cardinal electors who participated in the August 1978 papal conclave, which selected Pope John Paul I
, and the October 1978 papal conclave, which selected Pope John Paul II
. McCann was reportedly a supporter of Giovanni Benelli at the latter conclave, but still gave his praise to the newly-elected Wojtyla. Cardinal McCann retired as Archbishop of Cape Town on October 20, 1984.
He died on March 26, 1994, at age 86, and is buried in the archdiocesan cathedral
. President Nelson Mandela
, in an official condolence statement on the following March 28, described Cardinal McCann as "one of South Africa's great sons" and "a man of great ability and wisdom".
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
n cardinal
Cardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
of the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
. Archbishop of Cape Town
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Town
The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Cape Town is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in South Africa...
from 1951 to 1984, he was elevated to the cardinalate
Cardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
in 1965.
Biography
McCann was born in Woodstock in Cape of Good HopeCape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...
, and studied at Saint Joseph College in Rodenbosch, University of Cape Town
University of Cape Town
The University of Cape Town is a public research university located in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. UCT was founded in 1829 as the South African College, and is the oldest university in South Africa and the second oldest extant university in Africa.-History:The roots of...
, and Pontifical Urbaniana University
Pontifical Urbaniana University
The Pontifical Urbaniana University or Pontifical Urban University is a pontifical university under the authority of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples.-History:...
in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
. He was ordained
Holy Orders
The term Holy Orders is used by many Christian churches to refer to ordination or to those individuals ordained for a special role or ministry....
to the priesthood
Priesthood (Catholic Church)
The ministerial orders of the Catholic Church include the orders of bishops, deacons and presbyters, which in Latin is sacerdos. The ordained priesthood and common priesthood are different in function and essence....
on December 21, 1935. In 1941, he became editor
Editing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
of The Southern Cross, South Africa's national Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
, and held this post until 1948; he again became editor in 1986, this time for a five-year period. He did pastoral
Parish (Catholic Church)
In the Roman Catholic Church, a parish is the lowest ecclesiastical geographical subdivision: from ecclesiastical province to diocese to deanery to parish.-Requirements:A parish needs two things under common law to become a parish...
work in Cape Town from 1948 to 1950.
On March 12, 1950, McCann was appointed Apostolic Vicar
Apostolic vicariate
An apostolic vicariate is a form of territorial jurisdiction of the Roman Catholic Church established in missionary regions and countries that do not have a diocese. It is essentially provisional, though it may last for a century or more...
of Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
and Titular Bishop
Titular bishop
A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese.By definition a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop the tradition of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches is that he be ordained for a specific place...
of Stectorium. He received his episcopal consecration
Bishop (Catholic Church)
In the Catholic Church, a bishop is an ordained minister who holds the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Orders and is responsible for teaching the Catholic faith and ruling the Church....
on the following May 18 from Archbishop Martin Lucas, SVD
Divine Word Missionaries
The Society of the Divine Word , popularly called the Divine Word Missionaries, and sometimes the Steyler Missionaries, is a missionary religious congregation in the Latin Church, one of the 23 sui iuris churches which make up the Catholic Church. As of 2006 it consisted of 6,102 members composed...
, nuncio
Nuncio
Nuncio is an ecclesiastical diplomatic title, derived from the ancient Latin word, Nuntius, meaning "envoy." This article addresses this title as well as derived similar titles, all within the structure of the Roman Catholic Church...
to South Africa. Upon Cape Town's elevation to a diocese
Diocese
A diocese is the district or see under the supervision of a bishop. It is divided into parishes.An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese. An archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or had importance due to size or historical significance...
on January 11, 1951, McCann was appointed Archbishop of Cape Town
Archdiocese of Cape Town
Archdiocese of Cape Town may refer to:*Anglican Diocese of Cape Town*Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cape Town...
, the first of metropolitan
Metropolitan bishop
In Christian churches with episcopal polity, the rank of metropolitan bishop, or simply metropolitan, pertains to the diocesan bishop or archbishop of a metropolis; that is, the chief city of a historical Roman province, ecclesiastical province, or regional capital.Before the establishment of...
rank. Between 1961 and 1974, he served as President of the Southern African Catholic Bishops Conference
Southern African Catholic Bishops Conference
The Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference is an episcopal conference consisting of all the bishops of the Roman Catholic Church in South Africa, Botswana, and Swaziland, and their equivalents under canon law...
(SACBC). McCann attended the Second Vatican Council
Second Vatican Council
The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...
, at which he was elected to the Commission for Bishops and made four written and four oral submissions in his own name and five written ones as president of the SACBC.
McCann was created Cardinal Priest
Cardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
of Santa Prassede
Santa Prassede
The Basilica of Saint Praxedes , commonly known in Italian as Santa Prassede, is an ancient titular church and minor basilica in Rome, Italy, located near the papal basilica of Saint Mary Major...
by Pope Paul VI
Pope Paul VI
Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...
in the consistory
Consistory
-Antiquity:Originally, the Latin word consistorium meant simply 'sitting together', just as the Greek synedrion ....
of February 22, 1965, becoming the first South African to receive the red hat. He was one of the cardinal electors who participated in the August 1978 papal conclave, which selected Pope John Paul I
Pope John Paul I
John Paul I , born Albino Luciani, , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and as Sovereign of Vatican City from 26 August 1978 until his death 33 days later. His reign is among the shortest in papal history, resulting in the most recent Year of Three Popes...
, and the October 1978 papal conclave, which selected Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
. McCann was reportedly a supporter of Giovanni Benelli at the latter conclave, but still gave his praise to the newly-elected Wojtyla. Cardinal McCann retired as Archbishop of Cape Town on October 20, 1984.
He died on March 26, 1994, at age 86, and is buried in the archdiocesan cathedral
Cathedral
A cathedral is a Christian church that contains the seat of a bishop...
. President Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing...
, in an official condolence statement on the following March 28, described Cardinal McCann as "one of South Africa's great sons" and "a man of great ability and wisdom".