David Beetge was Bishop of the Highveld,

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

, and Dean of the Province of the

Anglican Church of Southern Africa The Anglican Church of Southern Africa, known until 2006 as the Church of the Province of Southern Africa, is the province (Anglican), province of the Anglican Communion in the southern part of Africa. The church has twenty-five dioceses, of whi ...

—the most senior bishop next to the Archbishop of Cape Town. Born at

Witbank Witbank (), officially Emalahleni, is a city situated on the Highveld of Mpumalanga, South Africa, within the Emalahleni Local Municipality. The name Witbank is Afrikaans for "white ridge", and is named after a white sandstone outcrop where wago ...

in October 1948, he died in

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...

on 27 September 2008.

Early career

Beetge began a career in the commercial world, becoming, in his late 20s, company secretary of ICI (a computer consultancy) in South Africa. He had qualified through the Chartered Institute of Secretaries and Administrators. He commenced theological training at St Paul’s Theological College in

Grahamstown Makhanda, also known as Grahamstown, is a town of about 140,000 people in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is situated about northeast of Port Elizabeth and southwest of East London, Eastern Cape, East London. Makhanda is the lar ...

, subsequently earning bachelor and honour degrees in theology at the

University of South Africa The University of South Africa (UNISA), known colloquially as Unisa, is the largest university system in South Africa by enrollment. It attracts a third of all higher education students in South Africa. Through various colleges and affiliates, U ...

. He obtained a master's degree in theology from the

University of Natal The University of Natal was a university in the former South African province Natal which later became KwaZulu-Natal. The University of Natal no longer exists as a distinct legal entity, as it was incorporated into the University of KwaZulu-N ...

Ordained ministry

Beetge was ordained as a priest in 1981. He served in various churches before being made vicar general, and later bishop, of the new Diocese of South Eastern Transvaal in 1990, which from 1998 became known as the

Diocese of the Highveld The Diocese of the Highveld (formerly the Diocese of South Eastern Transvaal) is a diocese of the Anglican Church of Southern Africa covering the East Rand in Gauteng province and the southern part of Mpumalanga province in South Africa. The bis ...

. Beetge served the worldwide

Anglican Communion The Anglican Communion is the third largest Christian communion after the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. Founded in 1867 in London, the communion has more than 85 million members within the Church of England and other ...

with distinction as co-chairman of the International Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission on Unity and Mission (IARCCUM). Archbishop

Thabo Makgoba Thabo Cecil Makgoba KStJ (born 15 December 1960 in Alexandra, Johannesburg) is the South African Anglican archbishop of Cape Town. He had served before as bishop of Grahamstown. Biography Makgoba graduated from Orlando High, Soweto, and ...

characterised him as "an outstanding and exemplary leader” of the church. In England he was remembered as an advocate of Christian unity and a champion of the poor and those living with HIV/AIDS. The then Archbishop of Canterbury,

Rowan Williams Rowan Douglas Williams, Baron Williams of Oystermouth, (born 14 June 1950) is a Welsh Anglican bishop, theologian and poet. He was the 104th Archbishop of Canterbury, a position he held from December 2002 to December 2012. Previously the Bish ...

, said following Beetge’s death that "The Anglican church worldwide adlost an exceptional man, warm, intelligent, utterly dedicated, imaginative and that many had 'lost a deeply valued friend'."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beetge, David 1948 births 2008 deaths Anglican bishops of the Highveld