Bishop Alex Lodiong Sakor Eyobo of South Sudan’s Catholic Diocese of Yei has announced plans to begin the beatification process of the late Sr. Veronica Rackova, the Slovak-born member of the Missionary Sisters Servants of the Holy Spirit (SSpS), who was killed in 2016 while serving in the country.
In a video message marking the 10th anniversary of Sr. Veronica’s death, Bishop Lodiong described her as “a martyr” who gave her life in service to the people of South Sudan.
“We know Sr. Veronica gave her life for the people of God in this place,” Bishop Lodiong said in the video recording published by the Diocese of Yei on Thursday, May 21.
The Slovak missionary died at Nairobi Hospital in Kenya on 20 May 2016, after being shot several times by armed soldiers in Yei, South Sudan.
“We believe Sr. Veronica is in the glory of God the Father,” Bishop Lodiong said, adding, “Because of that, as a Church, we want to make it official that it is recognized by all the faithful of the Diocese of Yei and, above all, by all Christians in the world.”
Bishop Lodiong said discussions on a possible cause for beatification had already taken place in Slovakia and involved the Apostolic Nuncio.
“It is why we are starting the process of beatification, which has already been discussed in Slovakia, even through the Nuncio,” he said.
Explaining the initial phase of the process, the South Sudanese Catholic Bishop said, “We begin with the popular faith of the people regarding the individual.”
“The popular faith we have here is that Sr. Veronica is a saint, and she is a martyr for that matter because she was killed,” Bishop Lodiong said, and continued, “We shall gather all of these testimonies as acts of Sr. Veronica in our Diocese through our own Nuncio, the Nuncio of her home country, and the diocese where she comes from.”
While acknowledging the demands involved in the canonization process, the Local Ordinary of Yei Diocese since his Episcopal Consecration in May 2022 expressed commitment to proceed.
“Everything will be gathered and presented to the Holy See for the process to officially begin. It is a little bit difficult, meaning it is demanding, but we will start it,” he said.
According to a 25 May 2016 report, Sr. Veronica had “served in various capacities as SSpS community leader, medical doctor, and Director of St. Bakhita Health Center, Yei.”
In the report, SSpS members are quoted as saying that “Sr. Veronika was a committed, generous, and joyful missionary,” and that her death “is an irreparable loss for us, for her family, and for the people she served, especially in Yei.”
SSpS members also expressed hope that the missionary’s “self-giving” would “herald a new beginning for peace and reconciliation in South Sudan.”
A specialist in tropical diseases, Sr. Veronica was returning to her convent after taking a patient to Harvest Hospital in Yei when the ambulance she was driving for St. Bakhita Health Center came under attack during the night of 15 May 2016. She suffered gunshot wounds to the hip and abdomen and later died in Nairobi at the age of 58.
Nicholas Waigwa, Yei, 22 May, 2026
