The part of Brazil that fascinates me the most is the Northeast. Aside from the stunningly beautiful beaches, the graciously welcoming people and the music, the culture is steeped deeply in Brazil's past and makes for fascinating reading. Whether it's the Canudos War, the Literatura de Cordel, the story of Lampião and Maria Bonita or the way Luis Gonzaga's music gave pride to the region, Brazil's Northeast is a rich source of history and seemingly endless supply of captivating history.
Larry Rohter had an article in yesterday's New York Times about Padre Cicero , the town of Juazeiro do Norte and the support that still exists among the population for Padre Cicero more than seventy years after his death at 90. The Roman Catholic Church, which had long shied away from Padre Cicero is starting to embrace him:
While the Roman Catholic Church continued to be skittish about embracing Father Cicero and his legacy, others were not. For years, any politician running for national or state office has had to make a stop in Juazeiro do Norte; some candidates and elected officials even pay for the chartered buses and overcrowded trucks, known as "parrot perches," that bring pilgrims here.
One factor in the church's recent turnabout may be that the army of pilgrims is simply too powerful a spiritual force to ignore. When fundamentalist Protestant denominations are challenging the Roman Catholic Church's dominance all over Brazil, it makes more sense to view Father Cicero's devotees as allies, rather than fanatics or schismatics.
"Thanks to the pilgrims and their faith, the evangelical churches are not making many inroads here," Bishop Panico said. "Father Cicero is like an antivirus."
It's worth noting that the evangelical churches have made their greatest recruitment efforts among the poor, so this shift in thinking on Padre Cicero certainly seems to make sense.
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