A handful of land from the Amazon and a sweater belonging to the American nun, murdered in Brazil in 2005, will be presented - Msgr. Fabio Fabene, secretary of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, will preside.
On Friday, Jan. 10, the basilica of St. Bartholomew's on the Island, designated by St. John Paul II as the memorial of the "New Martyrs," will receive two precious mementos of Sister Dorothy Stang, a religious of the congregation of Notre Dame of Namur, who was murdered in 2005 in Anapu, Pará, Brazil: a handful of soil from the place of her murder and a shirt worn by the American nun, who was recently named in the Synod for the Amazon.
In Brazil since 1966, Irmã Dorote, as she was known, had promoted the construction of schools, founded a farmers' union and taught indigenous people sustainable farming techniques, emphasizing the importance of fighting for their rights. Her work in defense of the poor and her courageous efforts against deforestation led Sister Dorothy to challenge unscrupulous landowners and businesses seeking to open new plantations for intensive agriculture and the timber trade. Threatened several times, she declared, “I don’t want to flee, nor do I want to abandon the battle of these farmers who live without any protection in the forest. They have the sacrosanct right to aspire to a better life on land where they can live and work with dignity while respecting the environment.” On February 12, 2005, Sister Dorothy was murdered with six gunshots.
The vigil, which will be presided over by Msgr. Fabio Fabene, secretary of the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, will be attended by many of Sister Dorothy's family members, as well as Sister Mary Johnson, the Congregational Leader of the Sisters of Our Lady of Namur along with other sisters, Msgr. Marco Gnavi, secretary of the Commission of New Martyrs established by Pope Francis for the Jubilee of 2025, and many young people from the Community of Sant'Egidio, who hold a prayer in the basilica every evening.
More information at www.sanbartolomeo.org
At the link below is the flyer for the symposium dedicated to Sister Dorothy Stang, which will be held at the Pontifical Gregorian University
