Church announces first black woman beatified in Brazil.
It is Francisca Paula de Jesus, known as Nhá Chica; the consecration mass was held at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of the Conception, where Nhá Chica's mortal remains are located, and was attended by Vatican authorities, the governor of Minas Gerais, Antonio Anastasia, and the Secretary-General of the Presidency of the Republic, Minister Gilberto Carvalho, who represented President Dilma; the beatification commission began its work in 1989.
From Agência Brasil
Brasilia – The Catholic Church announced today (4) the beatification of Francisca Paula de Jesus, known as Nhá Chica. She is the first black woman to be declared blessed in Brazil. The ceremony was held in Baependi, a municipality in Minas Gerais, 400 kilometers from Belo Horizonte. The consecration mass was celebrated at the Sanctuary of Our Lady of the Conception, where Nhá Chica's mortal remains are located, and was attended by Vatican authorities, the governor of Minas Gerais, Antonio Anastasia, and the Secretary-General of the Presidency of the Republic, Minister Gilberto Carvalho, who represented President Dilma. The decree of beatification was signed by Pope Benedict XVI in June 2012. In 2011, the Vatican approved the registration of a miracle attributed to the blessed woman.
The commission for the beatification of Nhá Chica began its work in 1989. In 1991, the Vatican gave her the title of Servant of God. The first recorded miracle was in 1995, by a teacher who claimed to have been cured of a congenital heart problem on the eve of surgery. In 2011, Pope Benedict XVI approved the nun's virtues and gave her the title of Venerable. The medical commission of the Vatican's Congregation for the Causes of Saints approved the miracle in October 2011, agreeing that there was no scientific explanation for the teacher's cure. The commission of cardinals also confirmed the miracle in 2012.
In a statement released yesterday (3), the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (CNBB) highlighted that the beatification of Nhá Chica has a very important meaning for the Church. Daughter and granddaughter of slaves, the blessed woman was illiterate and orphaned in childhood. Devoted to Our Lady of the Conception, she lived in poverty and simplicity, and dedicated her life to serving people, especially in the task of listening and advising. Her care for the poorest earned her the title of "Mother of the Poor".
Francisca de Paula de Jesus was born in the district of Santo Antônio do Rio das Mortes, in São João Del Rey (MG) and moved to Baependi as a young child with her mother, a former slave, and her brother Teotônio. In 1818, Nhá Chica, then ten years old, lost her mother, who also left behind her son Teotônio, who was 12 years old. Even in her youth, she was sought out for advice, prayers, and suggestions for people involved in business in the city.
According to the website dedicated to the beatification of Nhá Chica, www.nhachica.org.br, her reputation for holiness spread, and people began to visit Baependi to meet her, talk to her, and ask for her prayers. Nhá Chica died on June 14, 1895, at the age of 87.