Priest Cícero Romão Batista was born in the city of Crato, South
area of the State of Ceará, on March 24, 1.844. Filho of Joaquim Romão Batista and
Joaquina Roman Vicência, affectionately called Quinô.PRIEST CÍCERO ROMÃO BATISTA
Priest Cícero Romão Batista was born in the city of Crato, South
area of the State of Ceará, on March 24, 1.844. Filho of Joaquim Romão Batista and
Joaquina Roman Vicência, affectionately called Quinô.
Early the boy Cícero demonstrated interest for the priestly life, because it was always seen at the church, for now helping the vicar in its tasks, for now reading the saints' histories, being inspired by the life of San Francisco of resolved Sales to stay in permamente chastity, as it is written in its testament.
To the 16 years of age he/she enrolled in the renowned Priest's Rolim school, in Cajazeiras, Paraíba, in 1.860, where it was less than two years, because, with the father's unexpected death, victim of cholera, in 1.862, had to interrupt the studies and to return home, in order to take care of the family - the mother and two sisters. The financial crisis due to the father's death, overturned the whole ones and only to the 21 years of age, with its confirmation godfather's help, Colonel Antônio Luiz Small Alves, Cícero entered in the Seminar of Fortaleza, in 1.865. Five years later priest was ordered. In January of 1.871 Crato came back, where it was awaiting nomination to render service in some parish. In December 24 of the same year, assisting to invitation of the Teacher Semeão Correia of Macêdo, it celebrated for the first time at the town of Juazeiro, where it stayed three days in contact with the people, having decided later few months to fasten residence there, in chaplain's function. So soon it arrived it was about improving the chapel demanded in 1.827 by the first chaplain, Priest Pedro Ribeiro of Carvalho, acquiring several images with the fruit of the alms of the devote ones.
It was the beginning of a work that, years then, it perpetuated the meek and kind, austere when necessary, merciful priest's memory and worker that it would come to be cognominated of PATRIARCH OF THE NORTHEAST.
In that time, under the commercial point of view, the town of Juazeiro offered little thing to its inhabitants. There was not market economy properly dictates. It reigned the poverty and the marginalidade it blunted as natural consequence. The hope of a change in that picture was represented by the priest's presence.
Thus, the young priest was about reestablishing the order and the good habits of the atmosphere, conquering the inhabitants' sympathy quickly, becoming the community's authentic leader. Juazeiro tried, then, the first growth steps, attracting people of the neighborhood, curious for knowing the chaplain that had come from Crato.
At the beginning, priest Cícero enjoyed the esteem and the new bishop's from Ceará trust, talent Joaquim José Vieira, as well as of the previous bishop, talent Luís Antônio from Santos, for who priest Cícero was an angel.
It consists that in August of 1.884, when of pastoral visit to Crato, talent Joaquim insisted on ennobling priest Cícero's work. Of passage for the town of Juazeiro, to consecrate the chapel of Our Lady of the Pains, begun by Priest Cícero, in 1.875, he left written the following there: " The chapel begun by priest Cícero Romão Batista, intelligent, modest and virtuous priest, is a monument that attests the power of the faith of the Roman Catholic Church eloquently, because it is admirable that a poor priest can have built a vast and architectural temple in abnormal times which those that it crosses this diocese by the drought, hunger and plague ". Later on it increased: Priest Cícero's virtue fills all it is worth it of Cariri ".
The bishop, even so, it didn't sustain that opinion for a long time, because something of very serious happened to martyr the " intelligent, modest and virtuous " priest's life, being talent Joaquim the central illustration of that martyrdom.
Everything began on March 6, 1.889.
When participating in a general communion, oficiada for priest Cícero, Araújo's devout Maria could not gobble the consecrated Host because this he/she became a red substance, hematóide.
Such phenomenon repeated several times in the public's presence, being later also testified by other priests and doctors, the ones which, besides, they got to emit certificate, concluding to be subrenatural for which was not possible to find scientific explanation in fact.
During some time the phenomenon stayed in secret, until being proclaimed as miracle, in July seven of the same year, for monsignor's Francisco Monteiro initiative, Rector of the Seminar of Crato, which organized a pilgrimage of about three thousand people that left Crato for Juazeiro, in order to observe the transformation of the Host in blood.
Starting from there, Juazeiro turned pilgrimage center - the embryo of the grandiose pilgrimages today; and the peacefulness of priest Cícero's priestly life is broken, on who pulls down a campaign of envy, of intrigues and persecutions.
As it was of waiting, the fact finished arriving to the knowledge of the bishop talent Joaquim, that wrote to priest Cícero, asking a complete report of the happened. Actually, he arrived to reprehend priest Cícero, with firmness, for not having been informed immediately of the " extraordinary " facts happened in Juazeiro, and it considered its negligence as being a break of the clerical vote of obedience. But, it didn't get to be hostile, insisting on standing out that trusted priest Cícero's honesty and he/she judged it unable of any hoax.
Priest Cícero assists to the talent solicitation Joaquim and it sends the such expected report on the " miracle ", a piece that, according to the American historian Ralph Della it Digs, it is one of the documents more onlookers of the " Religious " Subject of Juazeiro. (" Miracle in Juazeiro ", 1977).
As the report nothing illuminated on the origin of the blood, of Joaquim he/she ratiocinated that, if he was originating from of the consecrated Host, it was, really, of a miraculous fact that deserved to be disclosed by the whole world; if, on the other hand, the blood belonged to the own devout person, then it would be incoherence to attest that the Host if it had transformed in blood of Jesus Cristo, as everybody they believed.
Initially, talent Joaquim just used the strategy of staying distanced of the subject, waiting that him if it diluted for same, dropping in the general forgetfulness. Meanwhile, the pilgrimages were accentuated and the number of believers in the " miracle " grew in a notable way faming priest Cícero and Araújo's devout Maria.
A new fact, even so, with which the bishop didn't count, he/she happened to give positive point to the " miracle ". it is that a certificate gone by the doctor Dr. Marcos Madeira, graduate in Rio de Janeiro, checking to the fact the character of supernatural, it was disclosed by the press of form sensacionalista and, due to that the reaction of the instructed Catholic population of the Northeast he/she/it didn't make to wait.
Irritated, the bishop ordered, then, that priest Cícero attended the Episcopal palace in Fortaleza, with urgency, to be submitted to an interrogation.
The faith in the " miracle " was same fadada to obtain the largest success, because other doctor, Dr. Idelfonso Correia Lima and pharmaceutical Joaquim Second Keys, convinced of the miraculosidade of the phenomenon of the transformation of the Host in blood, they also signed a certificate, endorsing what had been affirmed by Dr. Marcos Madeira.
Being the evolution of the events to threaten a disastrous end, it didn't remain to talent Joaquim other alternative or else the one of forming a Commission of Inquiry with competent, juridical priests and teologicamente, to verify " in loco " the such extraordinary phenomenon that everybody insisted in considering miraculous.
Such commission, considered of high level, it was constituted by Costa Wolf's priests Clicério, boss -commissary and Francisco Antero Ferreira, secretary. The investigation works began on September nine, 1.891, after three days of withdrawal and sentences, Following superior orientations, the commission took Araújo's devout Maria to the House of Charity of Crato, so that its works could be driven without priest Cícero's interference. Even so the extraordinary fact repeated. It is the commission amazed in the face of the perspective of being attending an authentic miracle, it concluded the inquiry giving to seem favorable.
The result didn't please to talent Joaquim that, on July 19, he/she/it had already advanced opting for a Decisão Interlocutória, prohibiting the cult to the bloodstained cloths and demanding a public retractation of priest Cícero that should say to the people that didn't believe in that that believed. Another commission under the Alexandrine priest's of Alencar leadership. In two days, of 20 to April 22, 1.892, this concluded the investigations with seeming unfavorable to the " miracle " and that it served as orientations to the ecclesiastical censors in Rome, culminating with the maximum feather of excommunication, that was not put into practice in face of the dangerous repercussion that certainly would cause.
Suspended of order, prohibited of oficiar religious acts, priest Cícero to everything submitted with resignation. It went to Rome, for superior summons, there almost staying nine months. There it reconquered the right of celebrating mass and, returning Juazeiro, it was convicted that would be rehabilitated by the Church. Finally, new sanctions were it imposed, being suspended definitively of order.
The pilgrims, that could not find it in the church, conformed to in hearing it daily in its house, in search of advices, as well as of spiritual protection. And he assisted the whole ones. It received and it distributed alms. He/she advised them vocally and in writing. He/she was the godfather of everybody. Soon after, deprived of the religious occupations, priest Cícero was devoted to the politics, assisting the friends' apelos, like Antônio Nogueira Acioli, substituted in the leadership of the presidency of the State of Ceará by colonel Franco Rabelo, more to avoid that strange hands drove the destinies of its city, with the same order that he had gotten until then.
Beside priest Alencar Peixoto, Dr. Floro Bartolomeu of Costa and other friends, priest Cícero made to feel its political action, undertaking the movement pro-emancipation of Juazeiro of the jurisdiction of Crato, fact consummated with success on July 22, 1.911. With municipal autonomy, Juazeiro had in priest Cícero's person its first mayor, whose ownership happened in October 4 of the same year. Priest Alencar Peixoto didn't like, since he complained for itself that right, because it went thinking of that position that he had hugged the independence movement and, inconformado, broke up the friendship with priest Cícero and Dr. Floro, he/she left Juazeiro and later it threw a book: " Juazeiro of Cariri ", where he/she makes severe critics to the two former-friends. With that, who won it was Dr. Floro that, to the side and priest Cícero's shade, enjoying its enormous prestige, he/she got to be the true political boss of Juazeiro, being chosen state deputy and federal deputy later.
In 1.913, priest Cícero would become the center of intransigent political polemic again, after having been moved away of mayor's position (February 11) for Colonel Franco Rabelo, president of the State of Ceará. Dr. Floro, actually, fôra summoned by Party Conservative Republican for the leadership of a revolution to depose the government's from Ceará, elect Franco Rabelo that fôra for the contrary party. Historians believed the priest the leadership of the seditious movement what he/she always denied. Everybody, even so, they agree that his participation was necessary, because only him, with its unquestionable charisma and leadership would be capable to get the combatants' adhesion. Weapons, ammunition and strategy, they were to exclusive position of Dr. Floro.
The troops rabelistas, quartered in Crato, in spite of very well municiadas, was defeated in the first combat accomplished in Cariri. Then, the rebels proceeded in victorious walk destined for Fortaleza, combatting and the government's forces that found for the road expiring. Movement triumphed. Frank Rabelo was deposed. Dr. Floro grew politically at national level. Priest Cícero went reconduzido to Mayor's position, where it stayed up to 1.927, where it finished obtaining a handful of enemies that you/they started to criticize it calling it thieves' protector.
In a retrospective one general of priest Cícero's life, alaramente is verified to have been him an illustration really important. It was him who introduced the habit of using in the neck the Mother's of God rosary, habit until today thoroughly spread in the whole Brazilian Northeast. It founded the Conferências Vicentinas and Apostolado of the Sentence, still today in operation. A lot it contributed to the education of its people, giving private classes, financing poor student expenses and helping financeiramente in the creation of new schools, especially tends for this end left great part of its goods, as inheritance, to the Congregação Salesiana. It was pioneer of the campaign encetada for the construction of the Seminar of Crato. In the terrible drought of 1877 it played prominence part, having interceded the competent powers close to, in the sense of they be the helped victims, receiving the whole possible attendance at that time.
In the global, its performance extrapolated the limits of its action as valiant shepherd of souls. It exercised great influence in the development of the agriculture, motivating the cultivation of the cassava, of the cane of sugar, etc.; of the pecuária, promoting the introduction of the cattle zebu and of the industry and trade, stimulating the appearance of new companies that you/they accelerated the growth of Juazeiro and of the area of Cariri.
He/she practiced, also, the popular medicine, as alternative form of cure, prescribing homemade medicines to the base of medicinal herbs, with excellent results, and contributing this way to the expansion of the branch of trade of the fitoterapia. In fact, until today a lot of people continue repeating Padim Ciço's " revenues.
In the religious field, it addressed an all special devotion Our Lady of the Pains, padroeira of Juazeiro, and that together with the pilgrimage dedicated to its own person, after its death, it ended up transforming Juazeiro in an of the largest centers of popular religiosity of América Latina.
And, finally, he/she made to flourish a type " sui craft generis " quite appreciated in Brazil and in the exterior and that absorbs an incalculable number of artists. That activity, until today in evidence, to represent the middle of life, the gain source and of financial sustentação of thousands of people.
Priest Cícero died on July 20, 1.934, with 90 years of age, in Juazeiro of the North, attacked of renitente renal illness and other organic complications. Its death, as it was of waiting, it caused deep and incontida consternation in the breast of the local population as well as to its thousands of devote spread by the whole Northeast of Brazil.
A lot they thought that dead the idol, the city that he founded and the devotion to its person would end in little time. Anything of that, even so, it happened.
The city of Juazeiro of the North is today the largest of the interior from Ceará, with continuous development rhythm to him continues being one of the highlighted illustrations of the Brazilian clergy, study object on the part of historians and social cientists, in function of who you/they were protected many mestrado theses and doctorate in the Country and in the exterior, and its name became a robust volume editorial, with more than a hundred of published works its respect, out a countless number of goods and several works spread in general by the press, being besides theme of films and television documentaries.
Rejected by the Church, he/she became the true saint of the native of northeastern Brazil and as such it is worshipped to the revelia of Rome.
Everywhere of the Northeast there are references to the most several cures and thanks reached by its intercession, many of the which considered as authentic miracles. The faith of the people in its saint is unshaken. Priest Cícero left the world of the alive ones, but, it continues living in the heart of everybody that its cultuam memory.
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