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3. Brazil

Martyrs of the Company of the Daughters of Charity

1. Sr. Lindalva OLIVEIRA, DC, of the Province of Recife, born on 20 October 1953 at Açu, in the State of Rio Grande do Norte, in Brazil, and died on 9 April 1993 at Salvador.

On Good Friday, in the city of Salvador, after having participated in the Way of the Cross at 4:30 in the morning, Sr. Lindalva returned to Abrigo Dom Pedro II, the home for the elderly where she served the poor, in order to give her dear retired people their breakfast. She had prepared the coffee, the milk, and the bread when she was attacked by one of the residents and killed with 39 stabs.

Cardinal Lucas Moreira Neves, in a “Sunday message” declared: “She is a martyr, given that she simply gave her life, if not on account of hatred for the faith, at least surely as a proof of her great love for God and for her brothers and sisters.”

2. Sr. Maria RODRIGUEZ DE ALBUQUERQUE, DC, of the Province of Recife, born on 3 November 1909 at Acaraú, in the State of Ceará, in Brazil, and died on 6 July 1991 in Rio de Janeiro.

Sr. Maria (Sr. Jeanne in Community), of the house of the Daughters of Charity of the Holy House of Mercy in Rio de Janeiro, having been witness to the attempted rape of an employee who worked in the laundry, was stabbed to death there on 6 July 1991. The sister was the victim of the crualty inflicted on a poor, defenseless woman.

Sr. Maria was truly good, impartial, active, and energetic. She believed in the action of the Holy Spirit in her life. She was attentive to people and welcomed them with love.

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