Anjo de Natal: a trajetória do padre potiguar em processo de beatificação

The Church is analyzing the life of Father João Maria Cavalcanti de Brito as his beatification process moves through the Roman phase. Known as the Angel of Natal, the priest is recognized for his work with the poor and his efforts against injustice in the 19th century.

Father Bianor Francisco de Lima Júnior, the parish priest of Our Lady of Lourdes in the Archdiocese of Natal, said the priest transformed aid for the poor from individual gestures into organized public action. During the drought of 1889, the provincial government tasked him with distributing relief to displaced people. Father Bianor noted that the priest managed this aid through lay associations and brotherhoods. Additionally, Father João Maria presided over the first abolitionist organization in the province.