Saint Mateus Moreira
Lay Catholic farmer of Rio Grande do Norte, killed in 1645 during the Dutch-era persecution
- Rank
- Saint
- Kind
- Martyr, Layperson
- Life
- d. 1645
- Era
- 17th century
- Feast
- 3 October
- Countries
- Brazil
Life story
Almost nothing is documented about Mateus Moreira's childhood or family. The sources only say that he was a farmer and layman living in the Rio Grande captaincy, today the state of Rio Grande do Norte in Brazil, in the middle of the seventeenth century. At that time the area was held by the Calvinist Dutch, who had taken part of north-eastern Brazil from the Portuguese.
Two killings of Catholics took place there in 1645. On 16 July about 70 people were killed in the chapel at Cunhaú. Nearly three months later, on 3 October, about 80 more were killed on the banks of the Uruaçu river for refusing to give up their faith for Protestantism. A Brazilian news report on the canonization adds that the victims included children, one of them only two months old. Mateus Moreira belonged to the Uruaçu group.
According to tradition his heart was torn out from behind, and as he died he cried out “Louvado seja o Santíssimo Sacramento” (Praised be the Blessed Sacrament). This account rests on oral tradition and later narratives rather than on a contemporary record.
Only about thirty of the roughly 150 victims of the two massacres were identified by name. Pope John Paul II beatified the group on 5 March 2000. On 15 October 2017 Pope Francis canonized them: the priests André de Soveral and Ambrósio Francisco Ferro, Mateus Moreira, and 27 lay companions. Because they were martyrs, no miracle was required, only confirmation that they were killed out of hatred for the faith.
Works and witness
- Lay farmer in the Rio Grande region during the Dutch occupation of north-eastern Brazil
- Killed on 3 October 1645 in the Uruaçu massacre
- According to tradition, praised the Blessed Sacrament as he died
- Beatified on 5 March 2000
- Canonized on 15 October 2017 with the other martyrs of Natal
Saints from the same country
References
- TNH1 (Brazilian news), Papa decreta santidade de 30 mortos por holandeses no Brasil, on the Cunhaú and Uruaçu massacres
- Portal Kairos (Brazilian Catholic news), Protomártires do Brasil serão canonizados em outubro, 20 April 2017
Written by Anawim from documented history. Some details about ancient saints rest on tradition and are marked as such.