by FLAVIO ROCHA
The Church has many martyrs. Some died in the first centuries for refusing to deny their faith in Christ when an emperor was seen as a god. Others died as missioners in faraway lands. In many Latin American countries, Christians have been killed because of their struggle for justice in recent decades. But in Brazil we have a bishop who almost died trying to save a river and the people who lived on its shore.
Dom Luiz Flávio Cappio, Bishop of the Diocese of Barra, in the state of Bahia, is a Franciscan who happens to have the same birthday as Saint Francis, the Fourth of October. Any guesses of the name of the river that he is trying to save? Yes, it is called the Saint Francis River (Rio São Francisco).
Originally from the state of São Paulo but living in the Northeast of Brazil for more than 30 years, Dom Luiz Flávio Cappio, a short and soft-spoken man, knows very well the spiritual, economic, cultural and social importance of the Saint Francis River for millions of people who live on its shore.
He and three pastoral agents walked the river course from 4th of October of 1992 to 4th of October of 1993. During this journey, they gave lectures in public schools, unions and groups. Dom Cappio and his companions led a campaign to reforest the river’s shores planting more than one million trees and celebrated mass in each city to mark their passage.
In his sermons he told the people that “the river is a gift of God to everyone’s life and that before bringing the people to that place, God had brought the São Francisco River”. One fruit of the one journey was the publication of a book that denounced the river’s decline and the consequences for the people who live in that area.
Dom Cappio became an expert on all problems that both the river and the people are facing, knowing that the lives of those millions depend on the health of that river. Dom Cappio likes to say that the São Francisco river imitates its namesake, “it is borne in the rich Brazilian South and gives its wealth to the poor in the Northeast.”
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