POPE Benedict XVI has given Brazil its first saint, canonising Friar Antonio de Sant'Ana Galvao, a Franciscan monk still credited with miracle cures nearly 200 years after his death.Friar Galvao, who lived from 1739 to 1822, founded monasteries and convents throughout Brazil but is best known today because of his reputed healing powers.
At an open-air mass in Sao Paulo's Campo de Marte, the Pope said: “Let us give thanks to God for the lasting benefits obtained through the powerful evangelising influence that the Holy Spirit impressed upon so many souls through Frei (Friar) Galvao.”
The Pope also said Friar Galvao set an example for the modern age “so full of hedonism” in a phrase attributed to the monk: “Take away my life before I offend your blessed Son, my Lord!”
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