Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Maceio (Agenzia Fides) – Father Hidalberto Henrique Guimaraes, 48, is the fourth priest to be murdered in Brazil in less than five months. He was pastor of the Church of Our Lady of Grace in the town of Murici, on the outskirts of Maceió (AL). The priest's body was found last Saturday, November 7, two days after his disappearance. Fr. Hidalberto had not been seen since Thursday, the 5th, the day he had attended a meeting of the clergy. On Saturday, November 7th, he had planned to celebrate Holy Mass in the City of Branquinho, but precisely because of his absence, a friend went to his house. When he entered, he found the bloodied body of the priest on the kitchen floor, with many cuts all over his body. His funeral was celebrated Sunday, November 8th in his parish, 54 kilometers from Maceió.
According to a statement issued by the Archdiocese of Maceió, Father Hidalberto was ordained a priest in the Church of St. Joseph, in the Trapiche District, in Maceió, December 14, 1992. "He had recently earned a degree in journalism. The priest was much loved by the parishioners, who are unable to find explanations for what happened,” the statement said. “The Archdiocese of Maceió is united in prayer for the solution of this case, awaiting the completion of investigations.” The Archbishop of Maceió and President of the Northeast Region 2 of the Brazilian Bishops' Conference (Alagoas, Paraiba, Pernambuco and Rio Grande do Norte), Archbishop Antonio Muniz told the press that "not only the clergy, but the entire community of Alagoas is in shock.”
The Brazilian Bishops' Conference has issued a notice of the tragic event and is updating the list of priests who have died tragically in Brazil: in fact, in this year 2009, the Catholic Church in Brazil has lost four priests, victims of murder. The first was adviser to the Youth Section of the National Conference of Brazilian Bishops (CNBB), Father Gisley Azevedo Gomes, 31, killed by a group of young people on the night of June 15, in Brazlandia, satellite city of Brasilia. Italian Fidei Donum priest Fr. Ruvoletto Roger, 52, was killed in Manaus (AM) on Sept. 19 with a bullet to the head. On September 26, Fr. Evaldo Martiolo, 33 years, of the Diocese of Caçador (SC) was killed by a young man of 21 years and a boy of 15, during a robbery degenerated into murder. (EC) (Agenzia Fides 10/11/2009)
