Versão em Português | English Version

Today, May, 11, 2007, is the day in which the Pope is formally canonizing Antonio de Sant’Anna Galvão (1739-1822) or, as reads the headline of the Folha de São Paulo, turning “Frei Galvão into the Country’s First Saint.” It’s a strange religious view when a divine “saint”, in the sense of receiver and mediator of petitions to God, is installed by human effort, through a decree after a long process. In this morning’s ceremony, the Pope read textually that he was “entering him in the registry of the Saints.”   

Among the supposed accomplishments of Frei Galvão: the building of the Mosteiro da Luz (Luz Monastery) with his own hands, the gift of bilocation (being in two places at once) and various cases of healings. What caused these healings? The pill that he invented to heal the sick that sought him – a rolled-up piece of paper with some Latin phrases inscribed on it. 

From then until now, the pills have been avidly consumed by sick people and their “manufacture” and supply continues to be ensured by the nuns connected to the Mosteiro da Luz. Lately, according to the Folha report, the interest aroused by the Pope’s visit has caused their intake to be in the area of 30,000 pills per day. A nun interviewed by the report guaranteed that the “paper of the pill is very thin and easily dissolved in water. The ink used is also edible.”   

These guarantees may assuage the fury of the health authorities that should be concerned with the considerable intake of paper and ink, but my theological curiosity was stimulated to find out what was written on the rolled-up paper. What powerful Roman Catholic mantra could this be, that heals those that consume it?  
I verified that, encapsulated in the pill, we find the essence of Roman dogma about the mediation of Mary – exactly the main point that, according to evangelical understanding, goes against the unique and exclusive mediation of Christ. The writing on the paper of each pill says the following, in Latin: “After the birth, oh Virgin, thou remainest intact! Mother of God, intercede for us!” 

Thus, besides the logical and gastronomical objections, I have strong ecclesiastical and theological reasons to be against the pill and against canonization procedures:  

1. To postulate the perpetual virginity of Mary is a necessity for Roman Catholicism, in order to give her a supra-human nature and because it has a distorted view of sexuality. For centuries, sexual involvement, even within the biblical limits of marriage, was considered by the Roman Catholics as something not really healthy but rather contaminating to the body – being virgin was a requirement for saintliness (hence the dogma of compulsory celibacy for the priests and the nuns). This teaching does not derive from the Scriptures, who present Mary as special, blessed and devoted, channel of the virgin birth of Christ, but also a fully human and normal person, mother of various other children resulting from her marriage with Joseph. The first phrase of the pill is involved with this.
   
   
2. The second phrase clearly identifies Mary as mediatrix and harmonizes with her classification as co-redemptrix of humanity, which is the position sustained by the Roman Catholics. This belief is in contradiction with several portions of the Bible, including 1 Timothy 2:5 and 6: “For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all…”.
   
   
3. Lastly, we do not find biblical basis for the enormous number of saints that inhabit the pantheon of the Catholic church – all placed there by human decrees and processes. These usually become, equally, co-mediators, objects of adoration and the prayers of the faithful, when the Lord Jesus himself teaches us to direct our prayers and supplications to God (Matthew 6:7-13), only through His person (John 14.13). He is our intercessor and advocate (1 John 2:1). “Frei Galvão” has now become one more of these mediating saints. This brings special pride to our already tormented and so deceived Brazilian people but it is, sadly, entirely destitute of substance.