Antônio Conselheiro

Antônio Conselheiro (Anthony the Counselor, real name Antônio Vicente Mendes Maciel, b. March 13, 1830, Quixeramobim, state of Ceará, Brazil; d. September 22, 1897, Bello Monte, a.k.a. Canudos, state of Bahia) was a religious man, preacher, and founder of the village of Canudos, the scenario of the War of Canudos (1896-1897), a civil rebellion against the central government which was brutally stamped out with the loss of more than 15,000 lives.

Trouble with law and Church

In 1874, Antônio Conselheiro began to attract the attention of authorities and the Catholic Church, due to his preaching to the oppressed and poor peasants and common folk of small villages and farms. In 1876 he was arrested by the police in Itapicuru, Bahia, under the suspicion of being a sought criminal. After being identified, he was sent by ship to Fortaleza. He was severely beaten, his hair and beard were cut and he was sent back for trial to his city of origin, Quixeramobim. The local judge, however, released Antônio Conselheiro due to the absence of any criminal charges against him. Antônio returned immediately to Bahia and restarted his wandering and preaching. He vowed to construct 21 churches and proceeded to do so in 12 cities in the backlands of the provinces of Bahia and Sergipe, as well as cemeteries and small dams.

Related Topics:
1874 - Catholic Church - Peasant - Farm - 1876 - Police - Itapicuru - Fortaleza - Church - Sergipe - Cemeteries - Dam

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In 1877, one of the periodical catastrophic droughts began in the Northeast. It would be two years long and kill more than 300,000 peasants of hunger and thirst, creating havoc with the predominantly semi-arid agrarian economy of the region. Many villages were entirely abandoned and even instances of cannibalism occurred. Antônio Conselheiro and his followers did what they could to alleviate the extreme suffering of the poor people, adding more and more admirers and followers to his group. The sense of an impending end of the world and that the only salvation could come through religion were strong incentives to the surging of religious fanaticism. Conselheiro was widely regarded as a saint and a Messiah. Due to his increasing criticism of the official Church and of his open preachings in the small churches of the backlands, in 1882 the Archbishop of Bahia issued an order forbidding priests to allow him access to the flocks and characterising Antônio Conselheiro as an apostate and as a madman.

Related Topics:
1877 - Drought - Hunger - Thirst - Cannibalism - Fanaticism - Saint - Messiah - 1882 - Apostate

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~