The National Secretariat for the Cause of Canonization of Father Eustáquio has been working since last year on recovering and cataloging the objects and documents that belonged to the Blessed or that are part of the Canonization process. Among the archives found is the testimony given by Father Gil, the first Provincial Superior of the Congregation in Brazil, to the Tribunal of the Cause of Beatification and Canonization of Father Eustáquio.

In his testimony, dated September 25, 1962, Father Gil speaks about people seeking Father Eustáquio's intercession. Read an excerpt from the testimony:

“Father Eustáquio directly attended to those who asked him for healing from physical ailments, but he told those who sought him out that the first thing to heal was their own soul, so he instructed patients to confess. Thus, Father Eustáquio not only cared for the physical health of those who were ill, but also concerned himself with their spiritual life. The Father made no distinction between those who sought him out; he gave his blessing to all and blessed the water they brought. I personally observed during my stay there and on other days I visited Poá that there were uninterrupted lines of people seeking him out, whom he attended to continuously except for brief interruptions for meals. I also note that many people sought him out not because they were physically ill, but because they expected guidance and advice for their consciences from him.”

Who was Father Gil?

Along with Father Eustáquio and Father Matias, Father Gil was one of the three founders of the first Community of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts in Brazil. He arrived in the country in 1925 and settled in the Diocese of Uberaba, also becoming the first provincial of the Congregation in Brazil.

Father Gil closely followed Father Eustáquio's entire missionary journey, standing by the Dutch priest in many endeavors, such as the founding of the Regina Pacis College in Araguari/MG, where he was the first director in 1926, and the construction of the Dom Lustosa Gymnasium in Patrocínio/MG in 1927.