MMM in Brazil

Brazil
Land:	8,459,417 sq km
Coastline:	7,491 km
Population:	198,739,269 (July 2009 estimate)
Age Structure:	0-14 years: 26.7% 15-64 years: 66.8% 65 years and over: 6.4%
Life Expectancy:	male: 68.43 years female: 75.73 years (July 2009 estimate)
Infant Mortality Rate: 22.58 deaths/1,000 live births
People living with HIV/AIDS: 730,000 (2007 estimate)
Literacy:	Total population: 88.6% male: 88.4% female: 88.8% (2004 estimate)
National Holiday: Independence Day, 7 September (1822)
From - World Factbook 2009

Medical Missionaries of Mary first went to Brazil in 1969. Today, our work in Brazil involves fostering good health through education, simple homecare skills, and production of natural medicines, working closely with the healthcare teams of the local Christian communities.

Our main focus is in the north-eastern State of Bahia where we have a community on the periphery of the city of Salvador, the State Capital. A second community lives in the rural town of Capim Grosso, in the interior of the State.

Two MMMs can also be found in the city of Sao Paulo  - living among very poor communities on the north-eastern periphery in Jardim Damasceno, and at Vila Bela Vista in the south-western periphery. 

The year 2009 marked 40 years of MMM work in Brazil, and was an opportunity for us to take a new look at the issue of development. This enormous country has enormous needs. You could say a few of us would make no difference. But that is not what the people tell us!

Stories from MMM in Brazil

Working with women in Brazil
Brazil, Salvador, 2008: It often happens that the first step in exercising solidarity is exploring the lack of self esteem among people who are marginalized. In one women’s group participants were asked to draw something that expresses ‘who am I?’ Elizabeth complained that she couldn’t draw. >>>more

What is happening to the People?
Brazil, 2008: When Sister Siobhán Corkery is asked what we have to learn from our forty years on mission in Brazil, she points to the Church’s social teaching on development. She thinks especially of the teaching enshrined in the great encyclical of Pope Paul VI, Populorum Progressio, published in 1967, just about the time MMM was considering our first steps in Latin America. >>> more

Harvesting the Rain - Sister Sheila Lenehan
Brazil, 2008: In Capim Grosso, a semi-desert area, you usually get heavy rains in December and January and milder ones in July and August in a good year. But we haven’t had a good year now for some time. Outside the urban area there is no public water supply. Families who live in the rural area have to provide their own. This is not an area where it is possible to dig wells, and artesian wells are very costly even if the land was suitable. >>> more

Women’s Workshops in Sao Paulo
Brazil, 2006: Sister Brigid McDonagh has been working with women’s groups for the past thirty-seven years. Though now forced to give her Workshops from a wheelchair, she says she is greatly energized by the enthusiasm of the women who are working to improve their education, and improve the quality of life of their families and their neighbourhood. >>>more

Backdrop to Martyrdom
Brazil, 2005: Sister Regina Reinart writes about the murder of Notre Dame Sister, Dorothy Stang. Sister Dorothy Stang Even though Sister Dorothy Stang had received countless death threats over the years, she passionately continued her work in the Church’s Pastoral Land Commission. On February 12, 2005 she was on her way to a meeting on land reform when two hired gunmen confronted her. >>> more

Your support to keep us going will be greatly appreciated ...

Whether we are helping to achieve pit latrines and water cisterns in drought-stricken areas, supporting people living with HIV and AIDS, or dealing with the health problems of women trapped in prostitution because they have no other source of income, we find outlets for our work of healing.

History of the MMM in Brazil >>> here  | Stories from Annals of MMM in Brazil >>> here

Last modified: Thursday, March 18th, 2010