It was a Saturday morning. As he came down to breakfast Mr. João met up with a veteran member of Dr. Plinio’s work from Spain, and asked him:
“Did Mr. So-and-so get in from his trip?”
“No sir. We went to the airport last night to pick him up, but he didn’t arrive on the scheduled flight. There must have been some problem at boarding.”
“No, he has been abducted!”
The statement, followed by strong apprehension, seemed exaggerated at first sight, and, above all, lacking reasonable grounds. Many conjectures were raised about the whereabouts of the youth, who had failed to return from a routine trip. Msgr. João, who knew him well, having had him under his authority and formation for almost ten years, remained firm in his sudden presentiment and thought only of rescuing him from the danger he felt he was in. Seized with worry, he somehow “saw” him dressed in white in a stone building – with a courtyard and high wall, difficult to access – but content, due to the aid and protection of Our Lady.
A short time later, the incredible theory was confirmed. Msgr. João did everything possible under the law to free him from this plight and, after twenty-one days, welcomed him back amid great rejoicing in one of the Group’s houses. Overflowing with gratitude, the young man narrated in a phone call to Dr. Plinio the precious support and paternal zeal that Msgr. João had shown him in that dramatic situation. Dr. Plinio concluded: “You know how observant I am, and I see in day-to-day life that his attitude towards you is that of a father and a mother.”
This statement well defines Msgr. João’s way of acting with his own.
Perfect paternity
How can paternity be defined? In the natural order, parents are the ones who transmit life, according to their specific nature and as they themselves possess it, with their capacities, defects and temperament. Even after birth, there is continuity in this transmission, manifested in parental zeal for the rearing of offspring. True paternal and maternal love overcomes all obstacles, performs any act of heroism, and even obtains the impossible for their children, with total selflessness.
Maternal love, in particular, is characterized by “its complete absence of self-interest, its being freely given, its unlimited capacity to forgive. A mother loves her child when he is good. But she does not love him just because he is good. She loves him even when he is bad. She loves him simply because he is her child, flesh of her flesh and blood of her blood. She loves him generously, even without reciprocation. She loves him in the cradle, when he is not yet capable of deserving the love given. She loves him throughout his life, whether he rises to the heights of happiness and glory, or wallows in the depths of misfortune and even crime. He is her child and all is said.”1
True paternal and maternal love overcomes all obstacles, performs any act of heroism, and even achieves the impossible for their children, with total selflessness
God placed this natural instinct in His work and He delights in contemplating it as a reflection of himself. In fact, the perfection of fatherhood is found first in God and is then communicated by participation to other beings: “The fatherhood present in creatures is as it were nominal or vocal; the divine fatherhood, by which the Father communicates His whole nature to the Son, without any imperfection, is true fatherhood.”2 Therefore, the Apostle exclaims: “I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in Heaven and on earth is named” (Eph 3:14-15).
Divine fatherhood is so powerful and perfect that it combines both the paternal and maternal aspects, whose complementarity forms the fullness of love. Scripture sometimes refers to the Father with expressions that, among creatures, correspond more to mothers, as when it states that the Word is in the bosom of the Father or that God gave birth to creatures and cares for them through His providence. 3
Now, if the Lord maintains this bond of love for creation in general, having created it from nothing, communicating to it something of what is His, how much greater is the bond that unites Him to rational beings, to whom He granted the gift of grace, a share in His intimate life!
And here we come to an important point in these considerations.
Spiritual fatherhood
If to transmit human nature is extraordinary, it is much superior to transmit divine life, the participation of which is worth more than the rest of the created universe. It was God’s desire to impress a reflection of His supreme paternity not only on natural reproduction, but also on spiritual issue.
Transmitting supernatural life confers a paternity that is much deeper and more intimate than human paternity. This is why St. Paul addresses the members of the local churches in his letters using the terms “my children” (1 Cor 4:14; 2 Cor 6:13) or “my little children” (Gal 4:19), for through the Gospel he had begotten them in Christ (cf. 1 Cor 4:15).
Transmitting supernatural life confers a paternity that is much deeper and more intimate than human paternity
Throughout the history of the Church, this supernatural paternity has come clearly to light in the relationship between founders of religious institutes and their disciples. Raising the question about the nature of this bond – which, when it is deep, makes spiritual children similar to their father even in the smallest details – Fr. Juberías, an eminent theologian on consecrated life, expressed himself as follows:
“Could one imagine an influx of character more intimate, direct, or of a more continual nature [on the part of the founder], which, as it were, is the unfolding or prolongation of his own supernatural life, of the gifts of grace with which God enriched him? It is what in scholastic terms could be called a formal type of causality, albeit evidently subordinate to divine causality and to that of Our Lord Jesus Christ, as Head of the Church. […] [To founders] Christ communicates a relative fullness of grace and of charisms, in order to enrich their progeny throughout the centuries. They exercise this influence while they live on earth, and they extend it, above all, once they reign together with Christ in glory.”4
At this point, the question naturally arises of how this came about in the life of Msgr. João.
Being a child of Msgr. João
Msgr. João’s exceptional capacity of attraction and of leadership showed itself from his childhood. However, his apostolic activities began to develop with greater intensity from the year 1975 onwards, as seen in a previous article, as he gradually became a second father to the youths who felt drawn to the work of Dr. Plinio, a father to those who would come in the future, and perhaps even a father of a historical era.
Under his influence, that generation and those that followed – weakened of mind and nerves as a result of the profound disintegration of society in our day – gave their love to the high ideals expressed by Dr. Plinio, and began to follow him with fervour and to organize themselves into houses of community life fully dedicated to the quest for holiness.
Since then, there is no son or daughter of Msgr. João who cannot attest to his continuous and sanctifying paternity, but also to his real fatherhood in begetting, confirming and forming each one for the vocation.
There is no son or daughter of Msgr. João who cannot attest to his real fatherhood in begetting, confirming and forming each one for the vocation
Many received the call directly from his lips, and he himself would at times even speak with the families involved, removing obstacles, and resolving all difficulties. An affectionate look, at times followed by a heartfelt affirmation – “Our Lady has given you a great vocation!” – was the catalyst for individuals of diverse races, backgrounds, and ages to leave everything behind and surrender themselves to him as his children.
A young woman from Chile who was concluding her university studies attended a lecture by Msgr. João in 1998 in the country’s capital a little reluctantly, more to please her brother than anything else. After the talk, a quick greeting with Msgr. João was all it took for her to change the course of her life and consecrate herself forever in the family of souls of the Heralds.
During a visit to Canada in 2003, he met a young Vietnamese youth. Acquainted with the sense of ceremony and honour of the Orientals, he told him that he had a strong calling but that he would need formation in order to conquer the Orient. He waited a few days to receive the young man’s response, as well as that of his parents, accepting the invitation.
By way of exception, he welcomed several vocations at a young age, due to the clarity of the call, providing for all areas of their upbringing and education, literally bending down to feed them (cf. Hos 11:4), as the Lord said through the mouth of the prophet.
The stories that could be told cannot be numbered, for every Herald of the Gospel with a sufficient history could give their unequivocal testimony.
Fatherly zeal
His fatherly zeal was not limited to the dawning of his children’s vocation, but extended to every moment and until the hour of death and beyond.
One time, while he was visiting a house dedicated to youth apostolate, he asked: “Where is So-and-so?” He was informed that, regrettably, the person in question had fallen away from the vocation and had taken other paths. Fearful for the uncertain destiny of that soul in a world flooded with sin, he replied: “I don’t know how you can bear it… For me, each one who leaves is a trauma.”
In this regard, before being struck by the illness that would limit his communication, he personally directed the spiritual life of many and even continued to do so afterwards, despite the difficulties inherent to his condition. With unfailing concern, he always did everything within his reach for every soul entrusted to him, responding to any request for advice. When someone once commented on his overflowing affection for his spiritual family, he replied: “I like being a father!”
With true paternal instinct, he would notice if one or another son or daughter were missing in a crowd, or would perceive that one was present, but avoided eye contact with him, on account of not being in a good spiritual state.
Surpassing every natural reality, in many instances Msgr. João, heard his children even over long distances. A sister who was on mission in a faraway country tried to stay close to him by “conversing” with a photograph of him every day. At one point Msgr. João asked those who were with him: “How is the one who talks with me every day?”
No one understood what he meant by this, until the story was later told to the sister he had mentioned, who was astonished, for she had told no one of the interior practice she had adopted.
Give with generosity
It is normal for a father to give of himself and show his affection, even in material things. When at table, Msgr. João’s first concern was to see that others were well served and to always give them the best. On one birthday, when someone tried to convince him not to personally take on the task of serving the cake to everyone, he responded: “I am a father! I am a father!”
As we have already seen, the throwing of chocolates and other sweets through his office window was a thrill for him as well as for his children, and a practice that he kept up even after he suffered the CVA, as a way of providing a joyous atmosphere for everyone, even though it required him to remain standing for a long time. Amused at seeing how happy this made his children, he once exclaimed as he closed the window after a lively session: “How I love them all!”
If great and true was Msgr. João’s happiness in showing his paternal affection to his children, greater still was the delight that filled his soul in being able to shower his pardon on them
His generosity moved him not only to want to give, but to give what was his. One night in 1979, as he walked by the sacristy of the Hermitage of São Bento5 he saw that two new arrivals from the United States were sleeping directly on the floor, there being no free beds in the guest quarters. Touched by their plight, he instantly gave them his cell, going without a bed himself.
Even during illness, he showed his concern in a heroic way. On one occasion when he was hospitalized in semi-ICU and suffering acutely, he realized that some of his children were keeping watch outside the door, in case any need should arise. Concerned with their wellbeing, he called them in the middle of the night, and offered them the food that he had in the room.
On the birthday of one of his spiritual daughters who had lost her father in a brutal homicide, Msgr. João was touched with compassion and made a point of preparing a beautiful gift for her. With warm affection, he called her over to him and handed her the present, saying: “A gift from a father!”
Paternal pardon
If he enjoyed something more than giving, it was pardoning. The word pardon comes from the Latin perdonare; the prefix per serving as an intensifier, and donare meaning “to give”, therefore signifying a “super giving”.
It is difficult to describe the joy of Msgr. João in exercising this paternal prerogative, which goes to the very core of his soul and his mission with truly mystical depth. He often stated that what had particularly moved him in the direction of the priesthood was the ability to forgive, in the Sacrament of Penance.
Even before he was ordained, he would tirelessly seek out straying sheep, crossing borders, if necessary, to go in search of them. In bringing them back, he openly manifested his joy. Because of this sensitivity with regard to forgiveness, he always said that the parable of the prodigal son was the one that touched him most in the Gospels, even becoming visibly moved when speaking of it.
He begot us in faith, and gave his blood for us; thus, we will never cease to acknowledge that everything comes to us from him and to proclaim throughout the world the greatness of the father that God granted us!
Once, when observing the attitude of a daughter who had accepted a correction well, who had acknowledged her fault and had asked for forgiveness, he said: “I melt when someone asks for forgiveness!”
With his weaker children, his attitude was continually the one described by Dr. Plinio as he reflected on his own role:
“I ought to be a father to each member of the Group, but I especially ought to be a father to those who have left everything to follow the call of Our Lady. To them I must be a father and a mother, and more than that if possible.
“Within my limited resources, I must personify all the tenderness, all the goodness, all the affection, all the mercy of Our Lady, a ceaseless mercy that always forgives, that never tires for any reason, that always welcomes, always loves. This is what I wish to be for each one of you.
“When you think of me, think of me as a father beside each one of you, seeking to encourage and comfort you, even if you are not doing well. Because comforting someone when they are doing well does not mean much. What is beautiful is to try to encourage, support and protect them when they are not doing well. That is my role. If you have given everything to follow Our Lady, I must give everything to follow you and go in search of each one of you. That is how I should be and how I want to be.”6
A child’s fitting response
Msgr. João’s love for his sons and daughters grew stronger as he walked a long and painful via sacra during the last years of his life and, without a doubt, it was intensified as he crossed the threshold of eternity. How many times he repeated that he loved each one like an only child!
If it is natural for a father to give, it is his children’s duty to trust in and return the love that descends abundantly and completely upon each one.
He begot us in faith, formed us, communicated his supernatural life to us and gave his blood for us. May our debt of gratitude be to never cease to acknowledge that everything comes to us from him and to proclaim throughout the world the greatness of the super-excellent father that Providence granted us. ◊
Notes
1 CORRÊA DE OLIVEIRA, Plinio. Tradição, família, propriedade. In: Folha de São Paulo. Ano XLVIII. N.14.430 (18 dez., 1968); p.4.
2 ST. THOMAS AQUINAS. Super Epistolam ad Ephesios lectura, c.III, lect.4.
3 Cf. EMERY, Gilles. La Teología trinitaria de Santo Tomás de Aquino. Salamanca: Secretariado Trinitario, 2008, p.225-226.
4 JUBERÍAS, CMF, Francisco. La paternidad de los fundadores. In: Vida Religiosa. Madrid. Vol. XXXII (Jan.-Dec., 1972); p.322; 325.
5 The term êremo [hermitage] was the casual designation for some houses of the work of Dr. Plinio where a community life dedicated to prayer, ceremonial acts, study and contemplation was lived. Those who resided there were called eremitas [hermits].
6 CORRÊA DE OLIVEIRA, Plinio. Conversation. São Paulo, 4/1/1972.
