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São José dos Campos, São Paulo - Domingo, 05 de setembro de 2010
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| Life & Religion |
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Religious Tourism Faith boosts tourism in the Paraíba Valley See how the cities of Aparecida, Guaratinguetá, and Cachoeira Paulista have become three of the most important religious tourism destinations in Brazil
In 1717 three fishermen found the headless statue of a black saint in the waters of the Paraíba river. They cast their nets again and found the head of the saint. For them, it had been a miracle. That same day they caught a lot of fish. As the years passed, new miracles were attributed to the statue of the saint. The statue was kept in one of the fishermen’s houses. With each passing year the number of people visiting the region and the house to see the statue grew. All of these facts contributed to the growth of a small village, which later would become the thriving city of Canção Nova in Cachoeira Paulista Cachoeira Paulista has almost 30,000 inhabitants and is almost 25 kilometers from Aparecida. This is the home to the famous community Canção Nova. The community, which was founded in 1978 by Father Jonas Abib, spreads the catholic faith around the country. Canção Nova runs events, such as religious shows, youth festivals, and Masses. Canção Nova owns a TV channel and several radio stations. Various religious books, CDs, and products are sold through this community. Vocabulary 1 faith – fé 2 to boost - impulsionar 3 Paraiba Valley – Vale do Paraíba (SP) 4 fisherman - pescador 5 headless – sem cabeça 6 black – negra (o) 7 to cast – arremessar / jogar 8 net - rede 9 pilgrim – romeiro / peregrino 10 to spread – espalhar / divulgar Guaratinguetá, the city of The city where the first Brazilian saint was born has begun to welcome more and more tourists An increasing number of tourists is visiting Guaratinguetá, a city with a population of 110,000 about six kilometers from Aparecida. In 2006 the city welcomed an average of about 50 tourist buses at weekends – now it is 200 buses. Religious tourism will boost the local economy. New hotels and restaurants will be built. The Santo Antônio Cathedral and Friar Galvão Museum are two of the most popular places for tourists. In a small room at the back of the Cathedral the famous Friar Galvão pills are produced. In total about 90,000 pills are produced a month. The pills are also produced in the Mosteiro da Luz, in A brief biography of the Brazilian Saint Friar Galvão was a tall and handsome man. He came from a traditional and rich family, but preferred to turn his back on comfort to become a Franciscan monk. In 1762 he went to live in Vocabulary 1 increasing – cada vez maior 2 bus – ônibus 3 to boost – impulsionar 4 pill – pílula 5 handsome – bonito / bonitão 6 to turn his back on – exp. idiom. = abrir mão de 7 Franciscan monk – frade franciscano / monge / frei 8 ordained – ordenado 9 priest – padre 10 miracle – milagre 11 living for a while – morar por pouco tempo Matéria publicada na edição de número 36 da Revista Maganews |
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