The lessons of the “people’s bishop”
Public statement of grief at the death of Dom Paulo Evaristo Arns
It was with profound grief that Conectas received the news of the death of Dom Paulo Evaristo Arns, archbishop emeritus of São Paulo, on the morning of Wednesday, December 14. In a time of serious threats to human rights, the “friend of the people”, as he wished to be remembered, leaves behind him an indelible legacy of respect for human dignity and of a tireless struggle for social justice.
During the darkest years of the civil-military dictatorship in Brazil, Dom Paulo provided a safe haven for anyone who needed protection from torture and persecution by the State, regardless of their origin or political affiliation. In 1972, he founded the Justice and Peace Commission of São Paulo and inspired Clamor (Human Rights Committee for the countries of the Southern Cone) – two of the most significant initiatives in support of people who opposed the authoritarian regimes in the region.
“He did what any bishop should have done, which is to give people refuge,” said the sociologist Margarida Genevois, a board member of Conectas who also serves on the Justice and Peace Commission, in an interview given in 2013.
Placing his own life at risk, he publicly challenged the dictatorship a number of times. On one such occasion, he organized an ecumenical service in honor of the journalist Vladimir Herzog, who was murdered by the Brazilian intelligence agency in 1975. The act represented, at the time, one of the most resounding setbacks for the military government.
Dom Paulo opened the doors of the Church, but he also knocked down its internal walls by questioning the opulence of his predecessors and inaugurating initiatives that restored the social vocation of the Archdiocese of São Paulo.
The example of his struggle for fundamental rights will always be an inspiration for anyone who works to protect democracy and the rights secured since the end of the dictatorship. Since 1988, this example has never been so necessary.
Watch the interview recorded in 2013 with Margarida Genevois, a sociologist, board member of Conectas and colleague of Dom Paulo on the Justice and Peace Commission:
