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July 31, 2002
Guatemala's 'Hermano Pedro' canonized
By Jill Replogle
ANTIGUA, Guatemala (CNS) — Behind the crumbling, elaborate baroque facades of Antigua, the town was ready for canonization of its favorite son, Blessed Pedro de San Jose Betancur.
Hermano Pedro, as he is known, is revered throughout Guatemala and Central America for his miraculous curing of the sick and dedication to the poor.
Pope John Paul II canonized Hermano Pedro July 30 in Guatemala City.
Officials in Antigua, where Hermano Pedro's remains are interred, set up a special schedule to handle the influx of pilgrims.
So many pilgrims were determined to visit Hermano Pedro's remains and altar at the Church of San Francisco in Antigua that a schedule was set up to allot the weekend days preceding the pope's visit to people from different areas of the country and those from other spots in Central America.
Lectures, art exhibits and a documentary offered a glimpse into the life and work of the man often referred to as the "St. Francis of the Americas"; he founded the Bethlemite Brothers and Sisters in 1653. The order grew throughout Central America but now has about 10 brothers.
Pedro de San Jose Betancur, born March 19, 1626, in Spain's Canary Islands, journeyed to the New World at the age of 24, eventually arriving in what was then Guatemala City, now Antigua, in 1651.
He studied in Jesuit and Franciscan seminaries, and in 1658 opened an infirmary and his first school for poor children. He also visited the poor and sick in their homes, taking food and small change. He did the same for prisoners and hospital patients.
One well-known legend says that Hermano Pedro went so far as to lick the wounds of the sick, a role usually given to animals at the time.
Hermano Pedro often fasted, depriving himself of all comforts, including sleep, and sacrificing himself physically to demonstrate his faith.
Every Holy Thursday, he made an evening pilgrimage on his knees to all the city's churches, carrying a cross over his shoulders. Then, still carrying the cross, he would join the procession of the Nazarenes, which left at 1 a.m. Good Friday.
Testimonies said miracles occurred because of Hermano Pedro's intense faith.
Another legend has it that Hermano Pedro found a lizard in his house while he was searching for money to pay off a debt from running the hospital. He wrapped the lizard and sent it to the man he owed, asking him to accept the lizard as collateral until he could collect enough funds. When the man unwrapped the cloth, he found a gold lizard covered in jewels.
At San Francisco Church, the wall above the altar dedicated to Hermano Pedro is a mosaic of plaques thanking him for his help and is tainted black from burning candles. In the past, those cured left their crutches and other evidence of healing miracles at the altar as a sign of gratitude. Now, people are asked to leave the items at a museum inside the church, where they are displayed along the walls.
Hermano Pedro's remains were transferred years ago to a new location in the same church, but many people believe the original altar is his true resting spot.
"Everyone wants to visit the old altar, because that is where the miracles are made," said Myrna Arana, an Antigua resident.
The Arana family has special reverence for the healing saint because when Myrna's son, Daniel, was young, he had dreams about Hermano Pedro.
"One time, Daniel's brother was sick with a fever," said Arana, "and Daniel said to me `Don't worry, Mom, Hermano Pedro told me he will cure him.'
"Daniel prayed and prayed over his brother and, within a few hours, the fever had broken," Arana said.
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