[December 26, 2024] Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur in Ohio recently filled a reliquary with blood-soaked soil from the site of the murder of Sister Dorothy Stang, SNDdeN. Set to be installed in a Sanctuary of the New Martyrs in Rome, the relic represents the life and sacrifice of the missionary to Brazil who gave her life for her faith.

Stang will be honored by the Community of Sant’Egidio in Rome, Italy, on January 10, 2025, at the Basilica di San Bartolomeo all’Isola one month before the 20th anniversary of her martyrdom. She was assassinated in Brazil on February 12, 2005, for her ministry with rural farm families in their struggle to live in a sustainable development project on land federally and rightfully designated for them. The Community of Sant’Egidio will preserve Stang’s memory by including her story in an exhibit and by safeguarding the relic. She will be the first woman from the United States to be included among others in the Sanctuary of the New Martyrs at the Basilica.

About the Photos
On December 19, Ohio Province Sisters Kathleen Harmon, Judith Clemens and Joan Krimm, joined by Teresa Phillips, transferred Sister Dorothy Stang’s relic into the reliquary that will be permanently displayed in Rome starting in January. The relic, blood-soaked soil from the site of Stang’s martyrdom, has been cherished by her close friend, Sister Joan Krimm, for almost 20 years.

Related events include:
Relic prayer service: On January 5, 2025, at 3 p.m. EST in Cincinnati, Ohio, the reliquary will be commissioned during a private prayer service at Mount Notre Dame Chapel. Those traveling to Rome for the ceremony at the Basilica di San Bartolomeo all’Isola, including Ohio province leaders, students and family members, will receive a blessing for safe travels. Livestream link: https://youtube.com/live/c5wdh6gRdXs?feature=share.

Public symposium: On January 10 at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, there will be a symposium in Stang’s honor called “Women’s Leadership in the Climate Movement.” Speakers include Fr. Mark Lewis, SJ, Rector, Pontifical Gregorian University; Sr. Mary Johnson, SNDdeN, Ph.D., Congregational Leader; Sr. Maamalifar Poreku, MSOLA, Co-Executive Secretary of the Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation Commission, UISG/USG; Dr. Emilce Cuda, Secretary of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America; Dr. Gianni LaBella, Professore Ordinario, Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia (Community of Sant’Egidio ); Dr. Laurie Johnston, Prof. of Theology, Emmanuel College (Community of Sant’Egidio); and Fr. Prem Xalxo, SJ, Coordinator of the Joint Diploma in Integral Ecology, Pontifical Gregorian University. Livestream link to be announced.
Public ceremony in Rome: On January 10, Stang’s story will join those of martyred Christians from across the world at the Church of San Bartolomeo all’Isola. With the Community of Sant’Egidio, the reliquary of soil will be presented by the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur for permanent installation and display in the Sanctuary of the New Martyrs.

For more information about events marking the 20th anniversary of Sister Dorothy’s martyrdom, please visit: https://www.sndohio.org/sister-dorothy/20thanniversary/events

To learn more about the Sanctuary of the New Martyrs, use this link: https://sanbartolomeo.org/sanctuary-of-the-new-martyrs/?lang=en

BACKGROUND OF SISTER DOROTHY STANG, SNDdeN
Dorothy Mae Stang was born in Dayton, Ohio, during the Great Depression and was one of nine children in a Catholic family. She was educated by the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur at Julienne High School in Dayton. At age 17, she entered the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur. For about 15 years, she taught Catholic elementary school students in Illinois and Arizona before volunteering for missionary work in Brazil in 1966.

She spent almost 40 years living in poverty alongside the people she served, and as the years went on, she increasingly received death threats from loggers and ranchers. These men opposed her outspoken efforts to protect the Amazon from illegal deforestation and to protect villagers from violent persecution. After she was shot at point-blank range, five men were indicted in connection with her murder. At the time of her martyrdom at age 73, Sister Dorothy was a dual citizen of Brazil (naturalized) and the United States.

“Dorothy gave her one and only life to lift up those made poor and to protect the Amazon and its people from destruction,” said Sister Kathleen Harmon, SNDdeN Ohio provincial leader. “She stands as a model of compassion, conviction and courage for all Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur and all persons who care about God’s people and God’s earth.”

Posthumously, Sister Dorothy has been honored by the United States Congress and widely recognized across the world; in 2008, she was awarded the UN Prize in the Field of Human Rights. Numerous books, movies, documentaries and an opera have been developed about her life, ministry, martyrdom and legacy.

About the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur:
Founded in Cuvilly, France, in 1804 by St. Julie Billiart, Françoise Blin de Bourdon and Catherine Duchâtel for the Christian instruction of young girls living in poverty, the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur are committed to making known God’s goodness and standing with those made poor by the unjust structures of society. Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur are an international congregation serving on five continents and in 15 countries