On March 20, 2024, the Province of St. Maximilian M. Kolbe in Brazil gathered in the Jardim da Imaculada Shrine in Cidade Ocidental, Brazil, to celebrate the 13th anniversary of the death of the Most Reverend Agostinho Stefan JANUSZEWICZ, OFM Conv., Bishop Emeritus of Luziânia, Brazil.
Friar Agostinho founded this Jurisdiction, which is centered around Brasília, Brazil. He was born in Poland on November 29, 1930. From an early age, the Franciscan charism touched his heart and gave him a strong missionary spirit. Responding to the will of God, he left his native Poland in 1974, and, after a long journey, arrived in Brazil, the place where St. Maximilian M. KOLBE dreamed of founding a City of the Immaculata. Thanks to the tireless work of Friar Agostinho and the gift of his life, that dream became a reality.
In the last years of his life and ministry, after serving as the first Bishop of the Diocese of Luziânia, Brazil, he once again submitted himself to the will of the Lord and set out on a mission to Brazil’s Amazonia region, arriving in the river city of Juruá.
As a sign of gratitude, the friars gathered to praise and thank the Lord, the Supreme Good, for the many benefits He has given them. Among these was the grace of having an intercessor for our religious family. A Mass was celebrated in honor of Friar Agostinho and a plaque was placed in the Imaculada Conceiçâo cemetery to commemorate the occasion. This celebration also commemorated the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Province of St. Maximilian M. Kolbe in Brazil.
Friar Gilberto DE JESUS RODRIGUES
