Hélder Câmara Quotes

Brazilian Catholic priest, archbishop of Olinda and Recife (1909–1999)

Hélder Pessoa Câmara (7 February 1909 – 27 August 1999) was a Brazilian Catholic archbishop. A self-identified socialist, he was the Archbishop of Olinda and Recife, serving from 1964 to 1985, during the military dictatorship in Brazil. He was declared a Servant of God in 2015.

From: Wikiquote (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Alternative Names: Hélder Pessoa Câmara • Dom Hélder Câmara • Dom Hélder Pessoa Câmara • Helder Camara • Helder Pessoa Camara • Dom Helder Camara • Dom Helder Pessoa Camara

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If there is some corner of the world which has remained peaceful, but with a peace based on injustices—the peace of a swamp with rotten matter fermenting in its depths—we may be sure that that peace is false. Violence attracts violence. Let us repeat fearlessly and ceaselessly: injustices bring revolt, either from the oppressed or from the young, determined to fight for a more just and more human world.

Quando dou comida aos pobres, chamam-me de santo. Quando pergunto por que eles são pobres, chamam-me de comunista.

When I give food to the poor, they call me a saint. When I ask why they are poor, they call me a communist.

You must never give up. As long as a person is alive, somewhere beneath the ashes there is a little bit of remaining fire, and our task is [...] You must blow ... carefully, very carefully, blow ... and blow ... you’ll see if it lights up. You mustn’t worry whether it takes fire again or not. All you have to do is blow.