It was on this date in 1597 that St. Jose de Anchieta passed away. He was a successful missionary in Brazil, where he helped found Sâo Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. He is recognized as the father of Brazilian literature. One time he was captured by the Tamayo tribe. While held hostage, he was inspired to compose a poem in honor of the Blessed Virgin Mary. He would inscribe a few lines of his new composition on the sand every day and then memorize them. When he was finally released from captivity, he wrote out the poem from memory with pen and ink. He had 4,172 lines of Latin lyrics praising the mother of the Lord!
Here is how he began:
Eloquar? An sileam, sanctissima Mater Jesu?
Num sileam? Laudes eloquar anne tuas?
(Shall I speak or shall I quiet keep, most holy mother of Jesus?
How can I quiet keep? But let me speak your praise.)
Here is a later excerpt:
Fige tuum nostro Virgo immaculata decorem
Pectore, forma oculos attrahat ista meos.
(Affix your charm upon my breast, immaculate Virgin,
And let your figure draw my eyes along.)