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Maarten Janssen, 2014-

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[1619-1621]. Carta de Álvaro Sá de Santo António, caseiro, para Juliana da Ascensão, freira.

Author(s) Álvaro Sá de Santo António      
Addressee(s) Juliana da Ascensão      
In English

Private letter from Álvaro Sá de Santo António, housekeeper, para Juliana da Ascensão, nun.

The author reports what he has heard through third parties and offers himself as a witness.

Rafaela de Santo António was arrested on July 7, 1620, remaining in prison until April 3 of the following year. In the Holy Office of Coimbra a lawsuit was filed against Rafaela, accused of Judaism, based on several denunciations, namely of Filipa de São Francisco, a nun in the same convent and who would be also arrested. In fact, it was proved that some nuns practiced Judaism, which absolutely transgressed the principles not only of the order they professed, but of the Catholic Church itself. Rafaela alleged in court that she was not the biological daughter of a new Christian, who had died, but of Diogo de Sá de Meneses, "a known gentleman and one of the truly nobles." In fact, the mother would have managed to conceal her pregnancy from her future husband, with whom she already lived. For this reason, the mother interned her at the age of four, at the Monastery of Madre de Deus de Monchique de Miragaia (Porto), where the sisters followed the rule of Santa Clara (Order of Friars Minor, Portugal). In her process, we find several letters of honor, collected by the abbess, Clara Antónia de Vilhena, and other nuns, in an attempt to free the defendant from the guilts that were formed against her, and to watch over her well-being while she remained in jail. Particular mention should be made of the testimony written by the defendant's mother, in which she clarifies her affiliation. This case is not free of adversities: the abbess, even though she wrote a letter of honor and made several inquiries in favor of the defendant, when she reached the defense phase she testified to the contrary. In the end, the inquisitors would come to the conclusion that the guilts had been caused by false testimony, due to certain quarrels of Rafaela with some companions who lived in the same house and who she had denounced. She thus was promptly absolved and released, turning to that institution .

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Snra dona juliana d asemsam estou mto

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sintido pela rezam q vosa m pode emtender
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q temos mta obrigasam a sa santa caza
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E asi noso snor as livre E guarde de
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figuras indo domingo deste mes d agosto
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pera aconpanhar dona giumar emcomtrei
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ho fonseqa q foi seu remdeiro gozandose
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q ja aqela cadela esta em parte segura
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sou testemunha E mais hun ohome q chamo antonio
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criado da snra dona giumar tambem outra pa q se
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dira tambem hua minha cunhada q se chama
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grasia teixeira mais pode vosa m em
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temder q tudo o q eu souber q eu o farei a saber
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noso Snor guarde a Vosas merses
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de inimigos deste seu cazeiro allvaro
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de santo antonio

se for nesesario pero algűa couza e sou

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serto pera o sirviso de vosa m...

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