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Maarten Janssen, 2014-

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[1619-1621]. Carta de soror Dona Joana Baptista, freira, para destinatário desconhecido.

Author(s) Joana Baptista      
Addressee(s) Anónimo284      
In English

Private letter from soror Dona Joana Baptista, nun, to an unknown recipient.

The author asks that the addressee take pity on a nun who, in her opinion, was unjustly denounced. She lists a series of facts that attest that the woman in question has been victim of false testimony on the part of her enemies. She also explains the reasons for the conflict between the parties.

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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[1]

he grãde ha fama da vertude e zelo e carida

[2]
de de vosa merse q iso me deu animo pera fazer esta
[3]
e pedir por ha paixão des ponha hos olhos de pia
[4]
dade ē rafaela de s antonio pera ha mãndar tratar
[5]
e alumiála porq muitas enemigas e depois
[6]
q hae sta se descubrirão mtas ela não caira em quē
[7]
a culpou porq ca se mostravã suas amigas e ter
[8]
lheiã feito mto mal porq como souberã q ela fora
[9]
ha q acuzou ē segredo ha mor parte da fazēda
[10]
e ouro e prata q ficou nesta casa de lopo diz e seus
[11]
filhos ao fico e a poder d escumunhõs a tirarão da
[12]
mão destas enenimigas a que ficou ētregue esta
[13]
mina porq a não gastarão lhe tomarão tão
[14]
grãde odio e detreminãcão i vingarse dela e a
[15]
cumularãose todos pelo todos seus parētes
[16]
pera lhe fazērē mal porq quãdo a prēde
[17]
rão todas as q ca estão folgarão por o
[18]
mau trato q se lhe dava porq sēpre
[19]
lhe dava mas novas das da nasão seus parētes
[20]
delas fazias desatinar ela não falava ē ne
[21]
nhũ ne cõversava as da nasão eles e las
[22]
lhe tinhã tão grãde odio q nos faz pareser
[23]
q por se vingarē dela a culparão
[24]
rimão conigo la de cũbra q chão

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