Juazeiro do Norte was initially a district
of the nearby city of Crato, until a young Padre Cícero Romão Batista decided
to stay as a cleric in the village. Padre Cícero was then responsible for the
independence and emancipation of the city. Because of the so-called
"milagre de Juazeiro" ("miracle in Juazeiro", when Padre
Cícero gave the sacred host to the religious sister Maria de Araújo, the host
became blood), the priest was associated with mystical characteristics and
began to be venerated by the people as a saint. Today the city is the second
largest in the state and a reference in the
