Aloísio Sebastião Boeing

Aloísio Sebastião Boeing was a Brazilian Roman Catholic priest and a professed member of the Congregation of the Sacred Stigmata, commonly known as the Stigmatines. He was born on 24 December 1913 in São Leopoldo, in the southern state of Rio Grande do Sul, into a German-Brazilian Catholic family. The Stigmatines, founded by Saint Gaspar Bertoni, had established houses among the immigrant communities of southern Brazil, and it was in that setting that Boeing discerned a religious vocation. He entered the congregation, completed his formation, and was ordained to the priesthood in 1940. From then until his death he lived as a religious priest, bound by the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, and he never married.

His priestly life was marked above all by the ministry of confession and spiritual direction. For many years, especially after he was assigned to work in Santa Catarina, he spent long hours in the confessional, remaining available to penitents from early morning until late in the day. People from the surrounding region and from farther afield sought him out, and he acquired a reputation for patience, discretion, humility, and a gift of counsel. Within his congregation he also served in roles connected with formation and community life. Those who knew him described a simple, austere manner of living consistent with the Stigmatine charism, together with a steady Marian piety.

Boeing became closely associated with Jaraguá do Sul, in the state of Santa Catarina, and with the promotion of devotion to Our Lady of Fatima there. He encouraged lay participation in that devotion and was linked to the development of the local Marian shrine dedicated to Our Lady of Fatima, which later became the principal place associated with his memory. He continued this pastoral work into old age, remaining a sought-after confessor until shortly before his death. He died in Jaraguá do Sul on 17 April 1991.

A reputation for holiness persisted after his death, and a cause for beatification was introduced in the local Church. Pope Francis recognized his heroic virtues, thereby declaring him Venerable, and subsequently approved a miracle attributed to his intercession. Boeing was beatified in 2022 in Jaraguá do Sul in the name of Pope Francis. His liturgical memorial is kept on 17 April, the anniversary of his death. He has not been canonized, and no official list of patronages has been attached to his cult. He is commonly remembered in Brazil as Padre Boeing or Blessed Aloísio Boeing.