José Gabriel del Rosario Brochero (1840–1914)

Biography

Argentine priest known as "Cura Brochero", José Gabriel del Rosario Brochero evangelized the mountains of Córdoba by traveling through them on muleback. He built roads, schools, irrigation ditches and churches, and led thousands of people to spiritual exercises. During a cholera epidemic he cared for the sick without reserve. His closeness to the poor was direct and simple: he shared their language, their table and their difficulties. He contracted leprosy while serving a sick person and ended up blind, but he continued to offer his life for the people entrusted to his care.