Grateful for so many benefits obtained through the intercession of Dona Lucilia, Maria Cristina Martins, of São Paulo, does not neglect to acknowledge the help of this maternal lady: “I very much desire that this lady become a Saint recognized by the Church, because she distributes many gifts to countless people, especially to those of little faith.”

And, in order to propagate one of these countless favours, she narrates an important episode of her life, which occurred in the Cemetery of Consolation, where she worked at the time:

“I was with my husband, Adelino Pedro da Silva, decorating tombs, when another florist entered the cemetery telling me that she had a demon within her and that she would kill me. She pulled out a 32-caliber gun, aimed and fired three times. None of the shots hit me.

“At this moment my husband threw himself at her to try to disarm her. She said she would shoot him, and she did. He was struck by a bullet and fell to the ground. He invoked Dona Lucilia, asking her not to allow him to die, and I also prayed to her: ‘Dona Lucilia, save my husband!’”

Adelino, her husband, recounts what happened next: “By a miracle of God, the bullet hit a wooden crucifix I was wearing, and it and deflected to the right. I began to feel a lot of pain, but there was almost no blood visible, because most of the bleeding was internal. I remembered all the times I brought flowers to Dona Lucilia, and asked: ‘Dona Lucilia, do not let me die like this. I implore your intercession before God, because you are an advocate before Him. I do not dare ask directly, because perhaps He would not answer me. But asking through your intercession, I feel stronger.

“I was admitted to Mercy Hospital and I am always amazed that I am still alive today. Dona Lucilia is a true Saint! She saved me! The doctors operated on me, but they did not remove the bullet because they saw that it would cause no problem. Thank God everything went well, and it was not long before I was discharged by the doctor. I still have the bullet lodged in my chest.”