Paper short abstract:

The Afro-Catholic Sisterhood of Our Lady of Good Death, in Cachoeira (Brazil), is a lay Catholic organization whose members are old women of African descent. Our contribution is a film, based on encounters and interviews with some sisters, which illustrate the meaning of death in this context.

Paper long abstract:

The Afro-Catholic Sisterhood of Our Lady of Good Death (Boa Morte), in the rural town of Cachoeira in the Recôncavo region of the state of Bahia in northeastern Brazil, is a lay Catholic organization whose members are old women, over 60 years, of African descent initiated into Candomblé. The Sisterhood was founded by freed slaves in the early 19th century. Today, the celebration of the festival of Our Lady of Boa Morte -recognized from 2009 as World Heritage in Bahia- is the sisterhood's primary reason for being. During the six days of the festival, which occurs in mid-August, this women commemorates the death and the assumption of the Virgin Mary directly to heaven. The notion of "good death", constructed upon the insights of dignity and community, is at the center of the sisters' discourse. Through images and discourses, our contribution is a film, based on encounters and interviews with some sisters during a short stay in Cachoeira on November of 2010, which illustrate The Sisterhood of Our Lady of Good Death and the meaning of death in this context.