BLESSED ANTÔNIO GALVÃO was born in São Paulo, Brazil in 1739 and entered the Friars Minor on April 15, 1760.   He made his novitiate and was ordained a priest in 1762. He served most of his life in São Paulo, and he was such a zealous priest that he was called “the saint of charity and peace”.   Everywhere he went, he fostered devotion to Mary the Mother of God and to the Blessed Sacrament.
A group of holy women lived together and asked Father Galvão to be their guide. He was the confessor of Sister Helena of the Holy Spirit, and she asked Father Galvão to help her found a contemplative community, living the vows and practicing works of charity. He consulted the bishop, who gave his consent. The sisters based their way of life on the Conceptionist-Poor Clare Rule; but they took care of the poor, slaves, and others in distress. The nuns also had uninterrupted adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. Antônio de Sant’ Anna Galvão was beatified by Pope John Paul II on October 25, 1998.