Fr Lunkenbein was killed on 15 July 1976 during an attack by armed “fazendeiros” on the village of Meruri. It was the time when the boundaries of the Indian reserves were being decided upon. As well as Fr Lunkenbein Simão Cristino, a native who offered himself to save the life of the Salesian was killed and another four Bororos were wounded: José Rodrigues Boiadowu, Gabriel dos Santos Bakoro Kudu, Lourenço Rondon and Tereza Bororo, the mother of Simão Cristino.
Born on 1 April 1939 at Doringstadt, western Germany the missionary arrived in Brazil in 1958 where the following year he entered the novitiate at Pindamonhangaba. Having returned to Germany for theological studies, he was ordained priest at Benediktbeuern on 29 June 1969.
Back in Brazil he devoted himself entirely to the Bororos, helping them to regain some hope. On his arrival at Meruri Fr Lunkenbein found the population resigned to extinction; infact the women had chosen not to have any children. With a profound religious and practical sense, the Salesian missionary was one of the founders of the Missionary Council of Brazil and of other initiatives on behalf of the native population. The year following the death of Fr Lunkenbein the territorial boundaries of the Bororos were determined at 82 thousand hectares, and registered according to the laws of the country.
Fr Lunkenbein consecrated his whole life to God and to the service of a small tribe to whom he proclaimed the Gospel. The “Marianum in Buxheim”, the Institute where Fr Lunkenbein studied before leaving for the missions, presents the German Salesian to its present day students as an example of dedication.
At Meruri the Bororos and the Salesians remember Fr Lunkenbein with gratitude and esteem. In the courtyard of the Salesian community, there is a small monument dedicated to the two victims of the violence and on the anniversary of their deaths the tombs which are in the village cemetery as the goal of pilgrimages. A small ethnographical and missionary museum is dedicated to Fr Lunkenbein. The death of Simão Cristino is remembered as a sacrifice, as martyrdom.
The Salesians, representatives of the Provinces of Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay and Chile, gathered together for the Team Visit of the America South Cone Region held last March in Santiago, Chile, asked that the cause for canonisation for martyrdom be introduced of Fr Lunkenbein and Simão Cristino. The BCG Province is gathering together witness statements and the necessary documents.
The village of Meruri has grown considerably in the last 35 years. Today the Bororos have recovered their self-esteem the desire for a community life, a knowledge of their own culture and are looking to the future. Many young people have obtained certificates and some are engaged in pastoral activities and a variety of roles in the Church. The many challenges arising from globalisation are being faced calmly and with courage. The work of the Salesians has continued down the years following the example of Fr Lunkenbein. Fr Goncalo Ochoa, a Salesian missionary from Colombia, a friend of Fr Lunkenbein, has in the last 30 years been carrying out research into the culture of the Bororos in collaboration with the Don Bosco Catholic University (UCDB) in Campo Grande.
Fr Lunkenbein was not the only Salesian in the missionary province of Mato Grosso to have given his life for the native peoples. Before him there were Fr José Thannhuber (1920) and Fr João Fuchs and Fr Pedro Sacilotti (1934).
Published 15/07/2011
