Sister Dorothy Stang: Angel of the Amazon by Tina Neyer A version of this article appeared in the February 2012 issue of St. Anthony Messenger
A
ngel of the Amazon is an American opera written and composed by Evan Mack, a young man who exhibits great zeal for Sister Dorothy Stang, a Sister of Notre Dame de Namur who was assassinated in 2005 in the Amazon rain forest. Sister Dorothy worked for 40 years defending the rights of poor farmers who had been granted land by the Brazilian government. The farmers struggled to gain access to the land, though, due to the greed of a small number of wealthy cattle ranchers and loggers. She was murdered for her stand. Heroic Life From 1966 until her death, Sister Dorothy championed the cause of peasant farmers who have
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been denied land for decades. She taught farmers how to preserve the land while growing food to sustain themselves. Her focus on the importance of community helped her to develop plans in each settlement to build a school, a chapel and a gathering place for adults along the Trans-Amazonian Highway. The opera embodies Sister Dorothy’s struggle, portraying one logger in particular and the government officials charged with overseeing land grants to populate the highway. Throughout the opera’s 90-minute journey, Sister Dorothy’s mission is clearly spelled out. Mack has focused on the last six days of her life, with flashbacks to bring the audience along, exposing the complicated nature of the struggle between the wealthy ranchers and the poor in Brazil. He shows how Sister Dorothy worked every day to empower the poor to own their right to the land. She struggled to work with the government, the local bishop, and the loggers and ranchers. Mack says the production reflects grassroots efforts to fight to save the Amazon rain forest.
