Brother Diego José de Cadiz - Andalusia

This statue is located in the Jardins de la Alameda Hermanas Carvia Bernal y Clara Campoamor near the Baluarte de la Candelaria.

Diego José de Cádiz (1743-1801) was a Spanish Capuchin friar who was a well-known and popular preacher throughout Andalusia in the 18th century. In 1894 he was beatified by the Catholic Church.

He was born in Cadiz in 1743. His mother died when he was 9 years old. Later his father moved the family to the town of Grazalema , where he attended the local Dominican school. In his youth, Joseph made no headway in school and earned the nickname "Head of Caddies." He was initially rejected by the practicing Franciscan friars because of this perceived intellectual limitation, but was later accepted by the Capuchin friars and entered their novitiate in Seville at the age of 15.

In 1771, after further training in homiletics, he was assigned to one of the friars who preached the parish mission to the inhabitants of remote country villages, which was then one of the priorities of the Capuchins. He was known for the tender love he showed for the crucifix he held while preaching , and for the unique power of his words, which touched his listeners and left an impression on their lives. He traveled all over the peninsula on foot.

This uneducated man became a famous preacher in Spain. One day, while he was preaching, a boy called out loudly in the church: “Mother, mother, look at the dove resting on Father Didacus' shoulder !

Spain experienced changes in its intellectual climate as the influence of the Enlightenment began to spread to the country's upper classes. In 1783 he preached at the royal court , but had no effect on the nobility . Disappointed, he left Madrid and later wrote: "I don't want the royal couple to remember me."

He was made an officer of the Inquisition.

He died in 1801, apparently of yellow fever , at Ronda, aged 58.

He was in 1894 by Pope Leo XIII. beatified :

There are three miraculous events in his life, all of which took place in Cadiz's central square. In one of them, he was able to save the life of a construction worker who had fallen off the roof by stopping his fall with one hand. Another time, a priest passed him when he was about to administer last rites to a dying man . When the acolyte accompanying the priest pointed out to the monk that he had not removed his hood (the usual form of reverence for the Blessed Sacrament that the priest would wear), Didacus said to him, "Tell the priest that the ciborium is empty. " . It turned out. On another occasion, a heavy downpour hit the city. The square where Dídac was preaching at the time was the only place where it didn't rain.

Willem Vandenameele