Seeking to mobilize Catholics in the struggle for a re-Christianization of the Brazilian state, Pedro Sinzig stood out in the professional press by playing a key role in organizing Vozes de Petrópolis (Petrópolis' Voices) and the Centro da Boa Imprensa (Good Press Center). In an attempt to dialogue with readers impervious to essays, the Franciscan engaged in the production of fictional texts, writing his first "contemporary romance" in 1911. Such texts interwove facts and fiction, and intended to win new readers for Catholic literature. Based on the discussion of the novel Não desanimar!, this article analyzes the use of literature as a tool for the re-Christianization of the Brazilian State in the beginning of the Republican regime.
Pedro Sinzig; Catholic literature; re-Christianization of the Republic