Bishop Macedo,

I am a survivor of the Osasco tragedy that you witnessed exactly 15 years ago. I was there, on that Friday morning, when the roof of the Church fell all of a sudden.

We lost family members, friends and acquaintances, but we did not fall away from the faith. We mourned with you and all of the Universal family, but we never turned our eyes away from the Altar. The account you wrote about in your book “Nothing to Lose 2” is as moving as it is real.

Our suffering was deeply profound, surpassed only by the certainty that “all things work together for good to those who love God.”

On the 25^th, which was also a Friday night, this conviction was renewed.

A concentration of faith, held by Bishop Jadson Santos, brought more than 4,000 people to the Universal Church in the city of Osasco.

More than a thousand extra chairs had to be placed throughout our temple, which shows that many still thirst to know the living God.

The result is that thousands of lives continue being saved in Osasco and, what’s most impressive: cathedrals have spread throughout the world and, soon, at its inauguration, we will set our eyes on the splendid Temple of Solomon!

The same God that was with us that morning continues to guide the Universal Church today.

Bishop, it’s difficult to explain this joy!

Jeferson Ricardo da Silva, an assistant in Osasco for 18 years.