Bom Jesus da Lapa is a municipality in

Bahia Bahia ( , , ; meaning "bay") is one of the 26 states of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region of the country. It is the fourth-largest Brazilian state by population (after São Paulo, Minas Gerais, and Rio de Janeiro) and the 5th-largest b ...

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

located from the state capital. The population as of 2020 was recorded at 69,662 according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics. The city covers a total area of along the banks of the São Francisco River. Its economy is based on agriculture, commerce, tourism and fishing. The current mayor is Eures Ribeiro Pereira. It is the site of the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Bom Jesus da Lapa The Roman Catholic Diocese of Bom Jesus da Lapa ( la, Dioecesis Spelaeopolitana a Bono Iesu) is a diocese located in the city of Bom Jesus da Lapa in the Ecclesiastical province of Vitória da Conquista in Brazil. History * 22 July 1962: Establ ...

. The city is home to the third largest Catholic festival in Brazil, known as the ''Romaria'' (Portuguese for "Procession" or "Pilgrimage") of Bom Jesus drawing as many as 800,000 visitors or ''"Romeiros"'' to the city annually. For this reason, the city is known as "Capital Baiana da Fé" (The Bahian Capital of Faith). Bom Jesus da Lapa is distinguished by other cities in the region by its Gothic style wall and nearby caves.

History

It is one of the older towns in Brazil being founded in 1693. It did not reach the status of city until 1953. The name means "Good Jesus of the Grotto." This might relate to a nearby cavern that naturally had "church-like" structures so was converted to a chapel. The chapel began in the seventeenth century and is a significant pilgrimage site in Brazil.

History

Transportation

References

External links