Francisco Cândido Xavier (April 2, 1910 - June 30, 2002), popularly known as "Chico Xavier", was the most popular and prolific medium in 20th century Brazil's Kardecist Spiritism movement. Over his life he wrote over 400 books, using a process known as psychography, where his hand was said to be guided by spirits that wanted to leave a written message, or sometimes entire books. Some of his books are considered by brazilian spiritists followers to be fundamental for the comprehension of the practical aspects of the doctrine.
Chico Xavier was a respected figure, even by its opponents from other religious denominations. He kept a life of humbleness and parcimony, using all income from the books he wrote and donations received for charity activities. His appearances on TV talk shows in the late 1960s and early 1970s helped to stablish Kardecist Spiritism as one of the main religions professed in Brazil. At the peak of his activities, it was common for celebrities to visit his home at the city of Uberaba for moral and spiritual advice, or just for talking. The fact that he was never caught cheating or making miraculous promises regarding spiritual events over his exceedingly long career added credibility to his image. He often stressed the point that none of the abilities attributed to him was really his, but that he was only a channel for the work of the spirits; that he was not able to produce any miracle, such as healing people, and he could not contact someone that was dead, unless that person were willing to be contacted. Nevertless, he was not able (or didn't care, according to his followers) to produce scientific evidence, under controlled circumstances, to convince skeptics of the real nature of his work.
Chico Xavier was recommended for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1981 and 1989. Although he didn't win either of the nominations, his popularity remained unchanged in Brazil. Despite his health problems, he kept working up to his death, in June 30, 2002.
His death was marked by a strange coincidence, as he died in the same day Brazil's highly popular soccer team won the 2002 World Cup. It was said then by his followers that he wanted to avoid to have his death to cause sorrow for the Brazilian people, and so chose a happy day for it to happen.