Brazil Religion Information
The Brazil religion information below is a brief introduction to the religious diversity that exists in Brazil.
Roman Catholicism in Brazil
Brazil's strong Roman Catholic heritage can be
traced to the Iberian missionary zeal, with the fifteenth-century goal
of spreading Christianity to the infidels. In the New World, these
included both Amerindians and African slaves.
In addition to conversion, there were also strong efforts to
enforce compliance with Roman Catholicism, including the Inquisition,
which was not established formally in Brazil but nonetheless functioned
widely in the colonies. In the late nineteenth century, the original
Roman Catholic populace of Iberian origin was reinforced by a large
number of Italian Catholics who immigrated to Brazil, as well as some
Polish and German Catholic immigrants.
According to all the constitutions of the republican period, there is
no state or official religion. In practice, however, separation of
church and state is weak. Government officials generally avoid taking
action that may offend the church.
Brazil is said to be the
largest Roman Catholic country in the world. In 1996 about 76 percent
of the population, or about 122 million people, declared Roman
Catholicism as their religion, as compared with 89 percent in 1980. The
decline may have resulted from a combination of a real loss of
influence and a tendency to be more objective in answering census
questions about religion.
As in most dominant religions, there
is some distance between nominal and practicing Catholics. Brazilians
usually are baptized and married in the Roman Catholic Church. However,
according to the CNBB (National Conference of Brazilian Bishops), only
20 percent of nominal Catholics attend Mass and participate in church
activities, but the figure may be as low as 10 percent. Women attend
Mass more often than men, and the elderly are more active in church
than the young. In the 1990s, charismatic forms of Catholicism used
unconventional approaches, along the line of those used by Pentecostal
Protestant groups, to attempt revitalization and increase active
participation.
Popular or traditional forms of Catholicism are
widespread in the interior of the country. Many Brazilians pray to
figures such as Padre Cícero (a revered priest who lived in Ceará from
1844 to 1934), make pilgrimages to the site of the appearance of
Brazil's patron saint, our Lady of the Appearance (Nossa Senhora
Aparecida), and participate in traditional popular rites and
festivities, such as the Círio in Belém and the Festa do Divino in
central Brazil. Some use expressions of religious origin, such as
asking for a blessing on meeting someone older or responding "God
willing" (
Se Deus quiser) when someone says "See you tomorrow."
During the 1970s, the progressive wing of the church made an "option
for the poor." They were influenced by the doctrine of liberation
theology), in which Brazilian theologians such as Leonardo Boff played
a leading role, and followed the decision of the Latin American
Bishops' Conference in Medellín, Colombia, in 1968. The church
organized Ecclesiastical Base Communities (Comunidades Eclesiais de
Base--CEBs) throughout the country to work for social and political
causes at the local level. During the military regime, the progressive
clergy managed to make the church practically the only legitimate focus
of resistance and defense of human rights. In the early 1990s,
conservative forces, supported by Pope John Paul II, gained power in
the church.
Other Religions in Brazil
Syncretism, the combination of different forms of belief or
practice, has been widespread in Brazil, where Roman Catholicism has
blended with numerous Afro-Brazilian cults. Syncretism occurred partly
because of religious persecution and partly because of the
compatibility of the different belief systems. The most well-known and
socially acceptable combinations are called
umbanda or
candomblé. At one extreme,
umbanda blends in with Kardecian spiritualism. At the other extreme, there is a kind of black magic called
macumba, which can be used for either good or evil purposes. Its practitioners leave offerings of chicken, rum (
cachaça),
flowers, and candles at crossroads, beaches, and other public places.
Kardecian spiritists, as well as Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses, Jews,
and Buddhists, together account for about 3 to 5 percent of the
population, while those declaring that they have no religion total 15
percent.
In recent decades, Protestantism has grown rapidly. The
proportion of the population considered evangelical grew from 3.7
percent in 1960 to 6.6 percent in 1980. The 1991 census showed a
proportion of 19.2 percent, or 28.2 million followers. Nearly half of
Brazil's evangelicals, or 13 million, belong to the Assembly of God.
This and other evangelical or Pentecostal varieties of
Protestantism--Christian Congregation, Universal Church of the Kingdom
of God, Quadrangular Evangelicals, Brazil for Christ, and God and
Love--emphasize brotherhood and religious ceremonies that actively
engage participants in song and chants. The groups that have grown the
most are fundamentalists with strict standards of personal behavior
regarding dress, drinking, smoking, and gambling. They have special
appeal among recent migrants to urban areas or to the frontier, who
have had to adapt to new and difficult circumstances. In contrast to
the formality and central control of the Roman Catholic Church, the
fundamentalist Protestant groups grow rapidly and split and multiply
frequently.
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