Religion in Brazil
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The predominant religion in Brazil is
In 1891, when the first Brazilian Republican Constitution was set forth, Brazil ceased to have an official religion and has remained secular ever since, though the Catholic Church remained politically influential into the 1970s. The Constitution of Brazil guarantees freedom of religion and strongly prohibits the establishment of any religion by banning government support or hindrance of religion at all levels.[4]
Overview
Brazilian religions are very diversified and inclined to
Although the Federal Constitution guarantees religious tolerance to all its citizens (see article 5, item VI), it expressly prohibits all entities that make up the Federation to found and finance public cults and state churches controlled and coordinated by the Government - (see article 19, I), since until now the Brazilian State recognizes the "peculiar character" of the Catholic Church under the other religions in its legal system (see Article 16 of Decree 7107/2010), which is why the law recognizes the Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus, as the "patroness of Brazil" (see Article 1 of Law 6,802 / 1980); the Constitution is sworn "under the protection of God" (see Preamble of the Federal Constitution); Catholic holidays (such as the day of Our Lady of Aparecida and the day of Our Lord's birth) are recognized as national holidays by law (see Law 10.607 / 2002, Law 6.802 / 1980); the Catholic religion has an exclusive Law regulating its relationship with the State (see Decree 7107/2010); cities and states bear the name of Catholic saints; Catholic statues are exposed in public offices; the expression "God be praised" is present in all real notes; and religious teaching exclusively Catholic in public schools is permitted in the country (see ADI 4439).[citation needed]
Religious intolerance is a crime in Brazil, and several laws ensure freedom of worship and protection for those who profess their faith. The Federal Constitution of 1988 (Arti.5, Clause IV) guarantees that "freedom of conscience and belief is inviolable, ensuring the free exercise of religious cults and guaranteeing, in accordance with the law, the protection of places of worship and their liturgies."[14]
The Brazilian Penal Code (Decree-Law 2,848/1940), establishes as a crime the act of "publicly mock someone based on their beliefs or religious function, stop or disturb a religious ceremony or practice, or publicly disrespect acts or objects of religious worship." The penalty for these acts is imprisonment for one month to one year or a fine. Law n. 14.532/2023 added paragraph three to Article 140 of the Penal Code, which determines that, in the case of the crime of insult, if it consists of elements related to religion or the condition of an elderly or disabled person, the penalty for the crime will be imprisonment for one to three years and a fine.
Demographics
2010 Census:[1]
- Christianity: 169,329,176 - 88.77%
- Roman Catholicism: 123,280,172 - 64.63%
- Protestantism: 42,275,440 - 22.16%
- Other Christians: 3,773,564 - 1.98%
- No religion: 15,335,510 - 8.04%
- Other religions: 6,091,113 - 3.19%
Christianity
Catholicism
Brazil has the largest number of Catholics in the world.
During colonial times, there was no freedom of religion. All Portuguese settlers and Brazilians were compulsorily bound to the Catholic faith and were bound to pay tithes to the church. After Brazilian independence, the
The Catholic faith practiced in Brazil is full of popular festivities rooted in centuries-old Portuguese traditions, but also heavily influenced by African and
The largest proportion of Catholics is concentrated in the
Alternatively, in the 20th century, former Catholic bishop Carlos Duarte Costa founded the Brazilian Catholic Apostolic Church after disagreements with clerical celibacy and other doctrines.
Protestantism
Protestantism in Brazil largely originated with American missionaries in the second half of the 19th century, following up on efforts that began in the 1830s.
As of the year 2000, the largest proportion of Protestants was found in
Orthodoxy
The
Jehovah's Witnesses
In 2022, according to the denomination, Brazil had 909,879 Jehovah's Witnesses with 12,439 congregations and a ratio of 1 Witness to 238 residents.[21] However, the 2010 census reported nearly 1.4 million people listed themselves as members.[1]
Latter-day Saints
The 2010 national census reported 226,509 people identifying as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints;[22] This is very different from the church's reported membership, in 2012, of 1,173,533[23] causing some to question the membership numbers reported by the LDS church.[24]
The church also reports 1940 congregations and 315 family history centers.[23] The LDS Church now also has 6 temples spread out across the nation, in Campinas, Curitiba, Manaus, Porto Alegre, Recife, and São Paulo, with additional temples under construction or announced in Fortaleza, Rio de Janeiro, Belém, Brasília, and Salvador.
Church president Spencer W. Kimball dedicated the São Paulo Brazil Temple on October 30, 1978. On October 4, 2020, President Russell M. Nelson announced that the church would build a second temple in São Paulo.[25]
Non-Christian religions
There are small populations of people professing
African and indigenous religions
Candomblé, Umbanda, Batuque, Xango, and Tambor de Mina are Afro-Brazilian religions influenced by the native cults brought by black slaves shipped from Africa to Brazil. These black slaves would summon their gods, called Orixas, Voduns, or Inkices with chants and dances they had brought from Africa. These cults were persecuted throughout most of Brazilian history,[citation needed] largely because they were believed to be pagan or even satanic. However, the Brazilian republic government legalized all of them on the grounds of the necessary separation between the State and the Church in 1889.
In current practice, Umbanda followers leave offerings of food, candles, and flowers in public places for the spirits. Candomblé terreiros have similar practices, and there are a number of festivals that occur yearly especially in the Northeast, with celebrations such as the famous Iyemanja Festival and the Waters of Oxala.
From Bahia northwards there are different practices such as Catimbo, and Jurema with heavy indigenous elements. All over the country, but mainly in the Amazon rainforest, there are many Indians still practicing their original traditions. Many of their beliefs and use of naturally occurring plant derivatives are incorporated into African, Spiritualists, and folk religions.
These religions have suffered increasing hostility from Protestant churches, with attacks on temples and the defacement of statues of the gods.[26][27] In recent years measures have been taken to counter religious conflict.[26]
Spiritism
Buddhism
Judaism
The first Jews arrived in Brazil as cristãos-novos (
In 1630, the Dutch conquered portions of northeast Brazil and permitted the open practice of any religion. Many Jews came from the Netherlands to live in Brazil in an area dominated by the Dutch. Most of them were descendants of the Portuguese Jews who had been expelled from Portugal in 1497. In 1636, the Kahal Zur Israel Synagogue, the first synagogue in the Americas was built in Recife, the capital of Dutch Brazil.[29] The original building remains to this day,[30] but the Jews were forced to leave Brazil when the Portuguese-Brazilians retook the land in 1654.[31]
The first Jews that stayed in Brazil and openly practiced their religion came when the first Brazilian constitution granted freedom of religion in 1824, just after the independence. They were mainly Moroccan Jews.
The first wave of Sephardic Jews was exceeded by the larger wave of immigration by Ashkenazi Jews that came at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th centuries, mainly from Russia, Poland, Belarus and Ukraine. A final significant group came, fleeing Nazism or the destruction that followed World War II.
Brazil has the second-largest Jewish population in Latin America of 120,000 people, making up a total of 0.06% of Brazil's population.[32] As of 2017, Rio de Janeiro's Jewish population was 22,000, with 24 active synagogues and São Paulo has a Jewish population of 44,000.[32]
Islam
By Pew in 2010, there are 204,000 Muslims in Brazil, representing 0.1% of the total population.[33] The Federation of Muslim Associations of Brazil estimates there are about 1.5 million Muslims and others say about 400,000 to 500,000. There are over 150 mosques where Muslims perform their daily prayers.
A recent trend has been the increase in conversions to Islam among non-Arab citizens.[37]
Hinduism
Most of the Brazilian Hindus are ethnic East Indians. However, there are new converts due to the missionary effects of Hare Krishnas.
There are as many as 1500 PIOs in the Indian community in Brazil, and only 400 NRIs since foreign nationals can acquire local citizenship without any discrimination after 15 years of domicile in this country. Brazil has also no bar against dual citizenship. But in recent years, it has been granting immigration visas only in high technology fields. The only exceptions are the
Besides the PIOs, there are
Positivist Church of Brazil
Many confuse Spiritism with Afro-Brazilian Religions like Umbanda, Candomblé, and others that have a following of almost 600,000 adherents. One of the most unusual features of the rich Brazilian spiritual landscape are the sects that use ayahuasca (an Amazonian entheogenic tea), including Santo Daime, União do Vegetal, and Centro de Cultura Cósmica. This syncretism, coupled with ideas prevalent during the military dictatorship, has resulted in a church for the secular, based on philosopher Auguste Comte's principles of positivism, based at the Positivist Church of Brazil in Rio de Janeiro. [citation needed]
Baháʼí Faith
The
Japanese New Religions
There are, in Brazil, many followers of Japanese new Religions like Oomoto, PL Kyodan, Seicho-no-Ie and the Church of World Messianity. The total number of adherents, if merged, maybe in the hundreds of thousands. [citation needed]
Beliefs
A 2007 poll, made by Datafolha and published in newspaper
- Belief in God and the Devil
- 97% of Brazilians reported believing in God; 2% have doubts and 1% do not believe in God.
- 75% reported believing in the Devil, 9% have doubts and 15% do not believe in the Devil.
- 81% of those non-religious reported believing in God.
- About Jesus Christ
- 93% Reported they believe Jesus Christ rose after death; 92% that the virgin; 77% that Jesus will return to Earth at the end of time; 65% that the sacramental bread is the body of Jesus; 64% that after death some people go to Heaven; 58% that after death some people go to Hell and 60% that there is life after death.
- Belief in saints
- 57% Believe there are saints.
- 49% Pray for the intercession of a saint (68% among self-declared Catholics).
- 18% Pray for the intercession of Saint Francis of Assisi and Saint Joseph(2% each).
- About the Catholic priests
- 51% Believe some priests respect chastity, 31% most, 8% none, and 4% they all do.
- 66% That priests should be allowed to marry (59% among Catholics and 94% among followers of Candomblé).
- About the sexual abuse scandals involving priests, 38% believe some of the complaints are true, 30% most are, 21% all are and 4% none of them.
- About different religions
- About the sentence "Catholics do not practice their religion", 19% reported agreeing completely and 41% agreed, but not completely.
- About the sentence "the Protestants are misled by their priests", 61% agreed (77% among the Kardecists, 67% among Catholics and 45% among Protestants).
- About the sentence "Umbanda is a Devil thing", 57% agreed (83% among Evangelical Protestants, 53% among Catholics and 12% among Umbandists).
- About the sentence "Jews only think about money", 49% agreed. 51% disagreed.
- About the sentence "Muslims advocate terrorism", 49% agreed. 51% disagreed.
Freedom of religion
In 2023, the country was scored 4 out of 4 for religious freedom;[43] it was noted Afro-Brazilian religious groups face considerable discrimination and violence.
Regional data
Region | Catholic (%) | Protestant (%) | Spiritism (%) | Afro-Brazilian religion (%) | Other (%) | Irreligion (%) | Asian religions (%) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Piauí | 85.1 | 9.7 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 1.4 | 3.4 | 0.0 |
Alagoas | 79.2 | 9.9 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 6.5 | 4.7 | 0.1 |
Ceará | 78.8 | 14.6 | 0.6 | 0.0 | 1.8 | 4.0 | 0.2 |
Paraíba | 77.0 | 15.1 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 1.4 | 5.7 | 0.1 |
Sergipe | 76.4 | 11.8 | 1.1 | 0.2 | 1.9 | 8.1 | 0.5 |
Rio Grande do Norte | 76.0 | 15.4 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 1.4 | 10.4 | 0.0 |
Maranhão | 74.5 | 17.2 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 1.5 | 6.3 | 0.3 |
Santa Catarina | 73.1 | 20.0 | 1.2 | 0.2 | 1.8 | 3.3 | 0.4 |
Minas Gerais | 70.4 | 20.2 | 2.1 | 0.0 | 2.3 | 3.9 | 1.1 |
Rio Grande do Sul | 68.8 | 18.3 | 3.2 | 1.5 | 2.3 | 5.3 | 0.6 |
Tocantins | 68.3 | 23.0 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 2.2 | 5.9 | 0.4 |
Paraná | 67.7 | 22.2 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 2.6 | 4.6 | 2.9 |
Pernambuco | 65.9 | 20.3 | 1.4 | 0.1 | 1.8 | 10.4 | 1.7 |
Bahia | 65.2 | 17.4 | 1.1 | 0.3 | 4.0 | 12.0 | 0.0 |
Brazil | 64.6 | 22.2 | 2.0 | 0.1 | 3.1 | 8.0 | 2.2 |
Pará | 63.7 | 25.8 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 2.1 | 7.0 | 0.9 |
Amapá | 63.5 | 28.0 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 2.3 | 5.5 | 0.3 |
Mato Grosso | 63.4 | 24.5 | 1.3 | 0.1 | 3.0 | 6.6 | 1.1 |
São Paulo | 60.1 | 24.1 | 3.3 | 0.3 | 4.1 | 5.1 | 3.0 |
Goiás | 58.8 | 28.1 | 2.5 | 0.0 | 2.5 | 8.1 | 0.0 |
Amazonas | 58.3 | 31.2 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 2.9 | 6.0 | 1.2 |
Mato Grosso do Sul | 57.4 | 26.5 | 1.9 | 0.0 | 3.0 | 9.2 | 2.0 |
Federal District | 56.6 | 25.8 | 3.5 | 0.2 | 3.7 | 9.2 | 1.0 |
Espírito Santo | 52.2 | 33.1 | 1.0 | 0.2 | 2.0 | 10.4 | 1.1 |
Acre | 51.9 | 32.7 | 0.6 | 0.0 | 2.9 | 11.8 | 0.1 |
Roraima | 47.9 | 30.3 | 0.9 | 0.1 | 6.6 | 13.0 | 1.2 |
Rondônia | 47.6 | 33.8 | 0.6 | 0.0 | 3.7 | 13.3 | 1.0 |
Rio de Janeiro | 45.8 | 29.4 | 4.0 | 0.9 | 4.3 | 14.6 | 1.0 |
See also
- Demographics of Brazil
- Roman Catholicism in Brazil
- Protestantism in Brazil
- Islam in Brazil
- Judaism in Brazil
- Baháʼí Faith in Brazil
- Hinduism in Brazil
- Buddhism in Brazil
- Religion in Latin America
Pie Chart notes
- ^ a b Does not include the Brazilian Catholic Apostolic Church, which broke away from Rome in 1945.
References
- ^ a b c d e IBGE – Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (Brazilian Institute for Geography and Statistics). 2010 Census. Retrieved 7 August 2012.
- ^ "2010 Population Census - General characteristics of population, religion, and persons with disabilities (Portuguese)". ibge.gov.br (in Portuguese). 16 November 2012. Archived from the original on 16 November 2012. Retrieved 10 August 2019.
{{cite web}}
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- ^ a b "Brazil". Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs. Retrieved 12 December 2011.
- ^ "50% dos brasileiros sao catholicos, 31%, evangelicos e 10% nao tem religiao" says Datafolha, Politca, globo.com, 2020
- ^ "Nordeste e Sul são últimos 'bastiões' católicos do Brasil". G1. 29 June 2013. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
- ^ Carneiro, Júlia Dias (29 June 2012). "Nordeste e Sul são últimos 'bastiões' católicos do Brasil". BBC Brazil. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
- ^ a b "Transição religiosa no Brasil: 1940-2032".
- ^ a b "As evangelicals gain, Catholics on verge of losing majority in Brazil". National Catholic Reporter. 5 February 2020.
- ^ Astor, Michael (1 January 2005). "Once-Barred Practice Flourishes in Brazil. African-Influenced Candomble Challenged by Pentecostals, Modern Interpretations". The Washington Post. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
- ^ "Decreased the number of Catholic and African religions. Increased the number of Protestants (Census 2000)".
- ^ Somer Wiggins. Followers of Brazil’s Umbanda religion worship despite discrimination. July 2, 2012. McClatchy. Accessed August 8, 2012.
- ^ IBOPE - Instituto Brasileiro de Opinião e Estatística. Pesquisa de Opinião Pública sobre Criacionismo. Dec. 2004. Accessed 2008-11-03
- ^ "Constituição". www.planalto.gov.br (in Brazilian Portuguese). 1988. Archived from the original on 20 August 2023. Retrieved 22 August 2023.
- ^ IBGE - Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (Brazilian Institute for Geography and Statistics). 2000 Census. Accessed 2007-04-24
- ^ "Folha Online - Mundo - Estagnação econômica explica recuo do catolicismo no Brasil, diz FGV - 20/04/2005". www1.folha.uol.com.br.
- ^ IBGE - Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística (Brazilian Institute for Geography and Statistics). Notícias - Estudo revela 60 anos de transformações sociais no país. Accessed 2008-11-03.
- ^ Patrícia Birman, and Márcia Pereira Leite. "Whatever Happened to What Used to Be the Largest Catholic Country in the World?" Daedalus (2000) 129#2 pp. 271-290 in JSTOR
- ^ "Folha de S.Paulo. 64% dos brasileiros se declaram católicos".
- ^ "G1 > Brasil - NOTÍCIAS - Em 60 anos, Brasil ficou mais mestiço, evangélico e 'casado'". g1.globo.com.
- ^ 2022 Service Year Report of Jehovah’s Witnesses Worldwide
- Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística. Retrieved 21 March 2013.
- ^ a b "Brazil - LDS Statistics and Church Facts". The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Retrieved 17 September 2012.
- ^ Stack, Peggy Fletcher (16 July 2012). "Brazil mystery: Case of the missing Mormons (913,045 of them, to be exact)". Salt Lake City Tribune. Retrieved 3 March 2015.
- ^ Toone, Trent (4 October 2020). "6 new temples announced by President Nelson, including another Utah location". Deseret News. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
- ^ a b Neo-Pentecostalism and Afro-Brazilian religions: explaining the attacks on symbols of the African religious heritage in contemporary Brazil. Translation from: Mana, Rio de Janeiro, v.13 n.1, p. 207-236, Apr. 2007.
- ^ Phillips, Dom (6 February 2015). "Afro-Brazilian religions struggle against Evangelical hostility". The Washington Post. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
- ^ Moreira-Almeida, Alexander (2008). Allan Kardec and the development of a research program in psychic experiences
- ^ a b Oreck, Alden. The Virtual Jewish History Tour: Brazil. Jewish Virtual Library. Accessed 2008-06-09
- ^ Synagogue in Brazilian town Recife considered oldest in the Americas. Haaretz 2007-11-12. Accessed 2008-06-09
- ISBN 0-7658-0660-6
- ^ a b "The Jewish Community in Brazil". Beit Hatfutsot. Retrieved 12 March 2020.
- ^ "Table: Muslim Population by Country". Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project. 27 January 2011. Retrieved 10 July 2021.
- ISBN 1-55876-378-3.
- ^ Joao Jose Reis, Slave Rebellion in Brazil: The Muslim Uprising of 1835 in Bahia, Johns Hopkins University Press, London 1993
- ^ Steven Barboza, American Jihad, 1993
- ^ "Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor International Religious Freedom Report 2009" October 26, 2009, US Department of State report on Brazil
- ^ Lamb, Artemus (November 1995). The Beginnings of the Baháʼí Faith in Latin America: Some Remembrances, English Revised and Amplified Edition. West Linn, OR: M L VanOrman Enterprises.
- ^ "QuickLists: Most Baha'i Nations (2010)". Association of Religion Data Archives. 2010. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
- ^ Data Folha - Opinião Pública. 64% dos brasileiros se declaram católicos 2007-05-05. Accessed 200-11-03
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- ^ "Notícias Gospel - Home". Notícias Gospel.
- ^ Freedom House website, retrieved 2023-08-08
- ^ «Censo 2010». IBGE
- ^ «Análise dos Resultados/IBGE Censo Demográfico 2010: Características gerais da população, religião e pessoas com deficiência» (PDF)