Statue of Cristo Redentor (Christ the Redeemer) at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

About 90% of Brazilians declare some sort of religious affiliation, which include Roman Catholicism, Pentecostalism, several Protestant denominations, Afro-Brazilian religions, Judaism, and Islam^[1]. Image File history File linksMetadata Brasil. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Brasil. ... Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro Christ the Redeemer (Portuguese: Cristo Redentor) is a large Art Deco-style statue of Jesus Christ in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. ... Location of Rio de Janeiro Coordinates: Country Brazil Region Southeast State Rio de Janeiro Government  - Mayor Cesar Maia (PFL) Area  - City 1,260 km²  (486. ... The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... The Pentecostal movement within Evangelical Christianity places special emphasis on the direct personal experience of God through the baptism of the Holy Spirit, as shown in the Biblical account of the Day of Pentecost. ... Protestantism is a general grouping of denominations within Christianity. ... Afro-American religions are a number of related religions that developed in the Americas among African slaves and their descendants in various countries of the Caribbean Islands and Latin America, as well as parts of the southern United States. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Islam (Arabic:  ) is a monotheistic religion based upon the teachings of Muhammad, a 7th century Arab religious and political figure. ...

Christianity

Brazil's main religion since the 16th century has been Christianity, predominantly Roman Catholicism. This religion was introduced by the missionaries who accompanied the Portuguese explorers and settlers of Brazil. Brazil has the largest number of baptized Roman Catholics on Earth — about 74% of Brazilians claiming to be Catholics. Large Penis's (15th century - 16th century - 17th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 16th century was that century which lasted from 1501 to 1600. ... Christianity is a monotheistic[1] religion centered on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented in the New Testament. ... The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... A missionary is traditionally defined as a propagator of religion who works to convert those outside that community; someone who proselytizes. ...

Popular traditions of Roman Catholicism in Brazil include pilgrimages to the Appeared Lady, Senhora Aparecida, the patron saint of Brazil. Other prominent festivals include Círio in Belém and the Festa do Divino in central Brazil. Saint Quentin is the patron saint of locksmiths and is also invoked against coughs and sneezes. ... Nickname: Belém do Pará Local da cidade de Belém, no estado do Pará State Pará County Belém Government  - Mayor Duciomar Gomes da Costa Area  - City 1,070 km²  (413. ...

Brazil also has many other offshoots of Christianity. These include neo-Pentecostalists, old Pentecostalists and Traditional Protestants (most of them Baptists, Presbyterians, Seventh day Adventists and Methodists) predominantly from Minas Gerais to the South. In the same region, mainly Minas Gerais and São Paulo, large sections of the middle class, about 1-2% of the total population, is Kardecist, sometimes pure, sometimes in syncretism with Roman Catholicism. Protestantism is generally the only religion in Brazil relatively free of syncretism. Centers of neo-Pentecostalism are Londrina in Paraná state, as well the cities of São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Belo Horizonte (capital of Minas Gerais), especially the suburban and nearby areas of these cities. Lutherans are concentrated mostly in the states of Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina and in contryside regions of the states of Rio de Janeiro and Espírito Santo. The Pentecostal movement within Evangelical Christianity places special emphasis on the direct personal experience of God through the baptism of the Holy Spirit, as shown in the Biblical account of the Day of Pentecost. ... Baptist churches are part of a Christian movement often regarded as an Evangelical, Protestant denomination. ... Presbyterianism is part of the Reformed churches family of denominations of Christian Protestantism based on the teachings of John Calvin which traces its institutional roots to the Scottish Reformation, especially as led by John Knox. ... The Seventh-day Adventist Church is a Christian denomination with a worldwide membership of over 14 million and an active presence in most countries of the world. ... The Methodist movement is a group of denominations of Protestant Christianity. ... Flag of Minas Gerais See other Brazilian States Capital Belo Horizonte Largest City Belo Horizonte Area 586,528. ... São Paulo is a state in Brazil. ... The middle class (or middle classes) comprises a social group once defined by exception as an intermediate social class between the nobility and the peasantry. ... Kardecist Spiritism or Kardecism is a spiritualistic doctrine created in the 19th century by Allan Kardec. ... Syncretism is the attempt to reconcile disparate, even opposing, beliefs and to meld practices of various schools of thought. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Londrina is a city located in the northern region of the state of the Paraná, Brazil, and is the 369 km away from the capital, Curitiba. ... Flag of Paraná See other Brazilian States Capital Curitiba Largest City Curitiba Area 199,544 km² Population   - Total   - Density 9,150,000 48 inh. ... Landmark buildings Edifício Italia (at left) and Copan (curved façade at center), in São Paulo Downtown. ... Ipanema beach A NASA satellite image of Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro (meaning River of January in Portuguese) is the name of both a state and a city in southeastern Brazil. ... Nickname: Location in Brazil Coordinates: Country Brazil Region Southeast State Minas Gerais Founded 1701 Incorporated (as city) December 12, 1897 Government  - Mayor Fernando da Mata Pimentel (PT) Area  - City 330. ... The Lutheran movement is a group of denominations of Protestant Christianity by the original definition. ... Flag of Rio Grande do Sul See other Brazilian States Capital Porto Alegre Largest City Porto Alegre Area 282,062 km² Population   - Total   - Density 10. ... Santa Catarina (the Spanish- and Portuguese-language name of St. ... Location of Rio de Janeiro Coordinates: Country Brazil Region Southeast State Rio de Janeiro Government  - Mayor Cesar Maia (PFL) Area  - City 1,260 km²  (486. ... Flag of Espírito Santo See other Brazilian States Capital Vitória Largest City Vila Velha Area 46,184 km² Population   - Total   - Density 3 097 232 58. ...

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints claims a membership nearing 1 million,^[2] or about 0.4% of the population; in the 2000 census, only 199,645 people said they belonged to that denomination.^[3] Also, there were about 1.1 million Jehovah's Witnesses in the census. The Salt Lake Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the largest attraction in the citys Temple Square. ... 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

See also: Demographics of Brazil and Roman Catholicism in Brazil

// Brazil has conducted a periodical population census since 1872. ... The Roman Catholic Church in Brazil is part of the worldwide Roman Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope and curia in Rome. ...

African & Indigenous Religions

African syncretic religions such as Candomblé have millions of followers, mainly Afro-Brazilians. They are concentrated mainly in large urban centers in the Northeast, such as Salvador (Bahia), Recife, or Rio de Janeiro in the Southeast. The capitals of São Paulo, Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina have a great number of followers too, but in the South of Brazil the most common African influenced Ritual is Almas e Angola, which is an Umbanda like ritual. Nowadays in Santa Catarina's capital there are over 70 "Terreiros", which are the places where the rituals run. In addition to Candomblé which is the survival of West African religion, there is also Umbanda which blends Kardecist spiritism, Indigenous and African beliefs. There's still lots of prejudice about "African cults" in Brazil's south, but there are lots of Catholics, Protestants and other kinds of Christians who also believe in the Orishas, so they use to go both to Churches and Terreiros. A world map showing the continent of Africa Africa is the worlds second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. ... Ilê Axé Iya Nassô Oká - Terreiro da Casa Branca Candomblé is an African religion practiced chiefly in Brazil but also in adjacent countries. ... Afro-Brazilian or African Brazilian is the term used to racially categorise Brazilian citizens who are black or part-black, yet it is rarely used in Brazil. ... Salvador and Baía de Todos os Santos from space, April 1997 Salvador (in full, São Salvador da Baía de Todos os Santos, or in literal translation: Holy Savior of All Saints Bay) is a city on the northeast coast of Brazil and the capital of the northeastern... Nickname: Veneza Brasileira (Brazilian Venice) and Mauricéia/Mauritzstad (after the Dutch colonization) Motto: Ut luceat omnibus Latin: That it may shine on all (Matthew 5:15) Location in Brazil Founded March 12, 1537 Incorporated (as village) 1709 Incorporated (as city) 1823 Government  - Mayor João Paulo Lima e Silva... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Flag of Rio Grande do Sul See other Brazilian States Capital Porto Alegre Largest City Porto Alegre Area 282,062 km² Population   - Total   - Density 10. ... Santa Catarina (the Spanish- and Portuguese-language name of St. ... Umbanda is a religion that blends Catholicism, Kardecist Spiritualism, and Afro-Brazilian religions . ... Santa Catarina (the Spanish- and Portuguese-language name of St. ...  Western Africa (UN subregion)  Maghreb[1] West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. ... Umbanda is a religion that blends Catholicism, Kardecist Spiritualism, and Afro-Brazilian religions . ... The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. ... This article is about the type of spirit. ...

Candomblé, Batuque, Xango and Tambor de Mina were originally 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, largely because they were believed to be pagan or even satanic. However, the Brazilian republican government legalized all of them on the grounds of the necessary separation between the State and the Church. Slave redirects here. ... An Orisha, also spelled Orisa and Orixa, is a spirit that reflects one of the manifestations of Olodumare (God) in the Yoruba spiritual or religious system. ... Heathen redirects here. ... Satanas or as it is also known, the almighty Ese Te Ese or STS, has been considered by many to be the oldest and original Filipino-American Los Angeles street gang. ... Forms of government Part of the Politics series Politics Portal This box:      A republic is a form of government maintained by a state or country whose sovereignty is based on popular consent and whose governance is based on popular representation and control. ...

In current practice, Umbanda followers leave offerings of food, candles and flowers in public places for the spirits. Candomblé terreiros are more hidden from general view, except in famous festivals such as Iyemanja Festival and the Waters of Oxala in the Northeast.

From Bahia northwards there is also different practices such as Catimbo, 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 deriviatives are incorporated into African, Spirtitualists and folk religion. Flag of Bahia See other Brazilian States Capital Salvador Largest City Salvador Area 564 273 km² Population   - Total   - Density 13 070 250 23. ... Map of the Amazon rainforest ecoregions as delineated by the WWF. Yellow line encloses the Amazon rainforest. ...

Hinduism

See also: Hinduism in South America Most of the Brazilian Hindus are ethnic East Indians. Significant numbers of White Brazilians have converted to Hinduism in the past few decades, while many others have Hindu leanings, the most prominent feature being the practise of Yoga. 2000 census recorded 2,979 Hindus in Brazil. Hindu communities are found in several countries of South America, but they are most strong in Guyana and Suriname. ... Yoga (Devanagari: योग) is one of the six schools of Hindu philosophy, focusing on meditation as a path to self-knowledge and liberation. ... 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Other Religions

There are small populations of people professing Buddhism, Shinto, Judaism, Islam and a few other religions. Although Jews have been in Brazil since the early 1600s, most of the people who practice these minority religions are 20th century immigrants from East Asia, the Middle East and Eastern Europe, or of recent immigrant descent. Seven percent of the population consider themselves agnostics or atheists, while the remainder call themselves Christians. One of the most unique features of the rich Brazilian spiritual landscape are the sects which use ayahuasca (an Amazonian entheogenic tea), including Santo Daime, União do Vegetal, and Centro de Cultura Cósmica. Buddhism is a dharmic, non-theistic religion and a philosophy. ... Shinto ) is the native religion of Japan and was once its state religion. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... According to the official 2000 census for Islam in Brazil, there were 27,239 Muslims living in the country, primarily concentrated in the states of São Paulo and Paraná. The United States Department of State, however, claims that the census probably undercounts the actual total. ... (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999... Map of the world with countries coloured according to their immigrant population as a percentage of total population: Although human migration has existed throughout human history, immigration in the modern sense refers to movement of people from one nation-state to another. ... East Asia is a subregion of Asia that can be defined in either geographical or cultural terms. ... A map showing countries commonly considered to be part of the Middle East The Middle East is a region comprising the lands around the southern and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Sea, a territory that extends from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. ... Map of Eastern Europe Pre-1989 division between the West (grey) and Eastern Bloc (orange) superimposed on current national boundaries: Russia (dark orange), other countries of the former USSR (medium orange),members of the Warsaw pact (light orange), and other former Communist regimes not aligned with Moscow (lightest orange). ... The term agnosticism and the related agnostic were coined by Thomas Henry Huxley in 1869. ... For information about the band, see Atheist (band). ... Ayahuasca (Quechua, pronounced ) is any of various psychoactive infusions prepared from the Banisteriopsis spp. ... An entheogen, in the strictest sense, is a psychoactive substance (most often some plant matter with hallucinogenic effects) that occasions an enlightening spiritual or mystical experience. ... Santo Daime is a syncretic spiritual practice, which grew out of the Brazilian Amazonian state of Acre in the 1930s and became a worldwide movement in the 1990s. ... União do Vegetal (Centro Espírita Beneficente União do Vegetal or UDV) is a church which is known fundamentally for its usage of Hoasca (or Ayahuasca) as a sacramental entheogenic herbal tea — the vegetal alluded to in the name of the entity. ...

References

1. ^ [1]
2. ^ "Country Profiles: Brazil", Newsroom, Accessed on 2007-04-09.
3. ^ Religion in Brazil (pdf). IBGE (2000). Retrieved on 2007-04-24.

2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini era. ... April 9 is the 99th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (100th in leap years). ... 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the Anno Domini era. ... April 24 is the 114th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (115th in leap years). ...

See also

• Roman Catholicism in Brazil
• Protestantism in Brazil
• Islam in Brazil
• Judaism in Brazil