Pentecostelism's Growth in the Favelas

While it's no major news that Pentecostelism has grown in Brazil in the last 25 years in both urban and rural areas (at least in the rural areas, I've heard accounts of how it helped people climb out of alcoholism and spousal abuse and rescue their family lives), the Christian Science Monitor has a piece up about the growth of Pentecostelism in the favelas. It isn't nearly as detailed or researched as it should be, but it offers a decent generalized account of the growth rates and (extremely) generalized explanations of Pentecostelism's growth in the favelas.

I would add several things, though. It isn't just in the favelas - it's everywhere in Rio. There are at least 3 Pentecostal churches within 2 blocks of my house, yet only 2 Catholic churches near it, both at least 5 blocks away. Also, the article barely (and very generically) touches upon one of the reasons Pentecostelism is growing in popularity: social conditions. Unlike Catholicism, which has traditionally said "if you're poor/miserable, your reward awaits you in heaven", Pentecostelism (and Protestantism in general) allows for a little more social and individual agency and encourages you to do what you can to improve your situation (though it's also idealized and sugar-coated in the face of the reality of poverty and inequality in Brazil). And, its message of moderation can and has helped families whose members struggle with alcoholism (a common problem in Brazil, both in urban and rural areas) overcome their demons (no pun intended) in ways that Catholicism often hasn't. Pentecostelism has been so increasingly popular in many areas due largely to these facts, to the point that some of Brazil's most popular priests (such as the painfully inane and pious Padre Marcelo de Rossi) have adopted many of Pentecostelism's practices and messages (including the "7-11 song" - a song with 7 words that you repeat 11 times) in order to try to stem the flow of converts to Pentecostelism and regain some Catholics (much to the disdain of Benedict XVI on his visit to Brazil earlier this year).

Obviously, Pentecostelism can't address some of the social issues it claims (the play of the dealer about to be executed by his bosses is just that - fiction. In real life, he ends up dead. The faith is just supposed to help him and his family and friends cope with that - conversion to Pentecostelism and its beliefs won't do anything to alter that reality). Plus, the article is a little too superficial for my tastes. Still, it touches on an oft-ignored cultural part of life not just in the favelas, but in Brazil, and it still points to a very valuable and important social and cultural change in Brazil, and thus is worth checking out.