Chute na santa incident

Last updated
Photograph of a television set showing the moment Sergio Von Helder kicks the image Chutenasanta.jpg
Photograph of a television set showing the moment Sérgio Von Helder kicks the image

The "Chute na santa" (Portuguese : Chute na santa - "kicking on the saint") incident was a religious controversy that erupted in Brazil in late 1995, sparked by a live broadcast of a minister of Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG), the largest pentecostal church in Brazil, kicking the statue of Our Lady of Aparecida, a Roman Catholic saint.

Contents

The incident

The incident took place on October 12, 1995, the national public holiday honouring Our Lady of Aparecida, the patron saint of Brazil. [1] [2] That dawn, on O Despertar da Fé (English: The Awakening of Faith), a national live television program by UCKG broadcast on Rede Record (owned by the same church), televangelist bishop Sérgio Von Helder was expressing his thoughts about his church's biblical teachings on "imagery" and "idolatry" on the saint's day, when an actual icon of the saint was shown. Then, as he walked around the image, talking about its inability "to see" and "to hear", he started to kick the image, proclaiming its "inability to react, because it's made of clay".

On the following day, Rede Globo's Jornal Nacional denounced the incident, causing a nationwide commotion. The event was perceived by Catholics as a major act of religious intolerance, sparking a public outcry. Several temples of the UCKG were the target of protests, and Von Helder had to be transferred to South Africa until the end of the controversy. [2]

Network rivalry

Some see the incident as another clash between Rede Record and Rede Globo. A few months prior to the incident, Globo had broadcast a mini-series by Dias Gomes titled Decadência (English: Decadence), which depicted the fictional tale of Mariel Batista (Edson Celulari), a corrupt Protestant pastor. According to a Rede Record documentary about the imprisonment of Edir Macedo (UCKG founder and Record owner), some lines of the character were based on public speeches by him.

Reaction

Pope John Paul II urged Catholics not to "answer evil with evil". [1] Dom Eugênio de Araújo Sales, then Archbishop of Rio de Janeiro, said that "unless we control our emotions, there is the risk of a holy war. [1]

President of Brazil Fernando Henrique Cardoso, when questioned about the incident, said that "Brazil is a democratic country known by its tolerance" and that "any demonstration of intolerance hurts its unison spirit as well as its Christian spirit". [1]

Cultural references

The "kicking of the saint" episode is referenced in the 1997 song Guerra Santa (Portuguese : Holy war), written and performed by Gilberto Gil. In this song, featured in the album Quanta, Gil criticizes prosperity theology, one of the tenets of UCKG and other popular Neopentecostal churches in Brazil. [3]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lucélia Santos</span> Brazilian actress, director and producer (born 1957)

Maria Lucélia dos Santos is a Brazilian actress, director and producer. She received international acclaim for her leading role in the 1976 Rede Globo telenovela Isaura, The Slave Girl, broadcast in over 80 countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Religion in Brazil</span>

The predominant religion in Brazil is Christianity, with Catholicism being its largest denomination.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Geraldo Majella Agnelo</span> Brazilian Roman Catholic cardinal (1933–2023)

Geraldo Majella Agnelo was a Brazilian prelate of the Catholic Church who was archbishop of São Salvador da Bahia from 1999 to 2011. He became a bishop in 1978 and served as bishop of Toledo from 1978 to 1982 and archbishop of Londrina from 1982 to 1991. He served in the Roman Curia as secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments from 1991 to 1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ituiutaba</span> City and municipality in the state of Minas Gerais state, Brazil

Ituiutaba is a municipality in the western part of the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. Elevated to city status in 1901, its population in 2020 was 105,255 and a total area in the municipality of 2,694 km2. The elevation of the seat of the municipality is 544 m.

The Universal Church of the Kingdom of God is an international Evangelical Neo-charismatic Christian denomination with its headquarters at the Temple of Solomon in São Paulo, Brazil. The church was founded in 1977 in Rio de Janeiro by Bishop Edir Macedo, who is the owner of the multi-billion television company RecordTV.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Our Lady of Aparecida</span> Patroness of Brazil

Our Lady of Aparecida, is a title of the Blessed Virgin Mary associated with the Immaculate Conception.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edir Macedo</span> Brazilian evangelical pastor

Edir Macedo is a Brazilian evangelical bishop, writer, billionaire businessman, and the founder of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG). He is the owner and chairman of the third-largest television network in Brazil, Record, along with Grupo Record since 1989, which he founded after he bought the network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Record (television network)</span> Brazilian commercial television network

Record, formerly known as Rede Record, RecordTV and Recó, is a Brazilian free-to-air television network. It is currently the second largest commercial TV station in Brazil, and the 28th largest in the 2012 world ranking. In 2010, it was elected by the advertising market as the fifth largest station in the world in revenues and the eighth largest network in physical structure. In June 2021, it ranked second among the most watched channels in the country in the National Television Panel, behind only TV Globo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Catholic Church in Brazil</span> Overview of the role of the Catholic Church in Brazil

The Brazilian Catholic Church, or Catholic Church in Brazil, is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome, and the influential National Conference of Bishops of Brazil, composed of over 400 primary and auxiliary bishops and archbishops. There are over 250 dioceses and other territorial jurisdictions in Brazil. The primate of Brazil is Dom Sérgio da Rocha.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Republicans (Brazil)</span> Political party in Brazil

Republicans, formerly known as Brazilian Republican Party and originally formed as the Municipalist Renewal Party is a Brazilian political party. Its electoral number is 10.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Basilica of Our Lady of Aparecida</span> Roman Catholic church in Brazil

The Cathedral Basilica of the National Shrine of Our Lady Aparecida is a prominent Roman Catholic basilica in Aparecida, Brazil. It is dedicated to Our Lady Aparecida as the principal Patroness of Brazil. Nossa Senhora Aparecida roughly translates to Our Lady Revealed. It is the largest cathedral and the second largest Catholic church in the world in interior area after the St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Natália Guimarães</span>

Natália Aparecida Guimarães is a Brazilian actress, TV host, model and beauty pageant titleholder who won the title of Miss Brasil 2007 and represented her country at Miss Universe 2007 where she placed 1st Runner-up.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marcelo Crivella</span> Brazilian politician and pentecostal leader

Marcelo Bezerra Crivella is a Brazilian Evangelical pastor, gospel singer and politician. He served as the mayor of the city of Rio de Janeiro from 1 January 2017 until 31 December 2020. In the 2020 election, Crivella ran for a second term but lost to Eduardo Paes in each of the city's 49 constituencies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Catholic Marian church buildings</span> Type of religious building

Catholic Marian churches are religious buildings dedicated to the veneration of the Blessed Virgin Mary. These churches were built throughout the history of the Catholic Church, and today they can be found on every continent including Antarctica. The history of Marian church architecture tells the unfolding story of the development of Catholic Mariology.

Rede Aparecida, also known as TV Aparecida is a Brazilian religious television channel based in the municipality of Aparecida in the state of São Paulo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TV Bahia</span> Television station in Bahia, Brazil

TV Bahia is a television station in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil, affiliated with TV Globo. Owned by Rede Bahia, TV Bahia is the principal station of Rede Bahia de Televisão, a statewide television network composed of another five owned-and-operated stations. TV Bahia's studios and transmitter are located on Prof. Aristídes Novis Street in the Federação district, in Salvador. Its terrestrial signal, through the station in Salvador and translators, reaches 133 cities in the state. Currently, besides being the leader in Salvador, it has the largest ratings among Globo's stations in Brazil.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chico Pinheiro</span> Brazilian journalist and news anchor

Francisco de Assis Pinheiro, known professionally as Chico Pinheiro, is a Brazilian newscaster and journalist. He is the current editor-in-chief and anchorman of Bom Dia Brasil, the Brazilian news program, aired by Rede Globo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Renata Kuerten</span> Brazilian model and actress

Renata Kuerten is a Brazilian model and TV presenter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TV Sudoeste</span> Television station in Bahia, Brazil

TV Sudoeste, virtual channel 5, is a TV Globo-affiliated television station licensed to Vitória da Conquista, Bahia, Brazil. Owned by Rede Bahia, TV Sudoeste is part of Rede Bahia de Televisão, a statewide television network composed of another five TV stations. TV Sudoeste's studios are located on Fonsecas's Street, in the center of Vitória da Conquista, and its transmitter is located at Santa Ana Street, in the Nossa Senhora Aparecida District.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Epstein, Jack (24 November 1995). "Kicking of icon outrages Brazil Catholics". Dallas Morning News.
  2. 1 2 "Church makes airwaves". BBC News. 3 August 2000.
  3. ↑ "GUERRA SANTA de Gilberto Gil no VAGALUME (Letra e Vídeo)". 2009-02-17. Archived from the original on 2009-02-17. Retrieved 2023-08-22.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.