Abstract

ORO, Ari Pedro. The politics of the Universal Church and its consequences in the Brazilian religious and political fields. Rev. bras. Ci. Soc. [online]. 2003, vol.18, n.53, pp. 53-69. ISSN 0102-6909.  http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S0102-69092003000300004.

The paper analyses the insertion of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) in the national politics scenario and its effects in the religious and political fields. Due to the efficacy of its institutional charisma, the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) has given, within its own religious group, a new meaning to the specific act of voting and to the general perception of politics in general, putting both of them in its own religious logic. This is an important explanatory key for the high level of loyalty in voting and the growing political success verified in every new election. Furthermore, the political practice of the UCKG is producing a mimetic effect on other evangelic churches, which tend to imitate its way of doing politics. Its political insertion, mainly through the Liberal Party, has not remained unnoticed by the political parties, making the fact a relevant actor in the current Brazilian political conjuncture.

Keywords : Universal Church of the Kingdom of God; Brazilian political field; Brazilian religious field; Evangelicals in Politics; Pentecostalism.