Universal Church Of The Kingdom Of God Research Articles

“I’m not saying this to be racist, but…”: uncovering attitude of whiteness in a narrative study of a Brazilian Pentecostal church leader

ABSTRACT This article examines the existence of whiteness and white supremacy in the words of Bishop Edir Macedo, leader of the powerful neo-Pentecostal Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) in Brazil. Through constructive narrative analysis, this article demonstrates evidence of attitude of whiteness (Teel 2019) in the bishop’s writings on race and racism, thereby demonstrating forms of racist thinking (Martinot 2003, 2010). These are manifested through thought patterns which suggest that to be white is to be normal or neutral and through a performance of whiteness which Macedo subtly encourages among pastors within the Church.

Ansiedade e reciprocidade: a Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus além das fronteiras

Abstract: The message of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG), a centralized transnational organization, is gloomy and not at all optimistic, with limited, though real, influence from prosperity theology. It emphasizes diabolical forces and encourages followers to be suspicious of others and even their own motivations when praying, supplicating, and giving. In ritual performances, pastors warn followers not to expect anything in return. Rituals are described as "disruptive." The text compares the Church's treatment of possession cults in Brazil, Mozambique and South Africa. Healing and exorcism are considered in the context of relationships of reciprocity, with examples of "popular psychotherapy" observed on television in Brazil. The research was carried out in several countries.

Immigrant pentecostalism in the emergence of the COVID-19 crisis: reactions and responses from the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God in Berlin

This article seeks to analyze the reactions and responses of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) in Berlin to the global COVID-19 crisis. Although the UCKG has been the subject of multiple international types of research regarding the spread of the COVID-19 virus, this article shows that the UCKG’s global network of local churches must be differentiated in their responses and reactions to the global pandemic. This article traces and analyzes how the local UCKG in Berlin responded to the pandemic in its respective conditions and differed from the global network in the emergence of a pandemic in its rhetoric and discourse, using the concept of the Third Space. For this purpose, the services and sermons of local pastors were recorded to analyze how the discourse toward the COVID-19 crisis changed during the period of occurrence and awareness of a global pandemic. The results show how the church has adapted to the local restriction and regulations and reflect the international literature on how the UCKG’s mother church in Brazil acted in comparison. The church and its pastors in Germany responded to the global pandemic in three primary ways: they assigned to authorities’ guidelines, provided sermons with undertones of spiritual warfare, and rejected the interpretation of interdependencies between demons and health issues.

The secularisation of demons: exorcisms conducted by the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God in Madrid

ABSTRACT The Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) is a Brazilian Pentecostal church known for its incessant struggle against the Devil. Internationalisation has challenged the Church’s institutional discourse against evil, which originally targeted the local spirits of its home country—specifically Afro-Brazilian entities—during exorcism rituals. This article uses interviews and participant observation to analyse the differences between UCKG exorcisms in Brazil and Madrid. The data indicate that demonic spirits are more secularised in Spain, where they no longer belong to the pantheon of rival religions in Brazil. In Madrid, UCKG demons are more closely aligned with problems of everyday life, such as the health and wealth of Church members. In this analysis of UCKG demonology in Madrid, I also observe how the dialogue between institutional discourse and local beliefs arises, while also assessing its impact on exorcism performances.

TheUniversalChurch of the Kingdom of God in Australia: A church of non-Brazilian migrants

The Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) is a Brazilian neo-Pentecostal megachurch. Over the past 40 years, it has established branches in over 100 countries among the economically and socially marginalised. This holds true in Australia, where congregants are disenfranchised migrants from diverse ethnic backgrounds and (former) refugees. Drawing on 2 years of ethnographic research in the UCKG’s Australian headquarters, this article explores why a Brazilian church, with a seemingly disagreeable character, attracts a multicultural migrant congregation in Australia. I argue that the UCKG is attractive to these congregants because it provides a space where its followers’ ethnicity is accepted; its cosmovision is easily translated to its congregation’s diverse spiritual sensibilities; and it offers ‘pioneering techniques’ to overcome life obstacles for those on the margins of Australian society. This work contributes to scholarly literature concerning Brazilian religiosity outside of Brazil, and the role religion plays in migrant settlement.

Self-othering in the testimonials of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God in Madrid

This article analyzes discourses of conversion involving members of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) in the city of Madrid, Spain. Drawing on the biographies of members and religious leaders and focusing on their testimonials of conversion in particular, I observe how the church’s message of a better life after conversion always relates to a misguided past. I have proposed the concept of self-othering to link the process through which members internalize and interpret their transformations through religion with othering, as the first step, and individual salvation, as the second step. This study observes specific rites of passage, namely baptisms, which induce an individual to become a member of the church. Self-othering as a concept helps to explain how individuals reinterpret their past and present lives through the lens of religious conversion.

The Universal Church of the Kingdom of God in Australia

The Brazilian megachurch, the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG), has a global network of branches. Its Australian headquarters is a dynamic spiritual space where ideas, people, material culture and spirits are exchanged from across the globe. This article follows the journey of a single vial of oil to illustrate the global flows that take place through the UCKG Australia. With each stop the vial accrues spiritual capital before its final destination. Drawing on two years of ethnographic research, I argue that the UCKG’s global networks allow congregants access to, and enables them to pass on, spiritual capital thus providing personal agency to overcome life difficulties via supernatural means. Through this vial’s journey, I will show how global religious practices are locally lived and highlight the local spiritual significance of globally mobile religious material culture.

A teologia da prosperidade na Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus e a demonização das religiões afro-brasileiras

Este artigo tem o objetivo de realizar um estudo sobre a relação existente entre a Teologia da Prosperidade baseada, principalmente, na perspectiva teológica denominada economia sacrificial, e as práticas e representações acerca do Diabo produzidas pela Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus. Tal relação é fundamental para explicar a construção da identidade neopentecostal iurdiana por meio da demonização das religiões de matriz afro-brasileira. A guerra espiritual contra as forças do Mal promovida pela IURD se traduz em uma clara dicotomia entre o Reino de Deus, no qual se pode usufruir de suas bênçãos, e o Reino das Trevas, caracterizado pela ação do Diabo na vida das pessoas que, por estarem distantes da vontade divina, sofrem toda sorte de maldições, como doenças e a miséria.

Entre o convencer e o admirar: estratégias discursivas da Igreja Universal na Programação IURD e na campanha Eu Sou A Universal

This paper introduces a comparative examination of two media products, which have been delivered by the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG): An advertising piece for the I am Universalcampaign, available on the internet and a believer’s testimony, which has been publicized in one of the shows the UCKG programming is comprised of (set of shows exhibited by the church during the early hours), broadcast in the Brazilian State of Minas Gerais. Both objects of study share the history of Claudio Soares, this ex-homeless man who has become a well-succeeded entrepreneur. Making use of the Franco-Brazilian Discourse Analysis of Eni Orlandi and Michel Pecheux as our theoretical referential, additionally to elements from the Aristotelian Rhetoric, we aimed at identifying the various discursive strategies that the UCKG deploys, based on these two enunciating contexts. Given these points, it has been observed that such strategies differ, according to the specific objectives of each product and the audience for which they are intended.

Fragile Wars: Anti-Ecumenism in a South African Church

In South Africa, where ecumenism historically characterised popular Christianity, the post-apartheid entry of certain Pentecostal Charismatic Churches (PCCs) has introduced decidedly anti-ecumenical tendencies. This article focuses on one such church, the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG), a PCC of Brazilian origin. Under the rubric of spiritual warfare and a politics of suspicion, UCKG preachers urged believers to take up both visible and invisible arms against ‘unbelievers’. These injunctions made for fraught interpersonal relationships, especially in socio-economic conditions where believers were fundamentally dependent on large social networks. For many believers, however, such visible strife did not mark a radical break in their social imaginary; ‘fighting’ bravely exposed a hitherto uncontrolled social reality, while the UCKG’s anti-catholic sentiments promised protection from, and control over, the fragility that marked adherents’ social and economic lives.

Religião e Política: estratégias institucionais e acionamentos religiosos por candidatos evangélicos em eleições proporcionais (2008-2016)

No presente artigo, discutimos as eleições ao legislativo municipal de Campo Mourão (PR) nos pleitos de 2008, 2012 e 2016, visando analisar de que forma os candidatos evangélicos vinculados à AD, IEQ e IURD acionam elementos religiosos em suas campanhas. Com base em materiais de divulgação – flyers, santinhos, programa eleitoral obrigatório e postagens nas redes sociais, entre outros – e em entrevistas semiestruturadas realizadas com os candidatos durante o período de campanha, buscamos identificar, em uma perspectiva longitudinal, os tipos de candidatura e apoio, as estratégias de campanha, os materiais produzidos e as interlocuções estabelecidas entre os candidatos, as Igrejas e o eleitorado. Os resultados evidenciam a presença de elementos religiosos no apoio das Igrejas, no nome eleitoral, na utilização de objetos sacros e frases bíblicas no material de campanha e, ainda, nas compreensões dos candidatos acerca da missão de moralizar o espaço público.

The role of stakeholders in Solomon’s Temple: an exploratory study

Abstract This paper aims to describe the role of stakeholders in the symbolic goods market of religion. Drawing on qualitative research, and based on the salience model of stakeholders, the objective is to analyze the importance of Solomon’s Temple megachurch to the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) as a competitive factor in the market of religious goods and services for achieving a competitive advantage. The findings show that the respondents’ perception indicates that the construction of megachurches provides a competitive advantage if the stakeholders are identified and continuously monitored because of the attributes of power, legitimacy and urgency. The contribution of the study is a discussion on the relevance of the applicability of stakeholder theory in the symbolic goods market of religion from the perspective of network relationships with other stakeholders.

Godllywood de Cristiane Cardoso: uma etnografia do “transreligioso”

Cristiane Cardoso, filha do Bispo Edir Macedo da Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus (IURD), fundou e lidera um projeto de dimensão internacional chamado Godllywood cuja proposta é ensinar meninas e mulheres a se comportarem em sua vida cotidiana segundo “os preceitos de Deus”. Analisando esse projeto com base nos escritos de sua fundadora e em material etnográfico de um templo da IURD em Recife, este artigo discute o papel da liderança feminina e da mulher no pentecostalismo e, a partir do conceito de “transreligiosidade”, aponta para a difícil delimitação entre o religioso e secular bem como entre o público e privado.

Entre o contexto e as demandas cotidianas: o imaginário como substância terapêutica na Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus

This article proposes to think about the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) religious services offerings from the merger of imaginary features representations of it time and context. While many are in charge to found new paths, Edir Macedo envisioned in already crystallized pedagogy of mental images and people representations his great discursive / theological contribution. Therefore, it was with the demonization of Umbanda and the management of sympathies, rites, blessings and exorcisms converted into sacred liturgies and confrontation with their wichcrafts, to the transformation of their temples and services in major therapeutic/ spiritual spaces. From the mystical and religious imagery to the psychoanalytic rationalizing imaginary, the UCKG remain prosperous and professional in provide feedback on the imagination of its customers from the representations present in their own time setting. In a flexible way, the religious services of the UCKG are always in line with the demands of certain social groups, more precisely to those who are more sensitive to the use of the popular imagination outline as a complementary substance in the plausibility of everyday life.

Dever e prazer no casamento-empresa:transações regulares de controle do amor segundo a Igreja Universal

Resumo O trabalho sonda as principais linhas de sentido que animam a proposta da Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus (IURD) sobre o amor no mundo contemporâneo através de suas materialidades discursivas. O artigo aborda os discursos iurdianos de teor pedagógico sobre amor, família e gênero. Como característica deste aparato, observamos a associação direta entre a busca imediata pela obtenção da felicidade, característica do hedonismo presente na Teologia da Prosperidade, e um ascetismo de ordem empresarial, que visa domesticar as impulsividades emocionais do homem e, principalmente, da mulher, nas dinâmicas intricadas do relacionamento amoroso. Assim, podemos entrever linhas de força que conflagram subjetividades marcadas por compromissos de gênero inscritos num modelo familiar de inspiração mercadológica.

A Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus: ação social além-fronteiras

Este trabalho traz o exercicio inedito de explorar algumas praticas sociais da Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus (IURD) na Namibia, Africa do Sul, Angola, Mocambique e Portugal. Atenta as contingencias de cada regiao, a IURD tenta atrair e/ou vincular fieis por meio de acoes organizadas principalmente pelas irmandades de mulheres Sisterhood e Woman in Action, e pela Associacao Beneficente Crista, organizacao ja fechada no Brasil. De um lado, sao estabelecidas parcerias com instâncias governamentais locais com vistas a sustentar a imagem da igreja como instituicao religiosa promotora de bem-estar social. De outro, as irmandades oferecem vias de ganho emocional e suposta reestruturacao social, incitando compromisso com as rotinas da igreja e desempenho de uma disciplina que permite obtencao de destaque e funciona como veiculo de certo empoderamento e transformacao. O material etnografico utilizado e composto por artigos e reportagens encontradas pelo mapeamento de jornais, revistas, portais, sites e blogs produzidos pela igreja, e que relatam a acao social nos anos de 2009 e 2010. Palavras-chave: Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus, acao social, transnacionalizacao, genero.

Prosperity and the work of luck in the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God, South Africa

In 1905, Weber contended that uncertainty about their eternal fate forced Protestants to find secular signs of their destiny in their vocations, their frugality and in their ability to work hard and accumulate capital. More than a century later, the ‘Protestant ethic’ has changed irrevocably. Today, the phenomenal rise of Pentecostal–Charismatic Churches has largely displaced the doctrine of predestination and firmly entrenched the prosperity gospel at the very heart of popular Protestantism. In many African PCCs, the pursuit of ‘blessings’ now trumps older concerns over secular vocations and hard work. Indeed, in churches such as the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG), Christians are urged to demand ‘miracle jobs’ from God and to reject humble vocations and small salaries, regardless of their qualifications, skills or experience. Based on long-term fieldwork with members of the UCKG in South Africa, this paper examines the work of luck (good and bad) in the lives of ordinary believers, how this new ‘work’ attempts to regulate the flow of money and how it participates in older notions of prosperity, fate and good fortune.

O Sexto Sentido e a Sexta-Feira 13: narrativas da Igreja Universal em um programa televisivo da Rede Record em Portugal

This study aims to contribute to a better understanding of the participation of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) in the media in Portugal and how this Brazilian denomination is related to Portuguese society and religious specificities. For the analysis, five editions of Sixth Sense (TV UCKG in Portugal) were selected, in which there are references to Friday the 13th, a date full of mysticism in popular Catholicism. Based on the narrative theory of Paul Ricoeur, a content analysis of the programs in which it uncovered the cosmology ofthe Neo-Pentecostal church: a world where opposing forces, representing good and evil, fighting between yes to master / save people; magic and spiritualist religions are evil ruler agents, while the UCKG is the agent of good, salvation.

Ações sociais da Igreja Universal

Este artigo trata das práticas sociais desenvolvidas pela Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus (IURD) a partir da análise do programa A Gente da Comunidade, situado em Belo Horizonte. Ressalta-se o requerimento de uma espécie de “atestado de probidade” para balizar o ingresso dos fiéis participantes do programa. Também se evidencia a formação de um ethos empreendedor disciplinado, como consequência do modo de seleção. Através deste exemplo, vê-se que as ações sociais da Igreja Universal são gerenciadas a partir de rubricas de sucesso, que permitem o desenvolvimento de uma assistência improvisada e incipiente, mas que estrutura um dos possíveis mecanismos de mobilidade intraeclesiástica.

Narcisismo reativo e experiência religiosa contemporânea: culpa substituída pela vergonha?

O texto apresenta um recorte da reflexão desenvolvida na tese de doutorado: "Narcisismo e sacrifício: Modo de subjetivação e religiosidade contemporânea" (Esperandio, 2006). Trata-se de uma análise da experiência religiosa promovida pela Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus (IURD) a partir da sua proposta de sacrifício. A abordagem trabalha com a concepção de narcisismo ativo e reativo e defende a idéia de que a prática do sacrifício, tal como proposta pela IURD, articula elementos do narcisismo reativo e estabelece-se como uma tecnologia do eu, usada como remédio para lidar com a experiência contemporânea da vergonha.