Brazilian Carnival in Rio, a City Ruled by a Neo-Pentecostal Mayor
By Julio
Severo
While
campaigning last year to become mayor, Marcelo Crivella, a retired neo-Pentecostal
bishop, insisted his religion would not get in the way of governing Rio de
Janeiro, Brazil’s most famous city.
Marcelo Crivella |
Given
Rio’s current economic crisis, it makes no difference if Crivella is neo-Pentecostal,
Catholic or an atheist. It is irrational and immoral to invest in Carnival when
Rio is unable to pay wages to its public servants.
Traditionally,
Brazilian evangelicals, especially Pentecostals, do not take part in Carnival.
Yet, UCKG has been an exception in many issues, especially abortion, where its
founder, Edir
Macedo, has made several pro-abortion statements. Crivella has kept
a homosexualist department in his administration headed by NĂ©lio Georgini, a
Presbyterian homosexual appointed by him.
When
he was running last year, Crivella promised he would not try to alter major
city events, such as Carnival or the annual gay parade. This is a sharp contrast
with Dr. Geremias Fontes, who was the governor of Rio (1967-1971). The Fontes
administration defunded Carnival from tax-money, even though it did not bar
private groups from funding it.
Fontes
was a Presbyterian who later was baptized in the Holy Spirit and eventually
became a minister of an independent charismatic fellowship with a special
ministry to help youth involved in drug addiction, one of the many problems
plaguing Rio.
Young
men and women, with Carnival lifestyles (heavy drinking and drug use, wild sex),
came to his fellowship and were delivered, healed, saved and transformed by
Jesus Christ.
Even
though Brazil is the largest Catholic nation in the world, evangelicals,
especially Pentecostals and charismatics, have enjoyed an extraordinary growth
for their churches and a growing role in politics.
Twenty-two
percent of Brazilians currently identify as evangelical Christians. In 1970
only 5 percent had such identification.
The Evangelical
Parliamentary Caucus, representing about a fifth of seats in the Brazilian
Congress, has emerged as a political conservative force that was influential in
socialist President Dilma Rousseff’s removal last year and pushes for pro-life
and pro-family laws.
Crivella
is totally supportive of Israel. His
first trip, after his election, was to Israel, to thank God. Even
though he is not as conservative as Geremias Fontes or other charismatics, in
comparison to pro-abortion, homosexualist congressman Jean Wyllys, who
represents Rio, he is very conservative.
With
information from the Associated Press.
Portuguese
version of this article: Carnaval no Rio, uma
cidade governada por um prefeito neopentecostal
Source: Last Days Watchman
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