Religions of Brazil

                                               RELIGIONS OF BRAZIL

90 per cent of Brazilians believe in God, making it one of the most religious countries in the world.  The main religion in Brazil is Christianity, specifically Catholicism. Like in Australia, the Brazilian constitution means there is freedom to celebrate any religion you like and the government cannot support or penalise any religious groups for their beliefs. 

In 2010, Catholicism was the main religion in Brazil, making up 64.6% of the population. By 2020, Catholicism had dropped to 50 % but still remained Brazil's main religion. Protestantism, another form of christianity, is the next most popular religion in Brazil, and this is increasing in Brazil while catholicism is decreasing. This can be seen in the pie charts graphs below. Behinf christianity, no other religions come close, with ' no religion' next in most common beliefs in the country.

Over three quarters (78%) of Brazilians living in rural areas identify as catholic, according to the 2010 census.  Only 62% of people living in major cities in Brazil identify as catholic so it is more popular in rural areas.

 

Catholicism was introduced to Brazil when the Europeans first settled there, mainly the Portuguese. Jesuit missionaries shared their faith with local people, and in the 19th century, Catholicism was made the official religion of Brazil. It was formally included in the country's political and social structures. It became illegal to practice any other religion, but this has now changed. 

Many celebrations and cultural traditions centre around the catholic faith in Brazil. These include festivals, holidays, famous buildings and events. The most famous landmark in Brazil is the Christ the Redeemer statue. This is a huge statue of Jesus looking over the entire city of Rio de Janeiro. This statue took 9 years to build, starting in 1922 and finishing in 1931.  It is around 30 metres tall and 28 metres wide.

Given Brazil has the largest number of catholics in the world, of course it affects the way of life of the people. It is a very family-centred country, and many traditional values are celebrated. The Catholic faith means it is a community-centred culture with strong values.