O sagrado e o profano: construção e desconstrução dos usos e costumes nas Assembléias de Deus no Brasil

Abstract

This work deals with the lifestyle and the habits built and developed by the leaders of the Assemblies of God in Brazil and imposed upon its members over the years called uses and customs. Such practices were created and introduced in the community to separate it from the world and to help the believer in the process of sanctification. Very stringent in the early decades of the Twentieth century, these rules went through a process of relaxation due to industrial development and technological and social changes occurring in Brazil in the last decades. The prohibitions with respect to how to dress, sports, the use of television, movies, dances and various practices of entertainment still cause tension between the old and the new leaders of the Brazilian Assemblies of God. This work presents the historical roots of the modern Pentecostal movement, its insertion in Brazil, the birth and growth of the Assemblies of God in Brazil. It studies its main characters, the mechanisms and documents that show the creation and the effort to protect its followers from the worldly influences around him. This work also addresses the issues that challenge the Assemblies of God in the post-modernity, especially those related to bioethics.