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With over 99 percent of Brazilians expressing a belief in God^{[citation needed]} (although 7,8% of the population declared themselves either agnostic, atheist or without religion in the 2000 census. ^[1]), Brazil may very well be the most religious country in the world. Brazil's main religion since the 16th century has been Christianity, predominantly Roman Catholicism. This religion was introduced by the missionaries who accompanied the Portuguese explorers and settlers of Brazil. Brazil has the largest number of baptized Roman Catholics on Earth — about 74% of Brazilians claiming to be Catholics.

Popular traditions of Roman Catholicism in Brazil include pilgrimages to the Appeared Lady, Senhora Aparecida, the patron saint of Brazil. Other prominent festivals include Círio in Belém and the Festa do Divino in central Brazil.

Brazil also has many other offshoots of Christianity. These include neo-Pentecostalists, old Pentecostalists and Traditional Protestants (most of them Baptists, Presbyterians, Seventh day Adventists and Methodists) predominantly from Minas Gerais to the South. In the same region, mainly Minas Gerais and São Paulo, large sections of the middle class, about 1-2% of the total population, is Kardecist, sometimes pure, sometimes in syncretism with Roman Catholicism. Protestantism is generally the only religion in Brazil relatively free of syncretism. Centers of neo-Pentecostalism are Londrina in Paraná state, as well the cities of São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Belo Horizonte (capital of Minas Gerais), especially the suburban and nearby areas of these cities. Lutherans are concentrated mostly in the states of Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina and in contryside regions of the states of Rio de Janeiro and Espírito Santo.

See also: Demographics of Brazil Religion and Roman Catholicism in Brazil

Contents 1 African & Indigenous Religions 2 Other Religions 3 Hinduism 4 See also

African syncretic religions such as Candomblé have millions of followers, mainly Afro-Brazilians. They are concentrated mainly in large urban centers in the Northeast, such as Salvador (Bahia), Recife, or Rio de Janeiro in the Southeast. The capitals of São Paulo, Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina have a great number of followers too, but in the South of Brazil the most common African influenced Ritual is Almas e Angola, which is an Umbanda like ritual. Nowadays in Santa Catarina's capital there are over 70 "Terreiros", which are the places where the rituals run. In addition to Candomblé which is the survival of West African religion, there is also Umbanda which blends Kardecist spiritism, Indigenous and African beliefs. There's still lots of prejudice about "African cults" in Brazil's south, but there are lots of Catholics, Protestants and other kinds of Christians who also believe in the Orishas, so they use to go both to Churches and Terreiros.

Candomblé, Batuque, Xango and Tambor de Mina were originally brought by black slaves shipped from Africa to Brazil. These black slaves would summon their gods, called Orixas, Voduns or Inkices with chants and dances they had brought from Africa. These cults were persecuted throughout most of Brazilian history, largely because they were believed to be pagan or even satanic. However, the Brazilian republican government legalized all of them on the grounds of the necessary separation between the State and the Church.

In current practice, Umbanda followers leave offerings of food, candles and flowers in public places for the spirits. Candomblé terreiros are more hidden from general view, except in famous festivals such as Iyemanja Festival and the Waters of Oxala in the Northeast.

From Bahia northwards there is also different practices such as Catimbo, Jurema with heavy Indigenous elements. All over the country, but mainly in the Amazon rainforest, there are many Indians still practicing their original traditions. Many of their beliefs and use of naturally occurring plant deriviatives are incorporated into African, Spirtitualists and folk religion.

Buddhism, Shinto, Judaism, Islam and a few other religions. Most of the people who practice these minority religions are 20th century immigrants from East Asia, the Middle East and Eastern Europe, or of recent immigrant descent. Seven percent of the population consider themselves agnostics or atheists, while the remainder call themselves Christians. One of the most unique features of the rich Brazilian spiritual landscape are the sects which use ayahuasca (an Amazonian entheogenic tea), including Santo Daime, União do Vegetal, and Cultura Cosmica.

Brazil might appear to be a devout country, but things are a little bit more complex. In the latest IBGE poll, results showed that about 7% of Brazilians declared themselves to be non-religious (with just 1% declaring themselves atheists) and some 50 %of Catholics stated that they were non-practicing.

Most of the Brazilian Hindus are ethnic East Indians. Significant numbers of White Brazilians have converted to Hinduism in the past few decades, while many others have Hindu leanings, the most prominent feature being the practise of Yoga. 2000 census recorded 2,979 Hindus in Brazil.

Also see: Hinduism in South America, Brazilian (Portuguese) Link

• Roman Catholicism in Brazil
• Protestantism in Brazil