ABSTRACT
This chapter uses the experience of the COVID-19 pandemic to discuss how Candomblecistas and Pentecostals adapted their religious practices under the constraints of pandemic-related lockdowns and restrictions on social gatherings.
The authors' initial hunch was that there existed a stark dichotomy between the religious practices of Pentecostals, who place an inordinate emphasis on sacred texts, and those of Candomble believers, who instead look to rituals and oral traditions to inform their faith. Upon closer examination, however, it became clear that both communities rely heavily on communal rituals to establish direct connections between their members. Both religions use religious spaces as venues for socialisation. What sets Pentecostalism apart is the centrality of body-related experiences, such as speaking in tongues, exorcisms, and healings, to its religious practice. Reducing it to a text-based religion, as opposed to Candomble's emphasis on ritual, is an oversimplification. However, in this chapter, we will argue that the Pentecostal tradition, rooted in the Bible and the Protestant tradition of individual interpretation of scripture, has equipped its followers with the tools to engage in digital and “incorporeal” forms of religious expression. In contrast, Candomble, being a far more social and spatially oriented religion, has struggled to adapt to situations where in-person interaction is limited. The ritualistic nature of the religion, which is so integral to its practice, simply cannot be replicated online or in other such contexts.
The chapter refers to previous chapters, especially Chapters 5 and 6, to speculate on the future spatial presence of Candomble and Pentecostal in Brazilian cities.
