Protestantism in Brazil was first practiced by Huguenot travelers in attempts to colonize the country while it was under the Portuguese colonial rule. These attempts, however, would not persist. A French mission sent by John Calvin was established in 1557, in one of the islands of Guanabara Bay, where the France Antarctique was founded. On March 10 of the same year, these Calvinists held the first Protestant worship service in Brazil and, according to some accounts, the first in all the American continent.
Protestantism, which has resisted syncretism more than other Christian churches have in the diverse country, established a significant presence in Brazil during the first half of the 20th century and grew exponentially during the second half.[1] Protestants accounted for fewer than 5% of the population until the 1960s, but by 2000 made up over 15% of those affiliated with a church. Pentecostals and charismatic groups account for the vast majority of this expansion. With their emphasis on personal salvation and strict moral codes as well as less ideological approach to politics, these groups have developed broad appeal, particularly among the booming urban migrant communities.[1] The political consequences of this shift are still poorly understood, as the fragmentation of the Protestant community after the late 1970s has weakened it as a vehicle for direct political action.[1]
After centuries of persecution under the Portuguese colonial rule, which was successful in consolidating Catholicism in the country, Protestant denominations saw a rapid growth in their number of followers since the last decades of the 20th century. If the number of Protestants continues to increase at the same pace it has for the past decades, by 2022 Catholics will be a minority in a country that was about 90 percent Catholic in 1980.[2] According to a study from the Roman Catholic Church, 600,000 of their faithful convert annually to a Protestant denomination. However, recent studies have suggested that the number of Catholics has stopped decreasing.[3]
According to the 2000 Census, 15.4% of the Brazilian population was Protestant. A recent research conducted by the Datafolha institute shows that 25% of Brazilians are Protestants, of which 19% are followers of Pentecostal denominations. However, the 2010 Census, which has just been completed, has yet to confirm this data.
Until the late 1970s, the majority of Brazilian Protestants belonged to one of the traditional churches – Lutherans, Presbyterians and Baptists mainly – but the Pentecostals, especially from neo-charismatic sects linked to the prosperity doctrine, have increased largely since then. There is also Seventh-day Adventist educational system with over 475 elementary schools, 67 secondary schools, two colleges and a university.[4][5]
According to 2000 IBGE Census, these are the biggest Protestant denominations in Brazil (only listed those with more than a half million members):
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