ALENCAR, A. M. N.; http://lattes.cnpq.br/3300232208055379; ALENCAR, Adriana Monyke Nascimento de.
Resumo:
This dissertation aims to present and analyze the beliefs of the members of the Universal
Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) in the magic objects, in which they make use of
on the public places of their churches and in the private space of their houses based on
their experiences, manipulation and effectiveness of these objects. This study also
presents and analyzes the UCKG pastors’, bishops’ and church workers’ performance
during the liturgy of their services and during these magic objects manipulation rituals
and when they conduct their faith “campaigns” and the financial “sacrifices” for God. To
this end, it was used two theoretical perspectives: the symbolist one, based on the theory
of magic and its practices, through the contribution of some classic authors, such as
Marcel Mauss, Lévi-Strauss and Frazer; And the performance theory, having Schechner,
Taussig, Benjamin, Csordas and Turner as the main theoretical framework. The
systematic observation of the rituals in the UCKG services and interviews with the
believers were used as a strategy to collect data. The ethnography was also used as a
methodological resource both in conducting this research and in producing this work. The
research sought to understand to what extent the manipulation and use of the magic
objects brought about some kind of change in the lives of the UCKG believers and
provided some cure, miracle or “deliverance” for them.