Lutheranism in Brazil 1824-2024 - Settlers' Impact and the Struggle for Citizenship

Lutheran churches in Brazil have emerged through migration from 1824. The paper argues that there were three struggles for its citizenship: a first one in the 19th century for the civil rights of immigrant settlers. At the same time, black and indigenous people were fought as enemies. With expanding pan-Germanic tendencies after 1871, not too few claimed the "Protestant church and Germanness must remain indissolubly linked". The second struggle for citizenship, after 1945, implied the clear positioning as a Brazilian church. This was severely tested under the military regime (1964-85). From 1970 onwards, the church took an increasingly critical stance on issues of democracy, civil rights, and issues of social justice in its third struggle for citizenship: standing up for others' rights. However, prejudice and land struggles against indigenous peoples continue. The Bolsonaro government (2019-22) brought to the fore a strong polarization between ministers and members around such issues.