Evangelical leaders say they support the appointment of the (Supreme Federal Court) and state that there is resistance in the segment in relation to the name.
Divided between those who are more or less enthusiastic, they claim that it is positive that another evangelical reaches the court, which is majority Catholic, they defend the prerogative of the president () to make the appointment and cite qualities of the Messiah, making reference to his trajectory in religion.
. If approved, he will be the second evangelical currently on the court, alongside . The nomination still faces resistance from the evangelical bench and has already been the target of criticism from religious people with a mandate in Congress, such as deputies (-RJ) and Marco Feliciano (PL-SP).
The ten current ministers of the STF spoke about their religions, and only Mendonça identified himself as evangelical. He said he is Jewish. , , , and declared themselves Catholics, and claimed to be a Christian with a Catholic background. and did not respond to the report at the time, but had previously stated that they were Catholic.
An ally of (PL) and without a mandate, President of ADVEC (Assembly of God Victory in Christ), is one of those who most criticize Messias, although he also does not oppose the nomination.
He calls the Union’s attorney general a “gospel leftist” and claims to be “diametrically opposed” to him, but says it would be inconsistent to oppose the appointment.
“If it is Bolsonaro’s prerogative to nominate Kassio [Nunes Marques] and André Mendonça, it is Lula’s prerogative [indicar Messias]. This is a right, it is the president’s prerogative to indicate”, Malafaia told Sheet.
Apostle Estevam Hernandes, founder of the Renascer em Cristo Church and international president of the March for Jesus in Brazil, says he thinks the nomination is excellent.
“Within the current situation, I believe that he is the person who has our values. I believe that he really is a Christian and God-fearing person. There are controversies, but personally I think it is the best”, says Hernandes.
Apostle César Augusto, founder of the Fonte da Vida Church, which, according to him, has more than 700 temples in Brazil, says that Messiah has two fundamental positions that accredit him as a representative of evangelicals.
The first, he states, is to have “Jesus Christ as the only savior and as the lord of his life.” The second is to believe in “the Bible as the word of God”, he says. “I heard this from him, talking to him. For me, in relation to being an evangelical, these two things are fundamental.” César Augusto also argues that the name chosen by Lula must be respected.
He says he is unaware of major evangelical leaders, without a mandate, who are publicly speaking out against the nomination. “Everyone I know basically supports this nomination,” he says. “For me, it is a joy to have him as a Supreme Court minister. He is another person who will help us with our agendas.”
Bishop Robson Rodovalho praises Messias, who he says he knows personally. “He is an excellent, competent lawyer. He has a history of a lot of study, dedication and work. He is a person of character and, above all, a very committed Christian”, says the founder of the Sara Nossa Terra Church, which, according to him, has more than 1,200 churches and centers in Brazil and abroad.
Reservations, in Rodovalho’s interpretation, would be the fact that Messias opted “for a left-wing ideology, different from practically our entire segment”, and that the AGU (Federal Council of Medicine) vetoed abortion in some cases.
For the bishop, however, the positioning was due to demands inherent to the position, not the Messiah’s personal stance. “What he personally thinks is very different from the position he adopted [como AGU].”
Rodovalho says he thinks it is “good and fair” for Messiah to be chosen, given the lack of representation of evangelicals in the court. He states that, apart from parliamentarians, evangelical leaders have generally expressed their support for the nomination.
“As they are in office, it is natural that their position is different”, says Rodovalho, who is also president of Concepab (National Council of Pastors’ Councils in Brazil).
According to Teófilo Hayashi, pastor of Zion and founder of the Christian movement Dunamis, “it makes no sense to expect Lula, an icon of the left, to nominate someone aligned to the right.” “In view of this, the exercise of identifying the ‘least bad’ among the possible options remains again. Unfortunately, this is the Brazil we live in today.” He says there could be worse scenarios, although the ideal would be to have a minister aligned with the right.
For Luis Gustavo Teixeira, professor of political science at Unipampa (Federal University of Pampa) and researcher associated with the Center for Religious Studies at Cebrap (Brazilian Center for Analysis and Planning), there are sectors of the evangelical segment excited about the fact that there will be another representative on the Supreme Court.
“On the other hand, there is a sector that sees Messias as faithful, first and foremost, to the agendas of more left-wing segments. This will somehow attract the full opposition of some more conservative leaders aligned with Bolsonarism, who see any indication from Lula as something nefarious and harmful”, says Teixeira.
The expert questions whether this opposition comes more from politics, from parliamentarians, than from interests outside Congress. “The major criticism of Jorge Messias’ appointment to the STF comes from religious leaders who hold a mandate and are closely linked to Bolsonarism”, he states.
Anna Virginia Balloussier collaborated
