Throughout my time in Brazil I have had the privilege of worshiping with Catholic, Pentecostal, and Methodist congregations. My experience has ranged from sublime mystery to gauche spectacle alongside encounters of academic sophistication and genuine community. As is true elsewhere in the world, the explosion of Pentecostalism in the 20th century has changed the look and the feel of Christianity in Brazil.

My first church experience in Brazil was joining the midweek chapel service at the Universidade Metodista de São Paulo. Amidst heartfelt worship with the professors and students, an endearing performance from a local seniors choir, and a sophisticated theological sermon on the ascension of Jesus I discovered a community seeking to shape the next generation of the church. Positively shaped by Wesleyan and liberation theology, this community demonstrated the reflective depth of the Brazilian pursuit of Jesus. I left this chapel challenged to reflect more deeply on how everything about Jesus, even his ascension, points us more clearly towards justice.

Before coming to Brazil, a good friend alerted me to the existence of the Temple of Solomon in São Paulo. This temple is the creation of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (or simply the Universal church; broadly connected to the health, wealth, and prosperity version of Pentecostalism). This was the strangest religious experience of the trip. This temple is described as having the same dimensions as the ancient Temple, but 10 times larger. It seats 10,000 people!! At times this felt like we were joining a cult (phones confiscated, people in strange robes, giving the ‘Americans VIP seating’). At times it was moving (this experience clearly appealed to hurting people and they did share moving stories of redemption). But it ultimately fell prey to a gross appropriation of ancient Israelite culture, supersessionism, and gauche spectacle. I’m glad I experienced it, but I would not return. I counted three offerings and four altar calls! I left feeling like I had seen a show but also wanting to check out the biblical telenovelas that their affiliate TV station produces (Reis).

Together our entire group visited Além do Véu (Beyond the Veil) Santo André. Além do Véu is a non-denominational Evangelical/Charismatic Church in the heart of Santo André. This gathering had all the hallmarks of a large American Evangelical Church: a converted former movie theater, a dynamic worship team with many singers, straight forward yet dynamic speaking, state of the art lights and technology; everyone seemed young and hip (I was definitely the only one wearing a tie!). If not for the Portuguese I might have believed I was back in the States. One distinct difference between this church and contemporary American churches was the altar call (which seemed to be a regular part of the service). There was a genuine and heartfelt response to the call of God’s grace. Our group was lovingly welcomed and the evening had a clear spiritual impact. . Overall this was a beautiful experience sharing in the worship of God in the Pentecostal adjacent community. I left feeling the dynamic power of God to meet people where they reside.

Due to some travel complications I was able to extend my stay in Brazil to include one more Sunday. Making the most of my time, this Sunday included two additional Church events. In the morning I was able to worship with a sister church from my denomination (The Free Methodist Church/Igreja Metodista Livre). And in the evening I attended the Vesper service of the Benedictine monks in São Paulo (Moseitro São Bento). Worshiping with my Free Methodist brothers and sisters was a special treat. Without a doubt this is where I felt most at home among all the churches I visited. I encountered a community that loved God and loved each other. In America we sometimes use (perhaps overuse) the phrase, “doing life together.” After only one Sunday, I can confidently say, this church “does life together!” I encountered, in a few short hours, a sense of community on a level that I rarely see in America. Of course, it didn’t hurt that we had the best translation services of the entire trip. We sang “lustily and with good courage” as Wesley would say. We shared words of greeting. We learned from an excellent sermon on the Trinity. And we enjoyed each other’s company. It was a truly genuine and beautiful experience. I left feeling the love of community.

I had read that the Mosteiro do São Bento (Monastery of St. Benedict) was something not to be missed in São Paulo. The guide books were correct. The church itself was stunning (although it is always strange to me to see God depicted as an old, white-haired man; surely this takes iconography too far!). The best part of this service, by far, was the Gregorian chant. In this service we entered into the sublime mystery of God. This was a service that called on us to recognize our human limitations and see God’s divine beauty in a way that all of the other services did not effect in the same way. I left this service in quiet contemplation.

After all of these experiences, here are some of the things that I have learned about the Brazilian pursuit of Jesus:

• what began as a Catholic mission has now fully embraced the diversity of modern Christianity
  • all forms of Christianity are represented
• there is a depth of seeking after God that I do not see consistently in America
  • people truly believe that Jesus will transform their lives; salvation is both here and now and yet to come
• as with most of my Brazilian experiences, community looked and felt different than America
  • even a short time in Brazil helps an American begin to see the extreme individualism of American culture
  • whereas for Americans, community is usually thought of as simply an aggregate of like minded individuals, Brazilians tend to see the community as something with its own integrity and importance: community > individual. All church services reflected this in some way.
• There are both positive and negative forms of religious experience and expression. At its best (which I experienced in Brazil) religion points us to the mystery that transcends, the love and grace which we must have to truly live, and the community which gives life meaning and purpose; at is worst it becomes a kind of spectacle and performance that merely seeks to meet my needs (emotional, physical, or monetary). In this way, Brazil provided the best and the worst.

To God be the Glory!

When I awake on Friday morning, the first thing I think about is the time I have left at my host family’s home. I look back on everything I have experienced in the almost two weeks we have been in Sao Paulo, and I try to grasp that we are leaving in a few days. I think to myself, Where did the time go?

I begin to feel many emotions, both positive emotions about memories I have made so far but also sadness and disbelief at the fact that our trip is coming to an end. This trip has been so meaningful to me, and the idea of its ending brings feelings of dread. I reflect on the time I have spent in Brazil and the sense of urgency because of time running out. As I marvel at how time has felt odd for me on this trip, I wonder how time can feel different in different circumstances. How is it that these three weeks have passed so quickly? I begin to worry about how I still have so much that I want to experience but so little time.

After preparing for the day ahead and trying not to think about the limited time remaining, we drove to the University for a day filled with learning and exploring. For one part of the day, the group embarked on a Portuguese lesson. During this class, we reviewed many concepts about the Portuguese language, one in particular, being how to tell time. Because time is mainly on a 24-hour scale in Brazil rather than AM and PM times, this portion of the lesson took some time for me to grasp fully. As we learned how to tell the time in Portuguese, I thought about how time can be a confusing concept. As I try to figure out how to say the time in Portuguese, I realize the correlation to my thoughts earlier in the day. After getting past the coincidence of the lesson and my thoughts from that morning, I reflected on this realization.

One of the many beautiful views in Sao Paulo!

This realization has led me to the notion that it does not matter how much time you have with people; what matters is how you spend it. Instead of focusing on the time I have left here in Sao Paulo, I should focus on enjoying this time to its fullest extent. 

To end the day, the group took a trip to Museu do Ipiranga, a museum dedicated to displaying the story of Brazil’s history and Independence. Walking through this museum and seeing these historical sights allowed me to live in the moment and focus on the beauty of Brazil. I applied my realization and focused my attention not on the limited time remaining on our journey but instead on what was right in front of me. I figured that worrying about time is a poor way to spend time, and though the sadness from earlier in the day still lingered, I decided not to dwell on it.

Museu do Ipiranga (from very far away)!

After departing from the museum and arriving home for the evening to spend time with our host family, the week’s activities caught up to me, and I fell asleep, grateful for the time that I still have left in Sao Paulo with our host family. This day made me realize that time should not be wasted with worry but instead enjoyed and savored.

While on this trip, a reoccurring observation has been expressed by many of us students. We all have gotten the impression that Brazilian people seem to be much more united than at home in the U.S. In the United States, people are very individualized now with an “I’m this, and you’re that” mentality. However, in Brazil, it felt like people may have their differences, but at the end of the day, everyone is Brazilian, so it doesn’t really matter. We all realized we could have this observation because we are very sheltered here. Three weeks may feel like a long time to us, but it is still not long enough to fully observe and understand the complexity of this topic.

Our class picked up this sense of togetherness through the welcoming and caring personalities of the people here. For example, in Capoeira, the most significant idea is how the sport creates respect for one another and the community. Also, we noticed that even the homeless work together and help each other survive, which I have never seen at home in New York. However, when talking with Cami at the pool, Emily and I realized that both countries have similar problems. We learned that political parties here have the same issue that we have in the U.S. It created a massive separation in people who supported President Bolsonaro and the current President De Luca. During this waring campaign, the Brazilian national soccer team’s jersey was even used to represent bad morals. This turned something like soccer, which once united the country, into something that separated it further. Cami told us that, thankfully, the recent World Cup happened just after this crazy time, which turned the jersey back to something that symbolizes the goodness and unity of the country. We learned about other issues like people losing their homes to flooding, which sounded similar to the hurricanes in Florida, and there are also issues of race that are highly similar to problems we face in the United States.

We learned about good similarities as well, which I found fascinating. We learned that Brazilians compare Rio to Los Angeles; it is where Brazil’s media is produced and where the big movie stars live. They also compare São Paulo to New York City, and Paulista Avenue is said to be the Brazilian’s Time Square.

Paulista Avenue was a lot of fun. We looked in some shops and saw the various types of people living there. It did remind us very much of Time Square in NYC. We stopped at a Brazilian coffee shop where we relaxed and talked while drinking fantastic coffee.

There is a large homeless population here, which is another similarity to Rochester. Although in Paulista, at night, the government sets up tents that are raised off the ground under the MASP Museum for people to sleep in. I thought this was very special because I have never seen an initiative like this to help our homeless population at home.

Once we got home for the night, we watched the São Paulo soccer game on T.V. and ended the night by playing Rummikube.

Today was a great day of relaxation, but it also truly immersed us in the Brazilian culture. At the beginning of the trip, looking forward and seeing how long of a trip we had ahead of us was scary. However, now that we only have two days left in São Paulo, it is really sad to go home and leave our amazing host family. Emily and I will forever be grateful to them for their amazing kindness.

I’m someone who loves to stay in her comfort zone and I’m never quite prepared when faced with having to move outside of that zone. Being here in Brazil has forced me to spend more time outside of my comfort zone than inside it.

From one direction, it certainly seems like airplanes should have the same problem I do, in that staying on the ground would be an airplane’s “comfort zone” (remaining on the ground due to gravity).

One of the reasons I love planes so much is that it seems like it should be impossible to accomplish the one thing they’re designed to do: fly. Airplanes are these huge metal machines propelled with extremely heavy engines carrying dozens upon dozens of people and cargoes and somehow they still fly.

And yet an airplane can still fly.

I don’t like to leave what I find familiar. In the past, I’ve struggled with trying new foods or going new places or meeting new people.

And yet, here I am, almost to the end of an amazing trip. I think one of the important experiences I took away from all of this is that I am capable of trying new things and even enjoying them.

While here, I got to try new foods I wasn’t sure about, and still ended up liking them; such as the pastels I shared with my host family and friends on an early Saturday afternoon. Later, I would go on to order pastels for myself (in Portuguese!) at a bakery in Foz do Iguaçu.

On another Saturday, we went to walk down Paulista Avenue, and near the end we visited an art exhibition while on our way back. I’m not sure I would have ever experienced anything like it had I not come on this trip.

Much like an airplane manages to do what seems impossible at a first glance, I wouldn’t have believed before this trip that I could’ve accomplished so many new things.

Enjoying family time at Sunday’s barbecue

Today, May 29, my host family organized a traditional Sunday barbecue. This is a customary practice in Brazil, where families come together on weekends to bond and spend quality time. Despite Sarina and I not being fluent in Portuguese, we made an effort to converse with the family, asking questions and getting acquainted with one another. Although, from an external perspective, my attempts at communication in a mixture of Portuguese and English may have appeared awkward and perhaps even embarrassing, it is precisely these moments that I cherish. These are the moments that allow me to step outside of the ordinary and learn through my mistakes. It is an integral part of personal growth and development.

Grilling the chicken hearts outside with our host dad’s brother

As the day progressed, our host family invited us to join them at the barbecue, eagerly anticipating the opportunity to introduce us to a common local delicacy: chicken hearts. On our first day in Brazil, Sarina had curiously inquired about the peculiar-looking meat displayed at the supermarket. To her surprise, our host dad promptly informed her that it was “chicken heart.” Sarina’s expression swiftly transitioned from surprise to confusion and finally to disgust as she asked incredulously, “Do people actually eat that?” We all shared a laugh, and this amusing anecdote became a recurring topic in our daily conversations, with Sarina playfully teased about her reaction to the prospect of consuming chicken hearts. 

Sarina holding the skewer with chicken hearts

Fast forward to the last weekend of our trip, and there we stood by the barbecue, preparing to taste chicken hearts for the very first time. Due to this opportunity, I now love chicken hearts! They are exquisite and brimming with flavor, a flavor that would have eluded us had we not been open to seizing the chance. This moment serves as yet another illustration of wholeheartedly embracing new experiences. When venturing to unfamiliar places, it is crucial to dive in with a willingness to adapt to anything that comes your way. This approach allows for a profound appreciation of the culture, as you learn to embrace it without fear and set aside preconceived notions or expectations.

All of the family together (including Mikalya and myself) for my birthday dinner

Nothing could have prepared me for the love that I felt from this family. As soon as we had arrived after our long flight, Grandma made us soup that we could have which set the tone for the rest of the time together. Throughout the week the ice was broken through conversations and laughter. By the time my birthday rolled around the first Friday we were here, I felt at home. I was greeted with a song and big hugs before school, and treated to cake, brigadiero, and late night talks. It didn’t feel like I had just met them only a few days prior, but felt like I had always been part of their family. My 20th birthday is one that I’ll never forget for many reasons, but mainly because of my host family’s love.

The two neighboring families ready to take on Paulista Avenue!

What’s been great about this whole experience too is all of the time that I have gotten to spend with the Gomes family as well. Reinaldo, Alessandra, Andressa, and Vinniex are hosting Kennedy and Abby. Our families live right next door to each other and go on adventures together whenever we have the chance. We were all picked up by Reinaldo on the first day, and his joy for life was infectious. Ever since then his smile, laugh, jokes, and amazing dance moves have made ever moment even better. Getting to know the rest of the family as we walked through the market or down Paulista Avenue has been a true blessing as well. As a large group I have been blessed to get to know my fellow Roberts students more, getting to call them all close friends moving forward. The memories we have created and get to share as a group will stay with us forever.

The families at a local street market

Little did I know that I would be tearing up at the thought of leaving my host family in a few days. This place has felt like home because of these wonderful people. Each person has been essential to my Brazil trip with shaping me into the person who is writing this blog. Their love, generosity, patience, joy, and laughter has turned my Brazil trip into something more than just three weeks. They will always be by family, even if we are thousands of miles apart. I believe that God brings people into your life for specific reasons, and for me that’s seen with the Perina and Gomes families. Muito obrigada por tudo. Com todo o meu amor e até a próxima. – Sydney

Our group after our Samba class!

Our meal at the culinary school.

To continue, family plays a significant role in Brazilian culture. We always have family time during dinner, and tonight, our host dad’s niece came over with her family. One family member present, who I had not met before, was a little girl. It was her first time ever hearing English (according to our host dad), and she was in awe as she saw and heard Morgan and me speak in English. She loved listening to us and our inflections as we spoke (my roommate and me). Our host dad, mom, and sister, also conversed with us in English and she was amazed. She was determined to help me learn Portuguese by picking up various items around the house and saying their name in Portuguese with much enthusiasm. By the end of the night, she did not want to leave because she wanted to stay and practice English/Portuguese with us. This interaction reminded me of how I am here to learn Brazilian culture, and at the same time, people close to me, like my host family, desire to know more about my own culture at home. There seems to be a cultural exchange that exists within my host family and my roommate and me. They desire to know how their home, life, and food compares to mine in America. However, most of all, they want to show us the amazing culture that lies within Brazil that they hold so dearly.

Finally, this night reminded me of the love and importance of family resembled in Brazil. If there is anything that I want to bring back with me (other than coffee beans lol), it is the idea and feeling of family here in Brazil. Family here is greater than anything else, and I hope to remember that feeling and carry it with me throughout my life.

While on this trip, Moisés, my host brother, and I have spent a lot of time together. We have played games, watched movies, sang while playing guitar together, and cooked dinner many times. We have also had deep theological discussions at odd hours; but out of all this, making Brigadeiro was what brought us closer. Our conversations now flow easier, we have a better understanding of each other’s preferences, and we can enjoy the empty space when there is no conversation without the anxiety of trying to fill it with words. 

Earlier that day, I had made dinner for my host family. I got to show a piece of myself to them through my cooking. They also got to taste what it’s like to eat what I cook when I don’t accidentally add way too much pepper! Making Brigadeiro with Moisés was a similar experience for me. Through making this dessert, I got to see a piece of who he is, as well as enjoy an amazing dish! 

After the Brigadeiro set, we watched some thrillers together. Chocolate and adrenaline are a good combination; if you remember to eat instead of being stuck in one spot from intrigue. Moisés and I would slowly make our way through the bowl of Brigadeiro throughout the episodes and converse about how predictable the plots were. As the night went on, and the amount of Brigadeiro dwindled, we were much more relaxed in each other’s company than we had been before. 

This experience showed me that it’s not the big activities that bring people together, it’s the small ones. Playing games, singing, talking; all of these are what brought me and my host family closer to one another. We enjoy our time together, having a lot of fun in one another’s company; as well as some Brigadeiro from time to time.

My host family Our Brigadeiro (half eaten)

A city founded by a Portuguese nobleman and built on the labor and dreams of the native peoples. Santos City is one of Brazil’s oldest-founded areas, booming in growth with a blossoming history that made it into what it is today. On this trip, we took a bus tour through the city of Santos and spent the morning learning about its history. Our guide Jefferson made sure to inform us of all the history he knew. The morning started with a trolley built in the 1920s to a historic building and an old church that was built in the 1600s. You could feel the booming love that Brazilian people held for their city and the people that make it a community. Our tour guide showed us where the trolley’s machinery was, the building’s history, and the beautiful view from the roof. The church was small and quiet, but there were thousands of brightly colored ribbons to show the prayers and wishes of so many people before us. This experience left me with a strong sense of community and reflectiveness about Brazilians’ dedication to making their living area a community.

The name Santos itself means saint and the religious dedication of its people can be felt deeply. There were many stories of the Brazilian people using the church and their prayers to God as protection. I found this faith and trust in God to be overwhelmingly admirable. The ability to see protection and providance from God in a time of disparity, no matter your culture, is something that I have always felt to be outstanding. This community and church had no lack of this.

The history of Santos and the people that made it, like the history of most cases, comes with painful and hard situations. On this trip, we discussed the slave market in Santos as well as the slave use in coffee production, and it forces us to ask, how do you learn from and cope with painful history? Though we only grazed the surface of a difficult conversation about slavery, The reality of it was not ignored, especially in the coffee museum. The coffee commerce itself was critical to the building of Brazil’s economy today, and this reality is only present because of the break backing work of slaves. Through discussing this question with our guide, I learned from his perspective that the best thing we can do for our history is to sit on the fact that it makes us uncomfortable and not ignore it. He said that we could not be standing where we are today if it were not for all the history before, even when it was harmful. This is not an excuse to glorify all aspects of our history but rather to avoid ignoring history as a whole. I found this perspective inspiring. And it is a sentiment I plan to bring back with me to America.

While our morning was spent learning about the history and community in Santos, our evening was spent experiencing it for ourselves. We shared a group lunch with new foods and well-loved ones. After our stomachs were full, the evening was spent thoroughly enjoying group time at Santos Beach. For me, I found it refreshing to spend relaxing group time together and to reflect and discuss with my fellow classmates. It has been a blessing to travel in a community and to take away how critical it is to foster your community. Some days this is working on a single relationship and learning how to be a good partner; others, it is ensuring everyone is included in a grand adventure.

Walking around these streets reminds me so much of my thought processes. The streets are filled with cars and the buildings are so close together, much like how many of my thoughts race through my head, careening from one topic to the next. The sidewalks often involve suddenly stepping up or stepping down, like how my emotions can vary from one moment to the next.

We’ve also done quite a bit of driving. São Paulo is a city with a large automotive industry and cars quite literally line the streets throughout the city. In comparison to walking, I find being driven someplace to be relaxing because I don’t have to have my thoughts in order and I can just relax and watch buildings fly by.

Being here in São Paulo has made me realize just how grateful I am to have opportunities to travel, whether that involves walking or driving. Back home, I’m often reluctant to go new places, especially as I wouldn’t exactly call Rochester a “walkable” city and being behind the wheel of a car makes me extremely anxious.

Walking in São Paulo allows me to collect my thoughts and watch how the people here go about their daily lives, how they experience this place they call home. For example, the small shops are almost all open directly to the street, allowing people walking by to come and go easily.

Driving allows me to see just how vast and full of culture a city can get, from the style of the buildings’ architecture, to the unspoken rules of driving through the streets. The city has rows of favelas on some of the streets, and I love seeing the colorful buildings as the cars race by, and it’s very interesting watching vehicles stop and go at intersections, seemingly following rules that they know implicitly but that I couldn’t articulate.

The driving culture here is one that reflects having trust in the other drivers. I’ve noticed that it isn’t always clear what the other people on the road are going to do, and yet everybody acts with the understanding that others are going to move as well.

On Sunday, while driving to a festival with my host family, I noticed that there was an area with a lane closed off completely to car traffic and reserved solely for bike travel. I found this so incredibly fascinating to see, with my background in Rochester and my understanding that accomplishing this on such a wide scale throughout the city would be difficult.

I’ve struggled these past few days with finding a way to express just how grateful I am to be here and to experience so many new places. “Thank you” and “obrigada” feel somewhat inadequate to describe how I feel. I’m grateful especially to be able to witness the amount of trust present in the culture of São Paulo.

I can’t wait to see more of São Paulo from the streets, whether that will involve walking or driving.