Edir Macedo

I was disheartened when I arrived in Belo Horizonte and saw that near my Aunt Aparecida's apartment, where I usually stay when I'm in the city, the Evangelical businessman minister,  and self-proclaimed Bishop, Edir Macedo has built an enormous church for his Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus (Universal Church of the Kingdom of God).

The church was so huge that even on a panoramic setting I could not fit the entire image into my viewfinder. Indeed, I had to shoot my pictures rather hurriedly as there were several employees eyeing me suspiciously.

Who is Edir Macedo? He's a former employee of Rio de Janeiro's state lottery, Loterj, who opened a storefront church in the late 1970's proclaimed himself a bishop and decided to wage a crusade of sorts against those who practiced Candomblé, the African based religion popular in Brazil among many of the poor and Afro-Brazilians. Apparently it worked as he was able to draw enough people away to fund through their donations his purchase of Rede Record, one of Brazil's television networks. He has more than 1,000 churches throughout the World, including the USA, Europe and Latin America.

Apparently, the more you give, the more likely your prayers are to be answered:

Believers are promised healing and riches - for a price. The more one gives, the more miracles one will reap, The Post heard preachers say in church branches in four boroughs.

''Give $500, $100, $50,'' a Brooklyn bishop pleaded recently in a branch in a converted movie house on Fourth Avenue in the Boerum Hill section of Brooklyn. ''When you give freely, you will prosper.''

In Woodside, Queens, a pastor bellows out to his followers: ''Unless you give, you cannot be blessed.''

My favorite comment about Macedo is in Paul Rambali's In the Cities and the Jungles of Brazil:

In five minutes, the holy spirit will descend! In five minutes, the holy spirit will descend . . .

The huge electronic signboard in the Maracanã stadium announces the imminent miracle as though it were the next fixture. On the stands of the giant soccer arena, 200,000 crentes [slang term for protestants] are gathered for the start of the Easter weekend, crowded, sweating and mumbling with their eyes shut tight and their hands pressed on the top of their heads. There aren't enough pastors to move through the crowds like pickpockets, placing their hands on the heads of the faithful to exorcise the demons, and so the faithful, moved by the reverberating voice of the Bishop, in white shirt and tie in the centre of the field, perform their own auto-exorcisms. When they open their eyes they will be filled with divine light.

'If you trust in Jesus, you'll be able to see.  You won't need your glasses,' promises the Bishop. 'Throw away your glasses, for He is coming!'

And thousands of pairs of spectacles shower onto the soccer field.

Bishop Edir Macedo, who has 'made a pact with Jesus', does not throw away his glasses, however.

Obviously what's sauce for the goose isn't sauce for the gander. This type just sickens me; making themselves rich by preying on the poor.

Comments

[akaky]

i didnt think evangelical protestants had bishops in the first place. you learn something new everyday.

[Gideon]

Bishop Macedo is doing an outstanding work through the word. Yes it well know that if you give, you will receive in return . It is not an new invention by Bishop Macedo. Even islam / Buddha know the power of Free giving. More you despise Bishop Macedo, more the church is growing. He is anointed and among the chosen ones by God and you can't stop it ( Read Acts 2,3 )

[Randy Paul]

Macedo is interested mostly in lining his pockets. Perhaps you should read Matthew Chapters 5 & 6.

[Mzwa]

The Universal Church of the kingdom of GOD is an instrument for GOD to draw His lost children back to Him. He said "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation". That is exactly what the UCKG is doing. Destroying all the work of the devil.And Bishop Macedo is just the leader of the church. He is not better or holier than anyone else. He was just placed by God to be the leader of the UCKG. Every organisation needs someone to be in a position of authority, otherwise that organisation will fall apart.

But then, it is no surprise that there are people who choose to talk badly about the church of Christ. It was prophesied about more than 2000 years ago by Christ Himself. If there were people who persecuted Him of course they will pesecute us also.

And on the issue of offerings in the church, read the stories of Elijah and the widow, the widow who gave two copper coins & Ananias & Sapphirah.

[CDS-ZERO]

Bishop Macedo is a man of God! Of course, not every one will see him in that way because they like to criticize things they don't understand.(Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.) As for me, people can say what they want to say but they can never change the fact that I WAS TRANSFORMED through the work of this man. If he didn't start the work of God (UCKG) I realy dont know what would happen. The only thing that I suggest this people who likes to criticize everything (specialy when it comes to money) is, I think it would be better if you would ASK those who gave offerings by faith and LISTEN to the results before criticizing!

[Randy Paul]

He didn't start the work of God. He started the bu$ine$$ of God.

[sandy]

Bishop Macedo is a Man of God. But of course not everyone wants to see it that way, but i understand because before i meet the church here in the UNITED STATES i use to think the same way and talk bad about the church the pastors and the Bishop. But in June of 1992 i went to the church and i learned to use my faith my hole life changed i was healed my familey tranformed and all that thanks to Jesus were i found In Bishop Macedo Church.. And for those who speak bad about the church in all ways i ask you have you gone too see your self? How can you say something that you haven't seen with your eyes..

[CARLOS]

I WAS A WORKER(OBREIRO) FOR THE UCKG AND THE TRUTH IS THAT 90% OF THE PASTORS AND BISHOPS FROM THE CHURCH ARE A PIECE OF GARBAGE...I WAS JUST A KID (15YRS OLD) AND THEY TEACH YOU THAT THE MORE YOU SUFFER IN WHAT THEY CALL THE WORK OF GOD, THE MORE YOU'LL BE BLESSED IN THE FUTURE(AS IN GETTING "PROMOTED" TO PASTOR AND/OR BISHOP IN THE CHURCH) I DID SEE PEOPLE GET HEALED BUT THEY WERE NOT HEALED BECAUSE THEY ARE MEN OF GOD, NOOOOO! THEY WERE HEALED BECAUSE GOD PUT FAITH IN THEM FROM THE TIME THEY WERE BORN AND WHAT HEALED THEM WAS THEIR FAITH....NOW I'VE SEEN MAYBE 2 OR 3 PEOPLE THAT WERE "BLESSED" IN THEIR FINANCIAL SITUATION BUT THAT IS NOTHING BUT COINCIDENCE BECAUSE ALMOST EVERY SINGLE MEMBER OF THE CHURCH GIVES A LOT OF MONEY IN OFFERINGS & MOST OF THEM GET TIRED OF GIVING BECAUSE THEY NEVER GET ANYTHING BACK...SEE ANALYSING THE WORK OF THE MACEDO THEY TEACH PEOPLE NOT TO GAMBLE(IN CASINOS OR LOTTERY) BUT THEY TEACH MEMBERS OF THE CHURCH TO GAMBLE WITH GOD..COME ON GIVE $10000 OR $5000 AND MACEDO WILL PRAY FOR YOU @ IN ISRAEL(THE COUNTRY) WERE OUR LORD JESUS WALKED AND MAKE A REQUEST.. NEXT MONTH, AGAIN GIVE YOUR WHOLE PAYCHECK, AND YOU'LL SEE GODS POWER IN YOUR LIVE...AND YOU LOOK AT THE WAY THE MEMBERS OF THAT CHURCH LIVE AND IT'S TERRIBLE...EVERYTIME I THINK ABOUT THIS MY HEART ACHES TO SEE PEOPLE PLACING THEIR FAITH AND THEIR MONEY ON THIS MACEDO GUY WHILE THEY KEEP GOING TO HELL AND MACEDO JUST GROWS RICHER...ONCE I HEARD BISHOP FRANCISCO COUTO SAY "LA IGLESIA UNIVERSAL ES UNA POTENCIA, NADA NI NADIE PUEDE TOCARNOS, EN ESTADOS UNIDOS CONTAMOS CON LOS MEJORES ABOGADOS POR QUE TENEMOS LAS CONDICIONES PARA CONTRATARLOS" (THE UNIVERSAL CHURCH IS POWERFULL, NOBODY CAN DO ANYTHING TO HARM US, WE COUNT WITH THE BEST ATTORNEYS IN THE USA BECAUSE WE CAN AFFORD THEM)AND THIS IS THE WAY THEY ALL THINK, NOW I BELIEVE THAT THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO REALLY THINK MACEDO IS A MAN OF GOD AND EVERYTHING THEY DO IN THE CHURCH IS FOR GOD, BUT ONLY AT THE LEVEL OF MEMBER, WORKER AND/OR PASTOR IN TRAINING, AND I CAN ASSURE YOU THEY ARE THE ONES THAT DO ALL THE WORK AND DON'T GET ANY MONEY OUT OF IT, BUT THE PASTORS, AND BISHOPS, THEY DO GET THEIR SHARE...FOR EXAMPLE, I JUST FOUND OUT THAT BISHOP SERGIO VON HELDER'S DAUGHTER(IN NEW YORK) IS DRIVING A NEW CAR, WHICH IS OK FOR A FATHER TO BUY HIS DAUGHTER A NEW CAR WHEN HE WORKS FOR IT BUT NOT WHEN YOU MAKE YOUR MONEY FROM EXTORCIONING POOR INOCENT PEOPLE THAT ARE IN NEED OF SOMETHING OR SOMEONE TO BELIEVE IN..

[Biblia]

First I think that you must respect the right people and don't lie about who do good things, how I can see, you don't do nothing good, envious. If you look to your church, maybe chatolic, you will not see good things in this history, so Bp. Macedo never killed someone and do what God and the people desire, good things, no like your lie.