A construção de um ícone-paisagem: o caso da Catedral da Fé no bairro de Lourdes, em Belo Horizonte

Abstract

The present study investigates the role of the architectural icon, considering both landscape and religion, as part of the strategy to increase the number of faithful followers as well as the power of neopentecostal institutions, considering a recent phenomenon underway in Brazil, which suggests the inversion of religious predominance from Catholic to Evangelical. To this end, the “Catedral da Fé”, built by “Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus”, located in Belo Horizonte (MG - Brazil), was adopted as a case study, in which it’s analyzed the material and immaterial senses it produces. The revised literature investigated the phenomenon of religious transition in Brazil, the instrumentation of symbolic power and the landscape, considering its instances in visu and in situ, of values and meanings. The empirical part analyzed the Cathedral's landscape strength and its recognition by its faithful followers, through urban readings and qualitative research. The results add evidence in favor of the hypothesis that the Cathedral would intentionally and efficiently serve as an instrument of both communication and accumulation of symbolic power. The Cathedral is also recognized as an icon by its users, contributing to the expansion of the neopentecostal institution.