A church roof collapsed in Sao Paulo Sunday during a service, 9 people are dead and 113 injured.
The disaster happened in the evangelical Reborn in Christ Christian Church, in the southern suburb of Cambuci around 7:00 pm on Sunday, while up to 600 worshipers were praying.
The church was known in Brazil and abroad as the venue where Kaka — the Brazilian soccer star who is currently being wooed to move to Manchester City from AC Milan — married in December 2005.
Religion News blog has background on the church and it’s founders.
The Reborn in Christ denomination has a significant following in Brazil, where it was started in 1986, as well as in Argentina, Uruguay, the United States and Japan.
The Renascer network (Reborn in Christ) has 1,500 churches and relies on donations from followers.
Its founders, Estevao and Sonia Hernandes, have built an extensive media empire. They have also come under suspicion from authorities of using the church for money laundering, and were arrested in Miami in 2007 for money smuggling.
The Hernades who started their prosperity church neo-pentecostal network in the 1980′s are Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker and Paul and Jan Crouch rolled into one – even going so far as to trademark the word ‘gospel’ in Brazil. They own horse ranches, media outlets, real estate in more than one country, and a recording company.
Their yearly march for Jesus in Sao Paulo attract 3 million people.
Estevam Hernandes Filho is 54-55 years old, his wife Sonia Haddad Moraes Hernandes about 50. They say they smuggled money into the US so they could move into Boca Raton to prevent kidnapping.
They were wanted by Brazil on money laundering, larceny, embezzlement and fraud charges, extradition charges have been dropped. They claim Catholics and the devil are persecuting them.
They have several churches in Florida.
Pentecostalism has exploded in Brazil.
In 2007 the couple spent 10 months in jail in the US in 2007 for money laundering.
Hernandes, a former Xerox salesman and his wife started their first health and wealth church out of their pizza parlour.
He is seen as an apostle by his followers and his wife is referred to as a bishop.
Brazil’s evangelical church is an umbrella term that includes Pentecostals, Baptists and other denominations and has long been known as using religion as a cover for fraud, money laundering and organised crime.
The Sao Paulo church housed in a former cinema has been undergoing renovations and heavy rains in the city may have contributed to the roof collapse and could hold 2 thousand people.
Screen grab from Globo TV
Pew Forum – Pentecostalism in Brazil
Just a small note: The city in Brazil is Sao Paulo, not San Paulo.
Thanks Jess.