About one-third of Brazil is what we Americans would call Evangelical Christians. And when Evangelicals reach such a demographic in society, they affect politics.
Brazil’s prior president, Bolsonaro, got baptized in the Jordan River by Evangelicals.
The last election which supposedly Lulu won was supect, but one thing is clear, Brazil is as much, if not more so, pro-Israel than America.
Over 80% of Brazilians take issue with Lula’s anti-Israel comment
Herb Keinon
February 23, 2024
[T]the Brazilian public is not following its leader [Lulu].
A CNN Brasil poll on Monday found that eight of 10 Brazilians – or 83% of those polled – took issue with Lula’s comparison. [Note: Lulu’s anti-Israel comment]
This dovetails with what one senior diplomatic official said in Jerusalem: “There is a gap in Brazil between the government and the public, with the public more supportive of Israel than the government, and this shows up in polls and in parliamentary debates.”
The CNN Brasil poll, for instance, found that 57% of the 800 respondents thought that Israel is on the right side in this conflict, while 28% sided with Hamas. Additionally, 26% said that Brazil should support Israel in this war, another 14% said the Palestinians, while 54% said the country should stay neutral – something Lula’s government is not doing. In the first two months after the war, support for Israel, as evident in various polls, was running at between 70% and 80%.
The power of Evangelicalism in Brazil is increasing.
Posted on YouTube: May 29, 2024
Brazil is having an Evangelical explosion, and it is very pro-Zionist. You will not hear this on the regular media.
When I started this blog, about twelve years ago, it was more of a curiosity to me. I just wanted to explore the subcultural impact of Arabs in Latin America. I wanted to show the world the food, the music, and the dance that Arabs had brought to Latin culture.
AND IT WAS IMPRESSIVE!
However, there were times that events intruded into the exploration of the subculture. The continuing wars in Gaza always left a mark. But the present Gaza War is of an altogether different character.
Unlike much of the world, and much of the internet, my own sympathies tend to lie with Israel, but I am an American.
Latin America has tens of millions of citizens of Arab ancestry, and while almost all of those Arab-Latins are Christians, some have a pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel view. Chile, for example, has a massive Palestinian population which is very politically powerful, very hostile to Israel, and very influential. Oddly, these Chilean Palestinians are 99% Christian, yet sympathetic to the Islamic cause of Palestine in the Mideast.
To be sure, I am NOT putting down Latin-Arabs, most of whom are nice, but the media focuses on the loud protestors. And the Christians in Latin America forget that their ancestors often left the Mideast due to Muslim persecutions against Christians.
Thankfully, as a rule, Latins of Lebanese Maronite Christian ancestry do remember the predations of Islam; and they tend to avoid an anti-Israel sentiment. They can be a moderating force among other Latin-Arabs.
One has to remember that the pro-Palestinian elements may be loud and organized, but in Latin America there is a growing base of Evangelical Christians who are very pro-Israel. These will not make the headlines … but they vote and politicians have to take that bloc into account.
Posted on YouTube: November 13, 2023
Israel Receives Massive Support from Christians
(Can be auto-translated)
And what you have to also remember is that the general media often lies to you.
I am not saying Israel is perfect. WHAT NATION IS?!
But Hamas is a dark, vicious, terror group.
For example: This is floating on Twitter (X):
Estudiantes de la Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina, participan en el movimiento estudiantil global para exigir el fin del genocidio en la Franja de Gaza. pic.twitter.com/6GAQLCIxNr
Some students in Argentina are pro-Palestinian. So what?!
The tweet does not tell the whole story concerning Argentina.
The President of Argentina, Javier Milei, is very pro-Israel, but the tweet does not mention that. Neither does the tweet mention that a large part of Argentina’s elite is Jewish.
Unlike the rest of Latin America, Argentina had a massive wave of Jewish immigration. It has greatly affected their culture.
So a few pro-Palestinian students in Buenos Aires are insignificant.
Likewise, Brazil’s Presicent Lula may be against Israel, but he knows his position is weak. He got elected by a questionable vote. His opponent was Jair Bolsonaro, a strong pro-Israel supporter. Massive sections of Brazil are Christian-Zionist.
So media reports from South America may be out of sync with the underlying public opinion. While you may see supporters for Gaza in South America on the media, remember that these reports may be biased.
Posted on YouTube: October 12, 2023
This video can be auto-translated.
A German news site, Deutsche Welle, examines Brazil’s stand on the Gaza War.
The video above gives a good, short history of Brazil’s relationship with Israel.
Like the United States, Brazil is very divided.
The government is presently run by a center-left president (Lulu), who would probably lean to a more pro-Palestinian position. However, 31% of the population is Evangelical Christian and they swing Zionist.
The former president, Bolsonaro, was very pro-Israel, and got baptized into the Evangelical church in the Jordan River.
Bolsonaro, was raised Catholic and baptized in the Jordan River by an evangelical pastor during a visit to Israel prior to his 2018 election, as part of a broader effort to boost his appeal among the key religious bloc.
Brazil is not a typical Latin American country, and so it had a very controversial presidential election in 2022.
Brazil is roughly one-third Evangelical Christian (Baptist, Pentecostal, etc.) — and most of those Evangelicals support Israel. In their recent election, these Evangelical voters tended to support the right-wing conservative Jair Bolsonaro who has been very friendly to Israel.
Bolsonaro had also gone so far as to be baptized an Evangelical, himself.
On a visit to Israel two years ago, far-right Brazilian lawmaker Jair Bolsonaro leaned back into the River Jordan in a white robe to be baptized in the arms of a fellow congressman and evangelical pastor.
Jair Bolsonaro was controversial and attracted not only Christian support, but also support from right-wing loonies. Though he supported Israel, some of his supporters were Neo-Nazi types, which was a horrifying contradiction.
No wonder Bolsonaro was considered the Donald Trump of Latin America.
Further complicating the matter is that Brazil has roughly 15 million citizens of Arab descent vs. only about 110,000 Jews. The Arabs outnumber the Jewish vote about 150 to 1.
However, thankfully, most of those Arab-Brazilians are Christian, and the Lebanese Maronites among them would probably not be pro-Palestinian. The Maronites of Lebanon were historically hostile to the Palestinians.
Bolsonaro’s opponent for the presidency was Luis Inácio Lula da Silva (called by his middle name: Lula). Lula was leftist and friendly to Palestine during his previous administrations.
The election came down to a controversial runoff, and Jewish voters in Brazil were conflicted.
… [M]any Jews have taken note of how Bolsonaro has been historically close with Israel for a Brazilian leader.
He boosted his relations with the Brazilian Jewish community in April 2017, when the then-congressman was invited to speak at Rio’s Hebraica club, a hub of sport and cultural activities founded in 1957 by European Jewish immigrants.
THANKS TO THE HEBRAICA OF RIO DE JANEIRO When asked what he would do if he had the power of the presidential pen, Jair Bolsonaro recalls that he is not a candidate for anything and gives this answer. I would like to take this opportunity to say thank you to the Board of Directors of Hebraica Carioca for granting space for democracy and allowing a lecture by someone who unconditionally supports Israel and respects the Jews. Winston Churchill once said “the fascists of the future will call themselves anti-fascists”. Shalom! 🇧🇷
Contrariwise, during his previous time in office, Lula had been semi-hostile to Israeli concerns.
In 2009, da Silva warmly welcomed former Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a notorious Holocaust denier whose regime persecuted minorities and critics, for a visit that drew international criticism.
During his first official visit to Israel in 2010, da Silva refused to visit Theodor Herzl’s grave, which was part of the itinerary for visiting foreign officials in honor of the 150th birthday of the father of Zionism.
Days after, he laid a wreath at Yasser Arafat’s grave in Ramallah.
In the final month of his administration, his government officially recognized Palestine as a state.
As can be imagined, Pro-Palestinians activists were rooting for Lula.
A second term for right-wing populist Jair Bolsonaro could further erode support for the Palestinians in South America, experts say
…
Nowhere is this more visible than when it comes to Israel and Palestine. And with Brazil being home to roughly half of Latin America’s population, its leanings on the issue may influence the rest of the continent.
The Israeli/Palestinian crisis was certainly a factor in the Brazilian election of 2022.
Well, Lula won the election by a questionable razor thin margin, and there was a lot of turmoil over the result in Brazil.
Posted on YouTube: November 16, 2022
For some time, Bolsonaro supporters hit the streets in protest, and the Right said the election was stolen — and it looked like the Right had a case. But Bolsonaro agreed to a turnover, not wanting a coup nor violence.
Lula is expected to be sworn in on January 1, 2023
How this will eventually affect the Mideast remains to be seen.
Personally, I think Bolsonaro was the better man.
November 30, 2024 – Edited – Corrected citations in blockquotes.
