Brazil, with its 190 million inhabitants, is a very religious country. Freedom of religion is provided by the constitution. Brazil is known for being the largest catholic nation but almost all kinds of religious institutions and practices can be found there, while the Christians build the majority.

What just makes me a bit sad sometimes, when I think about it, is to notice the rapid increase of religious denominations that, in my opinion, clearly take advantage of the innocence of the underprivileged people. Due to the hard life they lead, not being able to make their dreams come true, they are often in great need of a leadership that gives them hope. And because most of them never learned to be critical or sceptical and to say “No” they are easy targets for manipulation and seem to be happy about finding a gate to a better life in these Pentecostal churches, in which a great tendency to fanaticism is manifested.

Brazilian religiosity is easily perceived in a very common phrase, said almost everyday by everyone, when you, for example, ask a question like “Will you get a salary increase next month?”. The answer certainly will be “Se Deus quiser!” – “As God wills!”

I compiled for you 10 Brazilian songs, part of the MPB or Música Popular Brasileira (Brazilian Popular Music), that representatively unveil the religiosity of the Brazilian people.

Enjoy!

Se Eu Quiser Falar Com Deus
(Sung by Gilberto Gil, 1981)

Se eu quiser falar com Deus
Tenho que ficar a sós
Tenho que apagar a luz
Tenho que calar a voz
Tenho que encontrar a paz
Tenho que folgar os nós
Dos sapatos, da gravata
Dos desejos, dos receios
Tenho que esquecer a data
Tenho que perder a conta
Tenho que ter mãos vazias
Ter a alma e o corpo nus

Se eu quiser falar com Deus
Tenho que aceitar a dor
Tenho que comer o pão
Que o diabo amassou
Tenho que virar um cão
Tenho que lamber o chão
Dos palácios, dos castelos
Suntuosos do meu sonho
Tenho que me ver tristonho
Tenho que me achar medonho
E apesar de um mal tamanho
Alegrar meu coração

Se eu quiser falar com Deus
Tenho que me aventurar
Tenho que subir aos céus
Sem cordas pra segurar
Tenho que dizer adeus
Dar as costas, caminhar
Decidido, pela estrada
Que ao findar vai dar em nada
Nada, nada, nada, nada
Nada, nada, nada, nada
Nada, nada, nada, nada
Do que eu pensava encontrar

Peço a Deus
(Sung by Mestre Marçal, 1991)

Peço a Deus um mundo cheio de paz
Peço a Deus que alcance os seus ideais
Peço a Deus que a inveja jamais
Peço a Deus pra sermos todos iguais

Peço a Deus pra te livrar da maldade
Peço a Deus que te dê felicidade
Peço a Deus que se propague a bondade
Peço a Deus amor e prosperidade

De mãos dadas, peito aberto, rumo certo para o bem
Pra lutar contra a maldade que este nosso mundo tem
Viver uma vida mansa sem ver o tempo passar
Ter sorriso de criança, ver bondade em cada olhar

Deus Me Fez Assim
(Sung by Beth Carvalho, 2005)

Nunca se deve odiar nem desejar mal a ninguém
Seria bom a gente ver todos vivendo muito bem
Juro por tudo que é sagrado, jamais pensei em me vingar
O que eu mais aprendi no mundo foi viver, sofrer e perdoar

Não é você que vai fazer mudar a minha opinião
Posso chorar que ninguém vai modificar meu coração
Já perdoei até você que desejou meu fim
Que bom que Deus me fez assim

Deus Não Me Esqueceu
(Sung by Nelson Cavaquinho, 1972)

Quem vem ao mundo é para sofrer
Uns fogem da vida mas eu quero viver
Quem não sabe sofrer não tem amor a Deus
Carrego a minha cruz, Deus me ensinou a suportar

Os sofrimentos meus, assim irei até o fim
Feliz nesse mundo e quem pensa assim
Sou pobre mas sou rico de bondade, que Deus me deu
Deus não me esqueceu

Maior é Deus
(Sung by Trio Mocotó, 1973)

Maior é Deus no céu e nada mais
Ai, ai, ai, ai
A falsidade neste mundo é muito grande
Por isso Ele na terra não volta mais

Maior é Deus no céu e nada mais
Ai, ai, ai, ai
A falsidade neste mundo é muito grande
Por isso Ele na terra não volta mais

Quem somos nós, que vivemos entre o mal e o bem
Deus é maior, bem maior do que ninguém

Jesus Cristo
(Sung by Cláudia, 1971)

Jesus Cristo! Jesus Cristo!
Jesus Cristo eu estou aqui

Olho pro céu e vejo uma nuvem branca que vai passando
Olho na terra e vejo uma multidão que vai caminhando
Como essa nuvem branca essa gente não sabe aonde vai
Quem poderá dizer o caminho certo é Você, meu Pai

Jesus Cristo! Jesus Cristo!
Jesus Cristo eu estou aqui

Toda essa multidão tem no peito amor e procura a paz
E apesar de tudo a esperança não se desfaz
Olhando a flor que nasce no chão daquele que tem amor
Olho pro céu e sinto crescer a fé no meu Salvador

Jesus Cristo! Jesus Cristo!
Jesus Cristo eu estou aqui

Em cada esquina eu vejo o olhar perdido de um irmão
Em busca do mesmo bem, nessa direção caminhando vem
É meu desejo ver aumentando sempre essa procissão
Para que todos cantem na mesma voz essa oração

Jesus Cristo! Jesus Cristo!
Jesus Cristo eu estou aqui

365 Igrejas
(Sung by Dorival Caymmi, 1957)

365 igrejas a Bahia tem
365 igrejas a Bahia tem
Numa eu me batizei, na segunda eu me crismei
Na terceira eu vou casar com uma mulher que eu quero bem
Na terceira eu vou casar com uma mulher que eu quero bem

365 igrejas a Bahia tem
365 igrejas a Bahia tem
Numa eu me batizei, na segunda eu me crismei
Na terceira eu vou casar com uma mulher que eu quero bem
Na terceira eu vou casar com uma mulher que eu quero bem

Se depois que eu me casar me nascer um bacuri
Vou me embora pra Bahia, vou
Vou batizar no Bonfim
Mas se for me parecendo que os meninos vão nascendo por cada uma igreja que tem lá
Sou obrigado a comprar minha passagem pra voltar pra cá, não é?

Grande Deus
(Sung by Cartola, 1977)

Deus, grande Deus
Meu destino, bem sei, foi traçado pelos dedos Teus
Grande Deus, de joelhos aqui eu voltei para Te implorar
Perdoai-me, sei que errei um dia
Oh, perdoai-me pelo nome de Maria
Que nunca mais direi o que não devia

Eu errei, grande Deus, mas quem é que não erra
Quando vê seu castelo cair sobre a terra
Julguei, Senhor, daquele sonho
Eu jamais despertaria
Se errei, perdoai-me
Pelo amor de Maria

Minha História (Gesù Bambino)
(Sung by Chico Buarque, 1971)

Ele vinha sem muita conversa, sem muito explicar
Eu só sei que falava e cheirava e gostava de mar
Sei que tinha tatuagem no braço e dourado no dente
E minha mãe se entregou a esse homem perdidamente

Laiá, laiá

Ele assim como veio partiu, não se sabe pra onde
E deixou minha mãe com o olhar cada dia mais longe
Esperando parada, pregada na pedra do porto
Com seu único velho vestido cada dia mais curto

Laiá, laiá

Quando, enfim, eu nasci minha mãe embrulhou-me num manto
Me vestiu como se eu fosse assim uma espécie de santo
Mas por não se lembrar de acalentos a pobre mulher
Me ninava cantando cantigas de cabaré

Laiá, laiá

Minha mãe não tardou a alertar toda a vizinhança
A mostrar que ali estava bem mais que uma simples criança
E não sei bem se por ironia ou se por amor
Resolveu me chamar com o nome do nosso Senhor

Laiá, laiá

Minha história é esse nome que ainda hoje carrego comigo
Quando vou para um bar viro a mesa, berro, bebo e brigo
Os ladrões e as amantes, meus colegas de copo e de cruz
Me conhecem só pelo meu nome de menino Jesus

Laiá, laiá

Os ladrões e as amantes, meus colegas de copo e de cruz
Me conhecem só pelo meu nome de menino Jesus

Laiá, laiá

Deus Brasileiro
(Sung by Jongo Trio, 1965)

Quem nasceu na minha terra não sabe o que é guerra
Só quer, só tem amor
Não precisa ser alguém, nem mesmo ter vintém
Ninguém lhe olha a cor

Tem tanto samba, também tem terreiro
Mesmo seu Deus é também brasileiro
E quem nasceu na minha terra é livre e é feliz
E tem tudo o que quis

E tem tudo o que quis

I also appreciate his poems for almost always dealing with the greatest questions we have, like about the meaning of life. He is, in my opinion, more of a philosopher than a poet. The following poem could at first sight sound like blasphemy but when we bear in mind Pessoa’s life everything makes sense. We understand his anger and rebellion. His father dies when Fernando is five years old. Just one year later his younger brother dies. With seven he has to move to South Africa because his mother married again and her new husband was the Portuguese consul to Durban and also, by the way, an army commander. There Pessoa goes to a convent school, being, of course, taught by catholic nuns. And at the age of twelve his younger sister dies. It seems obvious to me that in his childhood Fernando Pessoa did not feel loved.

Most people see religion as something earnest, grave, severe. Yet humour is an essential part of the human nature, perhaps the most important at all. What would be life without humour, right? This is such a self-evident truth, how often we forget it though… If it’s true that God created us in His own image then, like us, God must have humour too. Religion should be a joy and not a burden. So for me this poem is telling us to be more easygoing, to not take everything too serious and enjoy life with the innocence of a child. Was not Jesus Himself who said that we will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven if we do not become like a child?

One noonday near the end of spring
I had a dream like a photograph.
I saw Jesus Christ come down to earth.

He came down the side of a hill
And turned into a boy again,
Running and rolling in the grass
And pulling up flowers just to throw them away,
And laughing so you could hear it far away.
He had run away from heaven.
He was like us too much to pretend
He was the second person of the Trinity.
In heaven everything was false, everything out of step
With flowers and trees and stones.
In heaven he always had to be serious
And from time to time become human again
And climb onto the cross, and start dying
With a crown of thorns all around,
And his feet skewered with a spike
And even with a rag around his waist
Like the black men in engravings.
They wouldn’t even let him have a father and mother
Like other children.
His father was two people —
An old man named Joseph, who was a carpenter,
And who wasn’t his father,
And the other father was a stupid dove,
The only ugly dove in the world
Because it was neither a dove nor of the world.
His mother didn’t love a man before she had him.
She wasn’t even a woman: she was the handbag
He came down from the sky in.
And they wanted him, who was born only of a mother,
And never had a father to love with respect,
To preach goodness and justice!

One day when God fell asleep
And the Holy Ghost went off flying,
He got into a box of miracles and stole three.
With the first he made it so that no one would know he had run away.
With the second he made himself a human boy forever.
With the third he created a Christ eternally crucified
And left him nailed to the cross that there is in Heaven
Where he’s used as a model for other crosses.
Then he ran away to the sun
And came down on the first ray he caught.

Today he lives in my village with me.
He is a lovely, natural, smiling child.
He wipes his nose on his right arm,
Sloshes around in puddles,
Collects flowers and loves them and forgets about them.
He throws stones at donkeys,
Steals fruit from the orchards
And runs away yelling and crying from dogs.
And, because he knows they don’t like it
And everybody else thinks it’s funny,
He runs around the girls
Who walk in groups along the roads
With jugs on their heads
And he lifts up their skirts.
He’s taught me everything.
He taught me how to look at things.
He shows me everything there is in flowers.
He shows me how stones are pleasing
When you hold them in your hand
And look at them for a while.

He tells me a lot of bad things about God.
He says he’s a stupid, sick old man,
Always hawking on the ground
And saying nasty things.
The Virgin Mary spends her afternoons in eternity knitting socks.
The Holy Ghost picks at himself with his beak
And perches on armchairs and dirties them.
Everything in heaven is as stupid as the Catholic Church.
He tells me God doesn’t understand anything
About the things he created —
“If it’s him who created them, which I doubt” —
“He says, for example, that all beings sing his glory,
But the beings don’t sing anything.
If they sang they’d be singers.
All beings exist and nothing else
And that’s why they’re called beings.”

And afterwards, tired out from telling me about God’s wickedness,
The Boy Jesus falls asleep in my arms
And I carry him home in my arms.

He stays with me in my house on the middle of a knoll.
He’s the Eternal Child, the god who was missing.
He’s the human who is natural,
He’s the divinity who smiles and plays.
And that’s why I know for certain
That he is the true Boy Jesus.

And the child so human he’s divine
Is my daily poet’s life,
And it’s because he always walks with me that I’m always a poet,
And my very smallest glimpse
Fills me with feeling,
And the smallest sound, whatever it may be,
Seems to speak to me.

The New Child who stays where I stay
Gives one hand to me
And the other to everything that exists
And so we three go along whatever road there is,
Skipping and singing and laughing
And delighting in our common secret
Which is totally knowing
There’s no mystery in the world
And everything’s worth the trouble.
The Eternal Child always accompanies me.
The direction of my eyes is his pointing finger.
My happy attentive listening to every sound
Is him playfully tickling my ears.

We get along so well together
In the company of everything
That we never think about each other,
But the two of us live together
With an inner accord
Like right and left hands.

At nightfall we play jacks
On the doorstep of the house,
Gravely as is fitting a god and a poet,
And as if each jack
Were a whole universe
And because of this it would be a great danger
To let it fall on the ground.

Afterwards I tell him stories about things only people do
And he smiles, because it’s all incredible.
He laughs about kings and about those who are not kings,
And he feels hurt when he hears about wars,
And commerce, and the ships leaving
Their smoke on the high seas.
Because he knows all of this lacks the truth
A flower has in its blooming
And which moves with the sunlight
Changing the hills and valleys
And making whitewashed walls hurt your eyes.

Then he falls asleep and I put him to bed.
I carry him in my arms inside my house
And lay him down, undressing him slowly
Like following a ritual all clean
And maternal until he’s naked.

He sleeps in my soul
And sometimes he wakes up at night
And plays with my dreams.
He throws them around in the air,
Puts one on top of the other
And claps his hands all alone
Smiling at my sleep.

When I die, little boy,
Let me be a child, the littlest one.
Clasp me to your breast
And carry me inside your house.
Undress my tired and human being
And lay me down in your bed.
And tell me stories, in case I wake up,
To make me go to sleep again.
And give me your dreams to play with
Until the day comes —
You know which day I mean.

This is the story of my Boy Jesus.
Is there any reason you see
For it not to be more true
Than everything philosophers think
And everything religions teach?

The King’s Heralds

John Ramsey
Jerry Patton
Jack Veazey
Jim McClintock

The Man From Way Out

Twenty hundred years ago
In a land across the sea
From His home beyond the heavens
Came the Man from way out

Only few were there to meet Him
When He came upon the sea
Everybody was expecting
Some different kind of king

Well, He grew up in a small town
Where the people weren’t so good
They did not appreciate Him
Like a home town really should

So He left His home and mother
Took a few men by His side
And He talked about a Kingdom
Where real love and peace abide

See Him giving God’s forgiveness
To a people tossed about
They all crowded around and listened
To the Man from way out

Though His love is all sufficient
To supply the deepest need
Many foolishly replaced Him
With their own religious creed

So they took Him to a mountain
Raised Him to the sky above
But the cross will stand forever
As a monument to love

Listen to His invitation
Now’s the time to try Him out
Let God fill your empty life now
With the Man from way out

Yes, God Is Real

There are some things that I may not know
There are some places I cannot go
But I am sure of this one thing
My God is real for I can feel Him in my heart

Yes, God is real, real in my soul
My God is real for He has washed and made me whole
And His love for me is like pure gold
My God is real for I can feel Him in my soul

I cannot tell just how you felt
When Jesus washed your sins away
But since that day and since that hour
My God has been real for I can feel His holy power

Yes, God is real, real in my soul
My God is real for He has washed and made me whole
And His love for me is like pure gold
Yes, my God is real for I can feel Him in my soul

Yes, God is real for I can feel Him in my soul

Peace

How can you say there’s peace when wars rage around?
How can you be happy when people put you down?
We know nowhere we’re going but we keep moving on
In this world we never slow down

Peace, peace, wonderful peace
Comes from the Lord in Heaven
Peace, peace, you can have this peace
Just reach out and take His hand

People have tried to substitute things for peace
But nothing has ever been found
The only way to happiness is to have this peace
And you find it only through God

Peace, peace, wonderful peace
Comes from the Lord in Heaven
Peace, peace, you can have this peace
Just reach out and take His hand

Side By Side

Side by side we stand awaiting God’s command
Worshiping our saving King
Living by His grace and moving on in faith
Jesus Himself will see us through

Meet me in heaven, we’ll join hands together
Meet me by the Savior’s side
I’ll meet you in heaven, we’ll sing songs together
Brothers and sisters, I’ll be there
Praise the Lord we all will be there

Soldiers all are we to go where Jesus leads
We’ll fight in faith and we will overcome
Heaven is our goal and saving every soul
Pray that we all will be there

Meet me in heaven, we’ll join hands together
Meet me by the Savior’s side
I’ll meet you in heaven, we’ll sing songs together
Brothers and sisters, I’ll be there
Praise the Lord we all will be there

Side by side we all will be singing praise the Lord
Praise the Lord we all will be there

Come To Me

“Come, come to me
Rest your body
Rest your feet
And come, come to me
Listen everybody, come right now to me
Listen everybody, come and be free”

Through the war and the hate that’s troubled us since our birth
Comes a voice from the clouds that’s heard through the whole earth
Through a thousand speakers in a thousand tongues
Everybody’s heard but few have found
The Man they’ve all been shouting about
And still the Man cries out:

“Come, come to me
Rest your body
Rest your feet
And come, come to me
Listen everybody, come right now to me
Listen everybody, come and be free”

We talk about love and the freedom of our mind
But we never outrace this mad circle of time
We come with nothing and that’s how we leave
The answer is there but nobody sees
The sciences in the glass are running out
And still the Man cries out:

“Come, come to me
Rest your body
Rest your feet
And come, come to me
Listen everybody, come right now to me
Listen everybody, come and be free
Come to me and be free”

Go to Page 3 – Audio and Lyrics (1977-1983)

The King’s Heralds

John Ramsey
Jerry Patton
Jack Veazey
Jim Ayars

Teach Me, Lord

Teach me to love and teach me to live
And teach me to see and yield and forgive
Father, we need You at work and play
So teach me to follow You day by day

Teach me to know Your voice and Your will
And help me to climb my own special hill
You have the plan, so help me to see
The plan You have for me, Lord
Teach me today, I pray

Teach me to love and give and live today

Look How Far You've Come

So you’ve lost your will to live
Seems you’re down to your last friend
And the weight of the world
Keeps tryin’ to pull you in

Don’t give up, don’t give in, give it all to Him
‘Cause He cares so much more than you know
When it seems who you really want to be
Is someone you’ll never become just look how far you’ve come

Though you’ve failed at plans you’ve laid
Don’t forget the steps you’ve made
He has brought you this far
He can take you the rest of the way

Don’t give up, don’t give in, give it all to Him
‘Cause He cares so much more than you know
When it seems who you really want to be
Is someone you’ll never become just look how far you’ve come

I know it’s not all easy easy
But don’t you throw it all away, no
You’ve come to far to turn back now
You’re headed home, you’re not alone

Don’t give up, don’t give in, give it all to Him
‘Cause He cares so much more than you know
When it seems who you really want to be
Is someone you’ll never become just look how far you’ve come

Don’t give up, don’t give in, give it all to Him
‘Cause He cares so much more than you know
When it seems who you really want to be
Is someone you’ll never become just look how far

Don’t forget how far
Just look how far you’ve come

Swing Low, Sweet Chariot

Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home

Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home

Well, you know, I took a look over Jordan and what did I see
Coming for to carry me home
A band of angels coming after me
Coming for to carry me home, ride the chariot

Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home

I’m sometimes up, I’m sometimes down
Coming for to carry me home
But still my soul is glory bound
Coming for to carry me home

If you get there before I do
Coming for to carry me home
Tell all my friends I’m coming too
Coming for to carry me home

Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home

Well, swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home
Swing low, sweet chariot
Coming for to carry me home

Eagle Song

I stood and watched an eagle glide
Spread his wings and soar across the sky, so gracefully he flew
Rising effortlessly
I wanted to know just how to be free

Tiny fingers curled ’round mine
Perfectly formed, new born, the image of two
Infinite mystery
I wanted to know where life comes from

What human intellect can’t sway must be explained the way
Earth wisdom, religions of men
Search without end to fill the spirit house within
Simplicity of God somehow escapes man

I reach for the eternal one creation
He was waiting to reveal His purpose in me
He said “This is where life begins
I made your spirit to light on the wind”

Come let’s fly on the wind
Come on let’s fly on the wind
On the wind, on the wind, on the wind

If People

If people would care about people
Jesus would be seen
And if people would help other people
Jesus would be seen

If people would love one another
They would learn what happiness means
And Jesus would be seen

Not in a stained glass window
Not in embracing a tree
Not in some complex philosophy
Nor the doing of religious deeds

But if people would learn to love people
Caring for each other’s needs
Then God will be someone the world can know
And Jesus will be seen

But if people would love one another
They would learn what happiness means
And Jesus would be seen