Chute na santa incident
The "Chute na santa" incident was a religious controversy that erupted in Brazil in late 1995, sparked by a live broadcast of a minister of Universal Church of the Kingdom of God, the largest pentecostal church in Brazil, kicking the statue of Our Lady of Aparecida, a Catholic saint.
The incident
The incident took place on October 12, 1995, the national public holiday honouring Our Lady of Aparecida, the patron saint of Brazil. That dawn, on O Despertar da Fé, a national live television program by UCKG broadcast on Rede Record, televangelist bishop Sérgio Von Helder was expressing his thoughts about his church's biblical teachings on "imagery" and "idolatry" on the saint's day, when an actual icon of the saint was shown. Then, as he walked around the image, talking about its inability "to see" and "to hear", he started to kick the image, proclaiming its "inability to react, because it's made of clay".On the following day, Rede Globo's Jornal Nacional denounced the incident, causing a nationwide commotion. The event was perceived by Catholics as a major act of religious intolerance, sparking a public outcry. Several temples of the UCKG were the target of protests, and Von Helder had to be transferred to South Africa until the end of the controversy.