Comunidades luteranas livres em São Lourenço do Sul (1886 – 1945)

Abstract

Since from the first immigrates in São Lourenço (1858), Lutheranism arrived together as their main religion. As there were not pastors and teachers among them, they feel the necessity of build communal places where they could profess faith and offer teaching to the children. In that context, without any support from Germany Church to build temples, they build them with na autonomous union and communal organization. By the same way, they plead locals to develop educational activities in the Colonia, first by donation, and after by buying lots aimed to the building of schools-temples. This firts period was not helped or supported by the Lutheran organizations, because they were Just beginning, Just after 1886, the Riograndense Synod began to send ordinated pastors to the country, aiming herd new members. In 1900, Missouri Synod also sent pastors, with the same objective. Until 1945, the former autonomous communities were put into the religious competition, along ethnec and political disturbances, caused by the two World Wars and the Estado Novo dictatorship, in Brazil. Beyond verifyig free and independent communities’ activities, the máster thesis wants to put under discussion the “independentism” of communities, because they still exist, especially in the South of Rio Grande do Sul. The research differs from others on the focus of independence, and also for using historical sources from the communities themselves. The approach using non-synodal sources contributes to give voice to these communities and proposes new ways of understanding their origins and permanence.