São Benedito e Santa Luzia: manifestações de fé e identidade étnica

Abstract

The religiosity has been showed as fundamental element to understand the inter-ethnic relationships in different spaces, social territorial and political, in the town Espírito Santo do Pinhal (São Paulo) from its foundation to nowadays. Religiosity as cultural manifestation was a way to occupy the political, social, and cultural space among the different ethnic groups. It was the way to include or exclude in the urban space of these town. The churches of “São Benedito” and “Santa Luzia” are two representative places for black people, Afro-descendents and Italian-descendents, therefore, these places are analyzed as identify signs. Through them, and the manifestations there, the intention is analyse the used “tatics”, “strategies” and “practices” from different ethnic groups to consolidate their place in the town, but above all, to confirm their identities.