“Brazilian secularity” and the Brazilian Supreme Court’s decision on Confessional Religious Education

Abstract

The article aims at exposing the principle of secularity in the way it is applied in Brazil, highlighting the national particularities of what is considered as a separation between State and churches, as well as the possibilities of relationship between such institutions. The research draws a parallel of this relation with the decision of the Brazilian Supreme Court on confessional religious education in public schools. It begins with the analysis of the constitutional preamble in its invocation to the protection of God, passes through the discussion about the principle of the state secularity and arrives at the quarrel of the crucifixes in public spaces and of the expression "praise the Lord" in notes of Real. Finally, it makes an analysis of confessional religious education in relation to the principle of secularity, culminating in the analysis of the Direct Action of Unconstitutionality n. 4439, judged by the Brazilian Supreme Court in 2017, which allowed confessional religious education in public schools in the country. The methodology used is logical-deductive, with use of bibliographical references and analysis of an action judged by the STF. The conclusion reached is that there is a "Brazilian secularity”, with several points of confusion about the limits of the religious in the public sphere, which harms the political and religious plurality defended constitutionally.