Porque ainda acredito na Igreja | Igreja Por Amor | Gabriel Marques | 15 de Março de 2026

·29 min·2 clips

In Brazil, the fastest-growing religious group isn't evangelical—it's the disengaged, who feel they don't belong anywhere.

The episode is a sermon by Gabriel Marques at Igreja Por Amor, titled 'Porque ainda acredito na Igreja'. It begins by acknowledging the growing number of disengaged people in Brazil who feel alienated from traditional churches due to political scandals and exclusionary practices. Marques expresses solidarity with both those who left voluntarily and those who were expelled. He then presents four core reasons for his belief in the church. First, the church maintains spiritual memory through rituals like communion, preventing faith from becoming mundane. Second, it offers community support during life's hardships, illustrated by stories of members helping a mother of twins or a single parent. Third, the church uniquely brings together diverse people—rich and poor, white and black, gay and straight—fostering connections across social divides. Fourth, it is a community of the broken, where grace, not perfection, allows inclusion, as seen in examples like a long-term unmarried couple finally taking communion. Marques reflects on his own journey, including a transformative trip to a quilombo at age 15, and emphasizes that the church should be a place where Jesus is found in the marginalized. He concludes with a prayer for Igreja Por Amor to continue as a safe, diverse, and grace-filled community, urging listeners to re-engage with church life in 2026 amid ongoing political challenges in Brazilian evangelicalism.

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