Universal Church of the Kingdom of God

== History ==

=== Beginning and split with R. R. Soares ===
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In the late 1960s, [[Edir Macedo]] converted to [[evangelical Christianity]] at the ''Igreja Cristã de Nova Vida'' ("Christian Church of New Life"), a [[Pentecostalism|Pentecostal]] church founded by the Canadian bishop [[Walter Robert McAlister]]. Macedo wanted to become a minister for McAlister's church, but since he was not accepted by its leaders, he and his brother-in-law, [[R. R. Soares]], decided to change to another denomination. Macedo and Soares joined another church called ''Casa da Bênção'' ("House of Blessing"), where they claim to have seen [[Spirit possession|possession]] by and [[deliverance ministry|deliverance]] from demons for the first time, but only Soares was consecrated as a pastor.<ref>{{harvnb|Macedo|2012|pp=159–164}}</ref>

In 1975, Soares and another pastor invited Macedo, who still wanted to start his ministry, to inaugurate the ''Cruzada do Caminho Eterno'' ("Crusade of the Eternal Way"), a precursor of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God. The services were held in some cinemas they rented for a few hours.<ref>{{harvnb|Macedo|2012|pp=187–189}}</ref> In order to increase the number of members, Macedo began to preach in a gazebo at the main square of the [[Méier]] neighborhood of [[Rio de Janeiro]].<ref>{{harvnb|Macedo|2012|pp=200–202}}</ref> In 1977, the UCKG was officially founded when Macedo and Soares rented a former [[funeral home]], which became their church's first temple.<ref>Mark A. Lamport, ''Encyclopedia of Christianity in the Global South, Volume 2'', Rowman & Littlefield, USA, 2018, p. 495</ref><ref>Patrice de Plunkett, ''Les évangéliques à la conquête du monde'', Éditions Perrin, France, 2009, p. 110</ref>

[[File:Eglise universelle new york.jpeg|thumb|left|Universal Church in [[New York City|New York]], [[United States]].]]
[[File:Jesus_Christ_is_the_Lord_Simbahang_Universal1.jpg|150px|thumbnail|right|UCKG church at [[Quezon City|Cubao, Philippines<ref>{{cite web | title=Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (Quezon City)| publisher=Wikimapia | url=http://wikimapia.org/6477098/UCKG-Universal-Church-of-the-Kingdom-of-God | access-date=22 January 2024}}</ref>]]]]

By the time that the UCKG was founded tensions had begun to build between Macedo and Soares, with Soares thinking the rent to their temple building was too high.<ref>{{harvnb|Macedo|2012|pp=210–214}}</ref> In 1980, Macedo went to [[New York (state)|New York State]] to start a ministry in the U.S., but soon returned to Brazil to solve administrative problems with Soares. Some of Macedo's principles clashed with those of Soares such as, according to Macedo, financial management, the hiring of pastors from other denominations while Macedo was planning a completely fresh denomination, and the centralization of the image of the "Missionary R. R. Soares". Macedo and Soares decided to call a vote for the leadership among the fifteen pastors the UCKG had at the time; Macedo won by twelve votes to three. Soares resigned from the UCKG and founded the [[International Grace of God Church]], using the copyright of the books of [[T. L. Osborn]].<ref>{{harvnb|Macedo|2012|pp=214–217}}</ref>

===From 1989===
[[File:Catedralmundial6.jpg|thumb|[[Worship service (evangelicalism)|Worship service]] at Cathedral of Faith in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.]]

In 1989, the UCKG expanded to Portugal.<ref name=portugal>{{cite web|url=http://www.sbsociologia.com.br/portal/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_download&gid=3212&Itemid=171|title=A Igreja Universal do Reino de Deus em Portugal, Claudia Swatowiski, XIV Congresso Brasileiro de Sociologia, 28 a 31 de julho de 2009, Rio de Janeiro (RJ)|website=Sbsociologia.com.br|access-date=13 September 2018}}</ref> The church's style of proselytism was aggressive, and they were accused of charlatanism and commercial interests that put into question their claims to be a religious organisation.<ref name=portugal/> During the 1990s, the UCKG were very visible and energetic, attacked the Catholic Church, and amassed contributions sufficient to build a "gigantic" temple in [[Porto]].<ref name=portugal/> In 1995, a scandal ensued after the attempted purchase of the well-known theatre [[Coliseu do Porto]]<ref name=portugal/> to transform it into a UCKG temple. The church then began expanding into [[eastern Europe]].

In 1989, the UCKG purchased [[RecordTV|TV Record]], which by 2013 was Brazil's second-largest television network.<ref name="dilma">[http://www.estadao.com.br/noticias/geral,igreja-tambem-procurou-dilma-para-manter-pacto-inalterado-imp-,1001044  "Igreja também procurou Dilma para manter pacto inalterado"], ''Estado de São Paulo,'' 25 February 2013 {{in lang|pt}}</ref> In 2009, the [[Workers' Party (Brazil)|Workers' Party]] (PT) government in Brazil bought advertising from RecordTV, which it had formerly limited to Catholic publications, in new venues, and paid for [[public service message]]s in UCKG media outlets.<ref name="dilma"/>

The UCKG preached [[prosperity theology]], which asserts that faith and commitment to God are rewarded with Salvation first, but also monetary wealth.<ref name=forbes2015/> In the late 1990s, the church started trying to change its image of being associated with only the poorest people. In 1998, Macedo appointed his nephew, [[Marcelo Crivella]], as a bishop. Crivella said, "We want to win the middle class."<ref name="veja.abril.com.br"/> In 1992, Crivella began a mission in Africa, resulting in the creation of multiple UCKG temples. He returned to Brazil in 1998, where he lived in a four-bedroom condominium in an exclusive development. Crivella is married to Sylvia Jane, with three children who attend a [[Methodism|Methodist]] school in Río de Janeiro.<ref name="veja.abril.com.br"/>

Some observers at the time thought that Crivella was being promoted as a competitor to the popular Catholic priest-singer, [[Marcelo Rossi]], who had sold over 4 million albums.<ref name="veja.abril.com.br"/> In 1999, Crivella was reported to have signed a contract with [[Sony Music]] to make three albums, one in Spanish. The first CD, ''The Messenger of Solidarity'', reportedly sold 1.3 million copies that year.<ref name="veja.abril.com.br"/>

Crivella was the only pastor whom Macedo authorized to hold large events in stadiums. He has been effective at attracting crowds: the first time appearing at the Nilson Nelson gymnasium in [[Brasília]], with a capacity for 25,000 people, and also in the Estádio Fonte Nova in [[Salvador, Bahia|Salvador]] and the Mineiro in [[Belo Horizonte]]. In October 1999, Crivella packed the [[Estádio do Maracanã|Maracanã football stadium]] in Río de Janeiro. By the end of that year, he planned to have sung "in the largest football stadiums in the country" according to weekly news magazine ''[[Veja (magazine)|Veja]]''.<ref name="veja.abril.com.br"/>

[[File:Templo de Salomão - 1.JPG |thumb|right|Temple of Solomon, headquarters of UCKG]]

In July 2014, the [[Temple of Solomon (São Paulo)|Temple of Solomon]], with 10,000 seats, was inaugurated in the Brás district in [[São Paulo]].<ref>Simon Romero, [https://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/25/world/americas/temple-in-brazil-appeals-to-a-surge-in-evangelicals.html Temple in Brazil Appeals to a Surge in Evangelicals], nytimes.com, USA, July 24, 2014</ref>