Universal Church of the Kingdom of God

==Relations with other religions==
A [[United Nations]] report published in 2009 by Brazil's Committee Against Religious Intolerance (CCIR) stated that Pentecostal churches in general, and the UCKG in particular, were harassing and attacking, sometimes violently, members of other faiths and spreading religious intolerance. The UCKG was "demonizing" especially Afro-Brazilian syncretic religions such as Umbanda and Candomblé; "[[Jews]] are portrayed as '[[Jewish deicide|the killers of Christ]]', [[Catholicism|Catholic]]s as 'devil worshippers', traditional Protestants as 'false Christians' and [[Islam|Muslim]]s as 'demonic'", the report said. [[Kardecist spiritism|Spiritists]] were also reported to have been the subject of attacks. The UN Committee is made up of the leaders of eighteen religious and human rights groups. The committee's chairman said, "[[Fascism]] and [[Nazism]] started this way, from demonizing other groups".<ref name="frayssinet"/>

Violent public protests against UCKG temples followed a 12 October 1995 incident in which UCKG-owned [[Rede Record]] broadcast a video of UCKG Bishop Sérgio [[Chute na santa incident|Von Helder kicking and insulting]] a Catholic figure of [[Our Lady Aparecida]], whose [[Holiday#Religious holidays|feast day]] is 12 October. Facing legal charges, Von Helde fled the country but was later tried and convicted of [[religious discrimination]] and [[desecration]] of a national sacred treasure; he was sentenced to two years in prison.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20111011224149/http://www.lam.org/news/article.php?id=250 "Evangelical Christianity thriving in Brazil"], Latin American (interdenominational Christian) Missio</ref> Macedo apologized for Von Helder's actions, but accused [[Rede Globo]], Brazil's largest television network, of "manipulating public sentiment" by repeatedly showing a video of the incident.<ref>[http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/A-Skirmish-in-Brazil-s-Holy-War-A-Pentecostal-3020315.php Jack Epstein, "A Skirmish in Brazil's Holy War"], ''San Francisco Chronicle'', 5 November 1995</ref>

A researcher who participated in many UCKG church services in various parts of Rio de Janeiro published a [[dissertation]] finding that the church promoted a language of war, giving moral justification for worshippers' battles with non-believers, and that it also claimed to be the victim, discriminated against for spreading hate and demanding that its intolerance be tolerated. The UCKG was highly competitive for territory and denounced Afro-Brazilian religions.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://gradworks.umi.com/10/15/10159825.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170211074911/http://gradworks.umi.com/10/15/10159825.html|archive-date=11 February 2017|title=Religious Tension in Brazil: The Rise of Militant Pentecostalism and Implications for Afro-Brazilian Religions |website=Gradworks.umi.com |date=2016|author=Neace, Sarah Rachelle}}</ref>