Man wears mask to protect himself from coronavirus, Sao Paulo - Cris Faga / Sipa USA / SIPA

Brazilian police have launched an investigation into an Evangelical Church. The latter announced a ceremony during which she promised to "immunize against any epidemic, virus or disease," said the commissioner in charge of the case on Tuesday. “The power of God against the coronavirus. Come because there will be an anointing with consecrated oil during the fast to immunize against any epidemic, virus or disease, "wrote the global Cathedral of the Holy Spirit in Porto Alegre, south of Brazil.

Charlatanismo: Polícia investiga igreja no RS que anunciou imunização contra # coronavírus. O poder de Deus contra o coronavírus, dizia convite para culto realizado no último domingo https://t.co/9AeXA4p2ko pic.twitter.com/Dk3xG5fmkt

- Cecília Olliveira (@Cecillia) March 3, 2020

Alerted by numerous calls, the police went to the worship site this Sunday, but "at that time no type of crime was identified," said Commissioner Laura Lopes, in charge of the case. . "When they released this brochure, we opened an investigation to find out what they really say to the faithful and whether they are distributing remedies or vaccinations against diseases," she added.

Over 20% of Brazilians are evangelical

Representatives of this Church and some faithful were summoned to be questioned on this subject, said Laura Lopes. The investigation aims to determine whether the religious leaders have committed the offense of "quackery" which, according to Brazilian law, consists of "instilling or announcing the cure by secret or infallible means". He is punished with a year in prison.

"At no time [the brochure] promises that the oil cures the coronavirus, at no time does it say that we will sell this oil", defended this Tuesday the leader of the church, the preacher Silvio Ribeiro, at the time a press conference. He also claimed to refer his faithful patients to medicine "for twenty-seven years".

" I ask forgiveness. Our intention with this brochure was to bring faith, hope and love to everyone, nothing else, ”he said. In the last official census in 2010, 22.2% of Brazilians declared themselves evangelical, but recent opinion polls suggest that this proportion may have reached 30% in the past ten years. Two confirmed cases of the new coronavirus have been identified in Brazil since the start of the epidemic, two men have returned from Italy to Sao Paulo, and 488 "suspect" cases are under surveillance.

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