Brazilian Catholic feasts and peoples’ miracles

Abstract

The Brazilian catholics feasts plays important role in the national society since the colonial period, when it was one of the main improver of the construction of sociability for the different groups that coexisted in the country. The ancient obligatory participation in that feast's realization has developed the preference for it as way of social action. Being thus, the saint's feasts continue to have important social functions beyond the religious ones, as the organization of action's groups, tourism development, and a large market for advertising. Keywords: Popular feasts; Catholicism; Social organization; Sociability; Cultural identity