In José de Alencar square, in Catete, stands the Catedral Metodista do Rio de Janeiro.
The Methodist Church originated in England, spread to the USA where the split with the Anglican Church occurred, and arrived in Brazil in the first half of the 19th century. In 1835, the American pastor Fontain E. Pitts began holding services in homes at Largo da Glória. Later came pastors Daniel Kidder and R. Spaulding, who were responsible for the catechism of English and American sailors and for the conversion of Brazilians to the Protestant faith.
Image from http://catedralmetodista.org.br/
Image description: This is a photograph of a church interior. On the left side, there is a table covered with a red cloth, with a crucifix hanging on the wall behind it. On the right, there is a closed door and two speakers mounted on the walls. In the central area, there is a television mounted on the wall above a cross. To the right, there is a window with stained glass and a wooden counter. The ceiling is made of light-colored wood and has a rounded opening. Above, there is a hanging lamp.However, difficulties faced by the pastors in a country marked by Catholicism, together with the yellow fever epidemics that ravaged the capital and killed many foreigners, caused the Methodist evangelization project to be postponed.
In 1878, Reverend John J. Ransom, an official envoy, arrived in Rio and began the first services at his home on Rua do Catete. In 1882, a small chapel was built, now known as the Historic Chapel. Four years later, the current building, in neoclassical and English Gothic style, was built alongside it.
Image from http://catedralmetodista.org.br/
Image description: This is a photograph of a church interior, possibly the Catedral Metodista do Rio de Janeiro. On the left side, there are three rounded windows with colorful stained glass. In front of them are black pews arranged in parallel rows. In the center, there is a red aisle leading to the main entrance, where a door is open. In the background, there is a raised platform with more pews and a staircase that descends to the central aisle. At the top, the ceiling is made of wood with hanging lights. On the right, there are two more rounded windows with stained glass and a wooden pulpit with an open book on it.The work was even embargoed by Catholics, who invoked a law that prohibited religious elements in the architecture of temples of other religions. Even so, it was completed with a stone masonry facade resembling a bell tower and with stained-glass windows, similar to those of many Catholic churches.
At the General Council held in 1930, the Methodist Church became independent from the USA, and the first elected Brazilian bishop was César Dacorso Filho (1938). During the Council, women's ordination was also considered, but it was not accepted. 40 years later, the reform of the Church's Constitution finally welcomed those called to serve, "presbyters and deacons, without distinction of sex" (1), and, in 1974, the 1st ordained presbyter was Zeni Lima Soares. Times have changed and, currently, around 60% of the Church's members in Brazil are women.
Image from http://catedralmetodista.org.br/
Image description: This is a photograph of a small red-brick chapel with a red tile roof. The chapel has an arched entrance with an open door, revealing an interior with stained-glass windows. To the left and right of the entrance are ornamental potted plants. In the background, there are tall residential buildings.In 1978, the Catete building, the first Methodist temple in Brazil, was granted heritage status by the Instituto Estadual do Patrimônio Cultural do Rio de Janeiro. In 1994, it was recognized by the Episcopal College as the Catedral Metodista do Rio de Janeiro.
