Anyone walking along Benjamin Constant street, in Glória, comes across a monumental building in neoclassical architectural style: the Igreja Positivista do Brasil. On the front frieze of the façade one reads "Love as a principle, Order as a basis, Progress as a goal," which inspired the "Order and Progress" motto on the republican flag. Positivism was created in the early 19th century by the French philosopher Auguste Comte, spread throughout Europe, and arrived in Brazil at the end of the 1800s, through Miguel Lemos and Raimundo Teixeira Mendes. In Brazil, this philosophical movement gained its greatest number of followers, especially among the Armed Forces, during the Proclamation of the Republic and in the first decades of the 20th century. The positivists contributed to the establishment of a republican imagery that involved the creation of symbols such as the flag, the anthem, heroes, and the feminine allegory used to represent the Republic.
MALTA, Augusto. [Igreja Positivista do Brasil]. [S.l.: s.n.].
Image description: This is an old photograph of a Positivist church. The image shows a building with classical architecture, characterized by columns and a triangular pediment. At the top of the pediment, there is an inscription in Latin characters. In front of the building, there is a metal railing with decorative elements. On the sides, we see trees and plants. At the top of the building, several flags are raised.Inspired by the Enlightenment, Augusto Comte also envisioned a religion grounded in rationality and altruism, whose ritual and iconography drew on Catholicism. In Rio, the Igreja Positivista was inaugurated in 1881 in the Centro district. In 1897, its headquarters was moved to the current building, the Templo da Humanidade, and in 1903 it founded a chapel in Paris, the Chapelle de l´Humanité.
The philosopher also created an annual calendar with 13 months and 28 days that begins in 1789, the year of the French Revolution. The calendar highlights 364 emblematic figures such as Moisés, Homer, and Aristotle, whose busts are displayed in the central nave of the Church in Rio.
Inauguration of the temple on January 1, 1897 - Image from the church's collection
Image description: This is an old photograph of the interior of a Igreja Positivista. The image shows a large room with classical architecture, characterized by columns and pillars supporting a high ceiling. In the center, there is a raised altar, adorned with a centered object, possibly a monument or statue. In front of the altar, there is a pulpit where someone is speaking. On the sides, groups of people are seated on benches, watching the ceremony. The setting appears to be lit by natural light coming through the windows. At the bottom of the image, there is a caption that reads "Acervo Igreja Positivista".The documentary and museographic collection covers an important period of our history: a library with around 1,500 titles, a set of thousands of propaganda pamphlets that are part of Unesco's Memory of the World Programme, and, until 2010, the prototype of the National Flag conceived by Raimundo Teixeira Mendes and painted by Décio Villares, which was in its custody when it was stolen. Décio Villares was also responsible for creating the image of Tiradentes that we know depicted as a Christian martyr.
The busts pay tribute to historical figures from Auguste Comte's pantheon - Image from the Igreja Positivista collection
Image description: The image is a photograph of busts of historical or literary figures. From left to right, the busts are arranged in a row. The first bust, on the left, shows a man with a beard and crown, wearing traditional clothing. Next to him is another bust of a man with short hair and a mustache, wearing a classic suit. The third bust, on the right, shows a man with curly hair and a beard, also wearing formal clothing. All the busts are positioned on a flat surface, with the details of the faces and clothing standing out. In the bottom right corner of the image, there is a caption reading "Acervo Igreja Positivista".Listed as a heritage site by INEPAC in 1978, the building in Glória has been closed off since 2009 due to the collapse of part of the roof.
