Brazil to an outsider

This is a process.  This week, I started by loading up on information from various sources, reading them over, and trying to take them all in.  I've also tried to e-mail a couple people in the Brazilian Catholic council of bishops, but they haven't responded (the fact that I don't write in Portugese only complicates things, I'm sure).  If I get a response about what to pray for, I'll post it.  In the meantime:

Brazil sounds like an amazing country with a great need for prayer.  On the one hand, it has a strong Christian tradition - of the 200 million or so Brazilians, 90% are Christian (including 73.6% Catholic; if I read it right, Brazil has more Catholics than any other country).  On the other hand, there are still many tribes of indigienous people in the Amazon who have never heard the gospel.  So we can pray for the spiritual awakening of those in the cities, who like America suffer from the softening of the Spirit that comes when membership in a religion is the cultural norm and acknowledging membership in the church doesn't necessarily translate into a relationship with God.  We can also pray for the success of missionaries being trained to take the gospel into the Amazon jungle.

I didn't know that Brazil is the 5th largest country in the world, both in size and in population.  It boasts one of the most promising economies in the developing world, although there are many poor including children who live and work on the streets or in shantytowns.  They also are challenged by issues that Floridians can relate to - one of their strengths is the beauty of their land, but development threatens to destroy that beauty, both by deforesting the Amazon and extinguishing unique animal species and by directly harming human life through land and water pollution and severe oil spills.  So praying for the leaders of the country in their stewardship of God's creation and care for each other also seems called for. 

Brazilian culture seems in some ways like American culture amplified.  Their Carnival sounds a lot like Mardi Gras, but bigger.  The cultural emphasis on superficial beauty is strong, as is the cocaine trade.  And they love their sports!  So we can pray that like Americans, Brazilians will recognize the superficiality of these things and the reach for the sure promise of lasting happiness that comes with focusing on what is truly important.