“Esse presidente não tem misericórdia”

doença, sofrimento e teodiceia secular em um território de favela

Abstract

In the article, the reports of Ana, a 41-year-old woman, day laborer, of Pentecostal membership, resident of a favela in Campos dos Goytacazes - RJ, where she exercises a political-religious role, are presented. Ana was affected by covid-19 in its most serious form. After being admitted to the Intensive Care Unit of a public hospital — where she had 80% of her lungs compromised — she still has sequelae from the disease, which she defines as “terrifying”. Between the belief in the divine origin of the disease and the accountability of the president of Brazil for what she considers “disregard for the humble”, the interlocutor puts the concepts of religious theodicy and secular theodicy in tension. With the text, the objective is not only to enable a reflection on the sense of suffering caused by the pandemic for a Pentecostal, but also to present an account of the effects of covid-19 on the popular layers of those most seriously affected. For the article, in addition to the participant observation carried out from 2018 to 2020 in the interlocutor's residential neighborhood, interviews were conducted during the pandemic period which, in compliance with health guidelines, were carried out by telephone.