The PT candidate for the Presidency of the Republic, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, released today (19) a letter to evangelicals. In the document, the candidate emphasizes the commitment to religious freedom. “The vast majority of Brazilians who lived the eight years I was president of the Republic know that I maintained the most absolute respect for collective and individual freedoms, particularly for religious freedom,” says the text.
The candidate says that there is no reason to believe that it would be any different now. “I can assure you, therefore, that my government will not adopt any attitudes that undermine the freedom of worship and preaching or create obstacles to the free functioning of the temples,” adds the document, read at an event with leaders of 30 denominations at a hotel in capital of São Paulo.
clarification
According to Lula, the document is a response to lies being spread against him, especially on social media and also by pastors in some churches. “It is not the first time that we have written a letter to evangelicals. Every election, there are a number of lies in this country that we need to write a letter sometimes to the Catholic Church, sometimes to the Evangelical Church, sometimes to another sector of society”, he highlighted in his speech.
family and abortion
The candidate also emphasized respect for the family. “Family for me is a sacred thing,” he stressed, speaking to the audience. In the letter, the topic was also addressed. “Another commitment I make: strengthening families so that our young people are kept away from drugs. We want our youth at school, in professional initiation, performing sports and cultural activities so that they have more opportunities and exercise citizenship in a productive, healthy and full way”, says the text.
Lula highlighted the role of religious entities in promoting actions in favor of society in areas where the government finds it difficult to act. “Much of the social policies that the government makes can be done by the churches. Evangelical and Catholic churches have services provided. In many areas, churches are better than the government, it costs cheaper than the government does”, says the candidate.
Abortion was another topic addressed in the document. “I am personally against abortion and I remind everyone that this is not an issue to be decided by the President of the Republic, but by the National Congress”, says the text.
