Priests and Stars: Candomble, Celebrity Discourses, and the Authentication of Religious Authority in Bahia's Public Sphere

This article discusses the inextricable entanglement of religious and media imaginaries by pointing out how, in a thoroughly mediatized society such as Bahia (Brazil), the public articulation of religious authority comes to depend more and more on celebrity discourses. Candomblé, the Afro-Brazilian spirit possession cult on which this article focuses, is an intriguing example of this trend. The cult has become the main “symbol bank” of the Bahian state, and groups have increasingly sought access to its rich arsenal of images, sounds, myths, and aesthetics. Disconcerted by this development, Candomblé priests have sought to publicly assert themselves as the only authentic representatives of the cult. Whereas within the temples, their religious authority is firmly rooted in the performance of ritual practice and constantly reconfirmed in the rigid and minute prescriptions as to how the different ranks in the temple hierarchy should interact, the public sphere requires the mobilization of other resources to back up claims of religious authority. The author argues that Candomblé priests are very successful in “colonizing” the tremendous appeal of celebrity discourses. Exploiting the society-wide interest in Candomblé, they create media events that allow them to display their contacts and affinities with the stars. They thus find their religious leadership authorized in terms that are well understood by the consumers of modern mass media.