Leonardo Vasconcelos De Castro Moreira

Biographic Data

ID933940
NAMELeonardo Vasconcelos De Castro Moreira
GIVEN NAMESLeonardo Vasconcelos De Castro
FAMILY NAMEMoreira
SIGNATUREMOREIRA L V C
AFFILIATIONSKU Leuven
ORCID0000-0002-7764-4002
VERIFIEDYes
TOTAL WORKS6
TOTAL CITATIONS11
AUTHOR COUNT6
EDITOR COUNT0
FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR2021
LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR2026
H-INDEX2

  • The Rose of Sharon’s Powers of Exorcism

    Leonardo Vasconcelos De Castro MoreiraARTICLEPentecoStudies2026

    This article analyzes the usage of an object, specifically a rose, by the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG), a Brazilian Neo- Pentecostal church, in Brussels and London. In the belief that evil spiritual entities infest the world, the church employs, among other rituals, a consecrated rose to combat and expel them. This is aligned with the church’s guideline of spiritual warfare, an incessant battle between good and evil. The rose als…

  • The Devil in Brazil’s 2022 Presidential Elections

    Open AccessLeonardo Vasconcelos De Castro MoreiraARTICLEInternational Journal of Politics…2025References: 18

  • The Serial Killer’s Religion

    Open AccessLeonardo Vasconcelos De Castro MoreiraARTICLEJournal of the American Academy…2025References: 33

    This article analyzes the case of the serial killer Lázaro Barbosa and religious racism in Brazil. It provides a brief overview of the racialization of religion and the background behind policies and ideologies that tried to “whiten” the country, both racially and culturally. Based on data gathered from the Brazilian media, the article analyzes the case of the serial killer and the ways his religiosity is constructed in relation to Afro-Brazilian…

  • Mapping Demons

    Open AccessLeonardo Vasconcelos De Castro MoreiraARTICLEInternational Journal of Latin…2024Cited by: 2References: 34

    This study investigates the way in which a multinational Neo-Pentecostal church from Brazil, the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG), adapts demons to suit a worldwide audience. The analysis relies on published studies of the church, the author’s own fieldwork experiences, church-related websites and YouTube channels, and research briefings on ethnographic fieldwork carried out in various countries and continents. The research shows how…

  • The secularisation of demons

    Leonardo Vasconcelos De Castro MoreiraARTICLEJournal of Contemporary Religion2022Cited by: 3References: 10

    The Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) is a Brazilian Pentecostal church known for its incessant struggle against the Devil. Internationalisation has challenged the Church’s institutional discourse against evil, which originally targeted the local spirits of its home country—specifically Afro-Brazilian entities—during exorcism rituals. This article uses interviews and participant observation to analyse the differences between UCKG exor…

  • Self-othering in the testimonials of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God in Madrid

    Open AccessLeonardo Vasconcelos De Castro MoreiraARTICLESocial Compass2021Cited by: 6References: 11

    This article analyzes discourses of conversion involving members of the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG) in the city of Madrid, Spain. Drawing on the biographies of members and religious leaders and focusing on their testimonials of conversion in particular, I observe how the church's message of a better life after conversion always relates to a misguided past. I have proposed the concept of self-othering to link the process through …