When Men Walk Dry: Portuguese Messianism in Brazil

By Carol A. Myscofski

This book examines the nature of messianic movements by studying a specific case history. Carole Myscovski argues that underlying any single messianic movement is a messianic tradition that draws together messianic and related religious beliefs, rituals, and social structures. She traces the Luso-Brazilian messianic tradition from its origins in sixteenth-century Portugal to its flowering in colonial Brazil to its expression in three nineteenth-century messianic movements. Challenging sociopolitical and psychological analyses that reduce religious activity to proto-nationalism or psychosis, Myscofski establishes a historical model for investigating messianic movements in general, while providing new information about a little known Brazilian religious tradition.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1555402577
• ISBN13: 9781555402570
• Release Date: January 1989
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Length: 224 Pages
• Weight: 0.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.4" x 8.4"