PERCEPÇÃO DA NATUREZA EM DIFERENTES MOVIMENTOS RELIGIOSOS.

Abstract

Religion has contributed to the structuring of social and power relations in society. The present study aimed to verify environmental attitudes of members of four religious movements in a city in the state of Bahia (Brazil) and its influence on their beliefs and views. We opted for an interpretive, qualitative study with an additional quantitative check. A Grounded Theory analysis was conducted in the constructionist perspective proposed by Charmaz. The sample consisted of four participants religious movements, totaling sixteen participants. Data collection included responses to ten questions adapted from the scale of the New Ecological Paradigm (NEP) proposed by Dunlap to assess adherence to an anthropocentric versus ecological ideology, and a semi-structured interview questioning environmental beliefs and attitudes. The contents of the interviews were transcribed and analyzed following the analytical strategies open coding and focused coding, followed by the construction of categories for a theoretical model that represents the environmental attitudes of the participants. The quantitative results showed the followers of Umbanda are closest to the NPE, and Protestants are the furthest away. The data analysis allowed the construction of three categories which showed that spirituality and views of nature are interrelated, that religion interacts with the perception of nature and that the relation between both can be positive or negative. In ecotheology, preservation is essential for life harmony. In this context, the role of the churches is not only to promote teachings about preserving, but promote environmental attitudes that foster nature preservation.