Perhaps you have heard of the Centro Ecumênico de Documentação e Informações CEDI. This center played a vital role in Brazil’s socio-political transformation.
The Centro Ecumênico provided services in consulting. It offered documentation and publications. These were for social movements. These movements worked to create a fair and equal society.
Let’s step back in time. Between 1964 and 1965, the Centro Evangélico de Informação CEI emerged. People connected to the Confederação Evangélica do Brasil founded it. They had been sidelined from their churches. This happened after the 1964 civil-military coup.
In 1968, Catholics joined the organization. It was renamed “Centro Ecumênico de Informação.” By 1974, it became the Centro Ecumênico de Documentação e Informação CEDI.
The Centro Ecumênico’s first headquarters was in Rio de Janeiro. Later, a sub-headquarters opened in São Paulo.
From 1965, the Centro Ecumênico published the Boletim CEI. This bulletin shared news. It had a critical view of Brazilian politics. It also addressed the social responsibility of churches. The bulletin promoted ecumenism. It emphasized social justice.
The Centro Ecumênico’s news and articles covered many issues. These included injustices against laborers and indigenous people. They reported on abuses by security agencies. Also land reform, theology and ecumenism. The Centro Ecumênico reported on workers’ rights and human rights.
A small Protestant group of fifteen people conceived the periodical. They aimed to raise awareness among Brazilian churches. They wanted churches to adopt an ecumenical Christianity. This Christianity would engage with social problems. It would focus on the oppression of the poor.
This type of Christianity was described as an incarnate Christianity. The CEI team described their publication in its hundredth issue. It stated their commitment to freedom and a new theological understanding of world problems. They stood with the suffering and for justice for the poor. The Centro Ecumênico believed Christianity should unite for liberation.
In 1977 and 1978, the Centro Ecumênico published supplements on popular education. Later, it launched the Cadernos CEDI. These notebooks targeted pastoral agents and popular educators.
In 1979, the Boletim CEI transformed into the Revista Tempo e Presença. Jether Ramalho served as its editor.
The Centro Ecumênico had strong ties with other organizations. These included ISER in Rio and CESE in Salvador. Also CEBI in Rio Grande do Sul and CESEEP in São Paulo. It worked with ISAL. The World Council of Churches funded ISAL.
Through these connections, the Centro Ecumênico promoted popular education. It spread the pedagogy of Paulo Freire internationally.
In 1994, the CEDI split into four new institutions. These were Ação Educativa and Instituto Sócio-Ambiental ISA. Also Núcleo de Estudos e Trabalho e Sociedade NETS and Koinonia. Of these, only NETS had a short lifespan.
Today, the Centro Ecumênico de Documentação e Informações may no longer exist in its original form. Its legacy lives on. It remains in the work of the organizations it spawned. It also lives on in the ongoing pursuit of social justice and equality in Brazil.