Tombamento of churches in Ponta Grossa is postponed

The meeting of the Municipal Council of Cultural Heritage (Compac), scheduled for the evening of Tuesday (13), at the Cine Teatro Ópera, in Ponta Grossa, was postponed after the presence of a large number of Catholic faithful, who exceeded the capacity of Auditorium B, where the event was scheduled. With the overcrowding and the demonstrations outside the site, the council chose to postpone the discussion on the overthrow of six churches in the municipality.

At the scheduled time for the beginning of the work, at 6:30 p.m., the community that managed to occupy the seats of the auditorium began to pray collectively. At the same time, on the outside of the Cine Teatro Ópera, faithful protested that they could not access the interior of the building. According to the Municipal Secretariat of Culture, Auditorium A, which has significantly greater capacity, could not be used because the Fire Department did not issue the necessary authorization in time for the release of the expanded space.

To the sound of chants of praise that spread throughout the entrance hall, the Military Police were activated during the climate of tension and demonstrations. Compac started the session, but interrupted it for a few minutes, deciding to formally postpone the event with a new date and place still to be disclosed.

The municipal secretary of Culture, Alberto Portugal, said that the message about the fall has been distorted. The session generated a climate of panic, but he respected the demonstrations, considering them legitimate. The meeting was suspended due to the excess public in relation to the capacity of the site, which put the event at risk. The vote was originally scheduled for September 29 in a large-capacity public park. However, a new law emerged the day before required legal advice to ensure legality and transparency, leading to the transfer to Wednesday.

The agenda of the meeting included the overthrow of six prominent religious temples in Ponta Grossa: the Cathedral of Sant’Ana, the Church of San Sebastian, the Church of the Rosary Nossa Senhora, the Church of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Church São José and the Church of the Lord Bom Jesus, located in the Santa Cruz Farm.

The overthrow faces resistance between public power and religious leaders. Dom Bruno Versari, bishop of the diocese of Ponta Grossa, disagreed with the measure and asked the faithful to take a stand against it. He stressed that the maintenance of historical and artistic temples has been done for decades with resources from the Catholic Church itself and reinforced the need for autonomy in the management of cult structures. The position was supported by ACIPG, Ponta Grossa trade, industrial and business association.

The municipal legislation also comes into play. In August, prefeita Elizabeth Schmidt (PL) promulgated Lei Municipal 16.036/2026, which determines that real estate of religious institutions can only be listed with written and express authorization of their legal representatives. As the law was passed after the proceedings of the six churches involved began, the procedure continues in the competent council. At the same time, the Chamber approved Bill 312/2026, presented by the councillor Julio Kuller (PL), which provides for the inclusion of a representative of the Diocesan Mithra in the Compac, still pending sanction by the Executive.

The cultural authorities must announce a new date for the meeting of the council.

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