FREEDOM OF RELIGION OR BELIEF AND THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC: AN ANALYSIS OF THE ADOPTION OF RESTRICTIVE MEASURES IN BRAZIL

The COVID-19 pandemic surprised the whole world for its high lethality rate and rapid spread, leaving international bodies, courts and governments unprepared, often without knowing how to act to reconcile the application and ensure the effectiveness of fundamental rights. In this article, some conflicts were detected between freedom of religion or belief and restrictive measures in the context of the pandemic in Brazil, for example, when the functioning of places of worship was prohibited, an issue that guided the formulation of the research problem. The hypothesis is that such measures, when they restrict or limit the right to religious freedom, can be considered legitimate, as long as they are temporary and duly justified, with the purpose of reducing illness and death. The conclusion, finally, is in line with the hypothesis raised, by pointing to the constitutionality of restrictive measures, only if they are subordinate to the duty to protect the rights to life and health.