Art, joy, innovation, solidarity, radicalism. These and many other components form the Halleluya Festival. “The Party that never ends” is the slogan of the largest Festival of Integrated Arts in Brazil and reflects the main attractions of the event: music, dance, theater and prayer to attract young people to an experience with Jesus and bring them to a happiness that does not pass. The Festival exceeds one million people every year in Fortaleza, in the north-east of Brazil, where it has existed for 20 years. The event is organized by the Shalom Catholic Community and also takes place in other capitals of the country, such as Rio de Janeiro, São Luís and Natal.
Halleluya has already been held outside the country in Rome (Italy), Nazareth (Israel) and Montevideo (Uruguay) and Toulon (France). During the World Youth Day 2013, in Rio de Janeiro, the event was part of the Youth Festival and attracted an audience of people from dozens of countries. In 2016, one more time, the Halleluya was held during the WYD in Krakow (Poland) as part of the Festival of Arts program.
The Festival is a great arena that brings together peoples, communities and cultures united by the same ideal: to be happy, to live a happiness that does not pass! The majority of the Halleluya audience is made up of young people. About 70% and 80% of the participants come from this age group. However, there is space for public of various ages.
According to the founder of the Community, Moysés Azevedo, it takes audacity and creativity to evangelize young people and reach the soul of cities. “The Halleluya audacity is reinvented each year with its own language in the light of the Holy Spirit and is the fruit of a people who comes together to evangelize”, he said.
The experience of happiness that Halleluya brings does not end after five days of programming. The weekend after, the Halleluya Quero Mais (H. I Want More) is realized at Shalom Community Evangelization Centers. It is a Life Seminar in the Holy Spirit so that people who have had an experience of God’s love in the Festival can follow the Way of Peace (spiritual itinerary proposed by the Community).
Music of all styles
The Halleluya Festival welcomes, with its many attractions, the most varied public profiles. Shows of rock, pop, samba, pagode, forró, axé. That is, from the classic to the popular, the attractions shake the main stage with big names of the Catholic music. The other thematic areas: Adventure, Children, Mercy, Cultural Arena, Solidarity, among others, complete this universe of Peace.
Every year about 20 artists pass through the main Halleluya stage. The program includes Catholic artists such as Fr. Fabio de Melo, Rosa de Saron band, Tony Alisson, Anjos de Resgate band, Adriana Arydes, Adoração and Vida band, Cosme, Sister Patricia Kelly, Banda Dominus band, Diego Fernandes, Eros Biondini and Batista Lima. The community artists on the main stage are Missionary Shalom, Suely Façanha, Ana Gabriela, Davidson Silva and Alto Louvor.
Solidarity
The Halleluya Festival is an event marked by solidarity. There has been a collaboration with the Center of Hematology and Hemotherapy of Ceará (Hemoce) for 14 years for blood collection and registration of bone marrow donation. The partnership is repeated also in the other cities where the event is held.
There is also an incentive to donate non-perishable food. Half of the food collected is distributed in cities affected by drought. The other part goes to Shalom Catholic Community Human Promotion projects, which serves street residents, at-risk children and chemically dependent people.