At Chacruna: Spirituality My Experience as a Brazilian at a Santo Daime Retreat in the United States

Camila de Pieri Benedito, Ph.D. (C)

It was 2016 when I got the news: I was going to the United States in 2017 to do part of my doctoral studies at the University of Florida (UF). Being able to study abroad was a dream come true. I have to say, though, that the US was never on my list of countries in which to study, live, or even visit. As a leftist Brazilian sociologist, I had grown distrustful and even angry towards the country’s politics and culture. The choice to go to UF was made because of the opportunities that opened up to me during the period I was searching for a place to study... continue reading.