Meet 66-year-old Brazilian man Inri Cristo
who believes he is the reincarnation of
Jesus Christ. Inri dresses like Jesus, says his
mission is to prepare the elect for the
formation of the new earthly society, which
will strive to fulfill the Creator's will.
He has spent 35 years preaching and has
‘hundreds of followers’ from around the
world, including the UK, Britain and
France, some of whom live with him at his
‘church’ compound outside Brasilia.
As ‘Jesus reborn’, he gave himself the name
Inri which means - Jesus the Nazarene,
King of the Jews' and Christo which means -
Christ. But despite seeing himself as Jesus
reborn, Inri refuses to celebrate Christmas
saying it is just a day where 'the rich
humiliate the poor'. ‘It is a day when the
little sons of the rich can show the gifts
they received while the poor children only
get a crumb,’ he said. ‘So it is a very sad
day for anyone who sees things with the
eyes that I see.’
Inri says he first experienced the
'revelation' that he was Christ during a
religious fast in Santiago, Chile, in 1979.
Since childhood he had been following a
powerful voice that 'speaks in his head' but
it was only on this occasion that it told
him:
‘I am your Father. The God of Abraham, of
Isaac, and of Jacob.’ He now runs his own
church, the 'Soust' (Suprema Ordem
Universal da Santmssima Trindade), located
on a lush farmland outside of Brasilia, the
capital of Brazil, which he calls the 'New
Jerusalem'. He and his followers survive on
homegrown fruit like bananas, avocados
and mangos as well as a vegetable garden.
There's also a chapel where Ingra speaks to
his followers every Saturday morning and a
kennel for the dogs that guard the complex.
Critics believe he is mentally ill - an
accusation he firmly denies.
He said: I can be crazy but not dumb.
Madness is different from dementia. It is the
mother of philosophers, prophets and
inventors.