How Panamanian comedians took on the Universal Church Kingdom of God

This is the story that everyone is talking and laughing about in Panama at the moment. The Universal Church Kingdom of God is a huge Brazilian church, which is making tons of money ripping people off in Latin America and increasingly elsewhere as well.

They have a TV show called “Pare de Sufrir” (Stop suffering) which to most of us could be a comedy show, but unfortunately is watched by many in particular poor people. Here in Argentina they even have a whole TV channel.

Luckily the always controversial comedy program La Cascara in Panama has taken up the battle. After a news program on the same channel TV-N did a undercover exposure of it, they started their tale of a happy go luck group of entrepreneurs who started their own program “Pague por Sufrir” (Pay to suffer).

While they are all in Spanish (and in Panamanian street Spanish at that) some of them might still be vaguely understandable to non Spanish speakers.

The story starts out with the 5 friends who need to make money and invent the concept. They decide that Brazilian rather than Argentine accents are more trustworthy and all invent new Brazilian names for themselves. Everyones favorite is Hermano Kaká (literally “crap” in Panama).

They have invented a huge amount of hilarious religious paraphernalia that is way to close to the junk that they sell on the real program. Here is my attempt of an incomplete list:

• Piedras de Belén (Rocks of Bethlehem)
• Agua del Nilo (Waters of the Nile)
• Tijeras de Dalilah (The scissors of Delilah)
• Jabón de Pontius Pilate (My favorite the Soap of Pontius Pilate) - Which handily cleans out your criminal record and credit history

They have now received lawyers letters from the real church which they’ve included in the show as a mafia like organisation who wants a cut.

Anyway for your enjoyment here are the videos on YouTube:

Episode 1 - The Origin (with excerpts from undercover documentary)

Episode 2 - The Soap of Pilate

Episode 3 - How to create a holy salad and exorcise your wife

Episode 4 - Stand up Lazarus the holy energy drink

Episode 5 pt1 - The sling of David

Episode 5 pt2 - The scissors of Delilah

Episode 5 pt3 - The boys from Brazil

Episode 6 - The Cock of Peter and touch screen interactive TV blessing

For the interactive TV blessing it’s good to know that “Sana, sana, colita de rana” is something that parents say to their children when something hurts in Latin America.

I hope you enjoy it and remember to “Pague por Sufrir”. Also for those of you who think that the UCKG should be banned. I do not agree. Keep government out of it and let people like La Cascara do the trick.