[Health promotion in the religious scenario: opportunities for nursing care]

This was a qualitative study of the documentary type carried out in the first half of 2008, and it aimed to describe the practices of health promotion developed in the religious scenario in a city in the countryside of Ceará, Brazil. Information were collected through audio-taped interviews with the priest in charge of the parish and the three coordinators of projects linked to the Catholic Church, selected by the identification of projects with the priest. The results show that promotion and health education are present in the activities developed by volunteers in the religious scenario. The church seeks to change attitudes and to promote the adoption of healthy behavior by individuals, through individual and collective actions. There is an urgent need to insert healthcare professionals in this scenario, strengthening it as a social support, gradually reducing the assistential activities and intensifying those aimed at health promotion with the support of nursing, in order to improve healthcare in this scenario.