Retrato_de_Raimundo_Teixeira_Mendes_(detalhe)

Raimundo Teixeira Mendes (5 January 1855 – 28 June 1927) was a Brazilian

philosopher A philosopher is a person who practices or investigates philosophy. The term ''philosopher'' comes from the grc, φιλόσοφος, , translit=philosophos, meaning 'lover of wisdom'. The coining of the term has been attributed to the Greek th ...

and

mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, structure, space, models, and change. History On ...

. He is credited with creating the national

motto A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. Mot ...

, "Order and Progress", as well as the national flag on which it appears. Teixeira Mendes was born in

Caxias, Maranhão Caxias is a municipality in the state of Maranhão in the Northeast region of Brazil. It is the fifth largest city in the state, with a population of 165,525 inhabitants and an area of about 5,170 km2. The Brazilian poet Gonçalves Dias was born ...

Comtean Positivism

Teixeira Mendes was heavily influenced by

Comtism Religion of Humanity (from French ''Religion de l'Humanité'' or '' église positiviste'') is a secular religion created by Auguste Comte (1798–1857), the founder of positivist philosophy. Adherents of this religion have built chapels of Huma ...

and is classed as a "Humanity Apostle" by Brazil's

Religion of Humanity Religion of Humanity (from French ''Religion de l'Humanité'' or '' église positiviste'') is a secular religion created by Auguste Comte (1798–1857), the founder of positivist philosophy. Adherents of this religion have built chapels of Huma ...

, which is called "Igreja Positivista do Brasil" or in English "Positivist Church of Brazil." In life he led the Positivist Church after 1903. For him the Positivist viewpoint meant he opposed most wars and believed in the eventual disappearance of nations. He also opposed Christian missionary work toward the indigenous Brazilians and instead favored a policy based on protection and gradual assimilation. He deemed their societies "fetishistic", but believed a gradual non-coercive assimilation was the way to turn them into Positivists. He died in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

, aged 72.

References

1855 births 1927 deaths Brazilian philosophers Brazilian mathematicians Flag designers Comtism Positivists People from Maranhão {{Mathematician-stub