I have never been a fan of reality television, but I will confess that — from time to time — I check out YouTube clips of some of the surprisingly good auditions by performers young and old (this 13-year-old opera singer still gets to me).

Part of the alleged drama of all of this is seeing, every now and then, a person from ordinary America collide with the pop-entertainment Powers That Be. As you would expect, religious faith often ends up being part of the script.

This brings me to a recent Washington Post story about an unusual performer who emerged during the COVID-19 version of NBC’s “The Voice.” This is a pretty good story, but I still thought that the religion angle deserved even more attention than it got. Let’s pick things up near the top:

… Even if things had proceeded normally this season, there’s little doubt that Todd Tilghman still would have won.
On Tuesday night, Tilghman triumphed over finalists Thunderstorm Artis, Toneisha Harris, CammWess and Micah Iverson, winning $100,000 and a record deal. At age 41, Tilghman made show history as the oldest singer to win out of all 18 seasons. And his victory stands out for another reason: He has no professional music background, unusual in a competition series that heavily recruits the best singers it can find.
Looking back at other winners, many had already been in bands or performed as touring artists, some previously had record deals, and one was even nominated for a Grammy Award. But Tilghman — a pastor from Meridian, Miss., and a father of eight — said he never gave serious thought to a music career.

First of all, if the Associated Press Stylebook still has meaning, this winner’s name should have been “the Rev.” Todd Tilghman on first reference.

But that would have let the cat out of the bag early, I guess. It’s news that he is the oldest singer to win this competition. It’s news that he has no professional experience as a singer — other than in church (the launching pad for dozens of greats, including Aretha Franklin).

Still, I found myself wanting to know more about this guy’s ministry and life at home. After all, Tilghman is not just a pastor and he’s not an evangelical pastor. This man is a Pentecostal pastor from a town deep in the Bible Belt. Normally, preachers of this kind are critics of popular culture and music. The relevant word here, in church-speak, is “separatism.” In the past, these are the kinds of folks who burn Madonna discs and question anyone who uses drums in church.

Yet there was Tilghman, bouncing around with great enthusiasm singing one of the classic, sexy seduction ballads in the history of rock ‘n’ roll — Bob Seger’s “We’ve Got Tonight.”

Brazil is definitely taking a swing to the right, so who should we credit for that?

Let's think logically about this. Law and order folks? Business owners? Evangelicals? Pentecostals? Politicians?

The societal transformation of this once-majority-Catholic country to a majority-Pentecostal republic is fascinating to watch and there's been a procession of mainstream reporters going to Brazil to check it out. You can see the latest here: a Wall Street Journal piece on how all this may pan out.

NIOAQUE, Brazil -- It looks like a scene from Marlboro Country. Cattle ranchers drive their Chevy pickup trucks to the local rodeo. Cowboys in washed-out jeans entertain the crowds.

In fact, it is Brazil’s conservative heartland, a 14-hour drive from the nearest beach and a world away from the country’s reputation for liberal hedonism.

Over much of the past 15 years, Brazilian conservatives have watched the rise of socialism in this continent-sized nation with unease. They’ve seen farmers go to jail here for defending their land against indigenous tribes; they’ve recoiled as same-sex couples starred in their favorite soap operas; and they’ve grumbled at the local shooting club about high taxes, high crime and the corruption scandals in two successive leftist presidencies…

Conservatism is making a comeback here. It is already playing out in the battle over women’s health and across politics, religion and the arts.

Sounds a bit like Texas, does it not?

Brazil is witnessing the political rise of a fiery army captain-turned-congressman named Jair Messias Bolsonaro, who speaks fondly of the country’s 1964-1985 dictatorship in which he once served. The blue-eyed nationalist, whose middle name means “Messiah,” is a devout Christian who was recently baptized in the Jordan River. At 63, he is running for president on a pro-gun, antiabortion and anti-gay-rights platform.