Sete Margens

Sete Margens was launched in 2019 to "fill the gap in Portuguese media concerning an independent coverage of religious and spiritual matters", Manuel Pinto, one of its co-founders, says. "Portugal is currently devoided of independent information on religious matters and autonomous voices that can cover what they want without bending to the Catholic hierarchy."

The year before its establishment, Manuel Pinto and others toured Portugal to scout professionals and institutions about the need for a journalism platform focused on religion and spirituality.

"Two things became evident during those meetings: the first was that although Portugal calls itself a Catholic country, Catholicism changed, and there's a lot of ignorance in the country about Catholicism today and about other religions as well; the other was the realisation that to understand our world, we need to comprehend the role played by religions," Pinto says.

Sete Margens sees the journalistic coverage of religion beyond the matters of organised and hierarchical religions. The digital media outlet publishes stories about every religion and spiritual search, including the practice of meditation and yoga. According to the team, the scope of its focus on religion and spirituality ranges from investigations into abuses committed by the church to stories about the arts, culture, economic alternatives to capitalism, and the issue of environmental justice in the context of climate change.

Its primary source of revenue comes from its readers, who regularly donate to keep the website going, and donations from institutions like Montepio, Portugal's oldest bank.

Last updated: January 2023

Last updated date: March 2023