First in Lisbon, then in Évora, the brotherhoods multiplied throughout the country, often bringing together Africans from the same 'nation' - Mina, Congo, Angola, Benin - and setting themselves in places where African population density was most significant to generate a community of interests and practices. If the confraternities did not prove the Christianization of Africans, they highlighted the way they used a Portuguese-rooted association that allowed them to organize defensive systems, providing the possibility to recover money to ensure the survival of their members and develop strategies for cultural preservation. Participating in the many religious ceremonies, Africans introduced practices considered profane, such as their dances, much appreciated by the Portuguese population and censored by the political and ecclesiastical powers, but not banned.  
Up to the beginning of the twentieth century, the brotherhoods participated in the numerous processions - religious, ludic, social events revealing social hierarchies and economic power - organized in honour of catholic cult figures, such as Our Lady of the Rosary or the Body of God, which marked the Catholic calendar. But the presence of Africans in these events did not fit a single purpose. While some participated as members of the brotherhoods, others were part of the body of the processions with their instruments and their rhythms, their behaviours and their offerings, always counting on the agreement of the organizers. It is one of the most characteristic aspects of this situation that entrusted Africans with festive and musical production, creating spaces of street fun and spectacle, indispensable to the success of the initiative, evidencing a process of Africanization of a Catholic ritual. Music and dance were not only African ludic manifestations, they were part of the social relationship between peoples, also organizing their relations with deities.