What happens to a religion when its leaders are killed, its practices are outlawed, and its buildings are destroyed? The Power and the Glory explores these questions in a story about the suppression of the Catholic Church in Mexico. Greene isn't afraid to shake things up. The religion he depicts rides as much on fear and superstition as it does on charity and hope. It has its graces and its rot, its truth and its hypocrisy. This book is no attempt to prove the existence of God or the validity of the Catholic faith; it's a sympathetic and critical account of a people's religious struggles.
Questions About Religion
- How is the practice of religion different after the persecution? How it is the same as before?
- Padre José has forsaken the priesthood, but does he still believe in God and the Church? What about the mestizo, who claims to be a good Christian, but plays the role of Judas—does he sincerely believe?
- How does the practice of Catholicism continue in places where there are no priests?
- Who in the story has the most faith or is the most religious? Why do you pick this character?
Chew on This
Greene sees hope for the Church's future in the inquisitive atheist Coral and the angry boy Luis—children who have grown up without the Church but who are in different ways deeply moved by it.
Religious ceremony is less important than religious service.