Power_&_the_Glory-_Allusions_to_Biblical_Characters

Graham Greene, author of The Power and the Glory, was a 20th century English novelist. He converted to Catholicism in 1926, due to his wife’s practices in faith, which is right around the severe persecution of the Roman Catholic Church during this time period. In 1936, ten years after he converted to Catholicism, Greene traveled to Mexico with the specific purpose of studying and writing about this persecution. His two most common themes displayed in his novels are violence and religion. Evidently, in this novel it is clear that it was influenced by his travels to Mexico, as several of Greene’s characters are parallels to some of those who are in the bible. Padre Jose can be compared to Peter the Apostle. After being a follower of Jesus for three years, Peter denied knowing Jesus three times. Not until Jesus resurrected did Peter begin to fully understand who Jesus was. Similarly, Padre Jose denied God by turning away from the priesthood and renouncing his faith so that he would not be persecuted. Rather than being killed and becoming a martyr, he chose to give into the government and married his housekeeper. After doing so he continues to abandon his faith by refusing to give blessings. For example, he was asked in the cemetery during a funeral to give his final blessing, yet he did not believe it was possible. His response to the people was “Leave me alone. I am unworthy. Can’t you see'—I am a coward” (49). In addition, he denied his faith again when the lieutenant came to his house asking him to hear the whiskey priest’s confession. He was afraid of being set up by the government, and he again shows his unworthiness by ignoring his sense of duty. Padre Jose’s abandonment of the priesthood does not say that he no longer believes in God and the Catholic Church, but it does show that he fears pain, one of many common themes in Greene’s novel. In addition, the Whiskey Priest can be paralleled to Jesus Christ. The Whiskey Priest’s execution can be connected to the crucifixion of Christ. The lieutenant was searching for both the gringo and the priest, yet the reward for the priest was higher even though he has not committed crimes as serious as the gringo. In comparison, the people chose to crucify Jesus rather than Barabbas, who was completely guilty. However, the Whiskey Priest is different in that he was considered a bad catholic priest or a corrupt messenger as he explains to the lieutenant. The priest says “You mustn’t think they are all like me. There are good priests and bad priests. It is just that I am a bad priest” (191). During his respected years as a priest, he was arrogant and exploited the benefits of his position, and as a renegade priest he fathered a child and became an alcoholic, which in no way can be paralleled to Christ. In addition, the priest worried that he never saved a soul while on Earth. Christ, on the other hand, saved souls through miracles and other works of God. The Whiskey Priest, although committing sins that are completely unacceptable by the priesthood, cannot be considered a bad person overall. After all, he did end up being the last priest in his state for several years, and he did so because of the common theme of fearing pain, but most importantly he refused to give up his sense of duty. Lastly, the Mestizo can be linked to Judas, whom Greene directly refers to in the novel. Just as Jesus knew Judas would betray him, the Whiskey Priest sensed betrayal in the mestizo, and sure enough he was right. The mestizo told the priest that he was a good Christian, and continued to ask why he would want to turn him in, trying to get the priest to admit his true identity. During their first encounter, the Whiskey Priest sent him off on a different path, prolonging his capture by the Lieutenant. However, the mestizo made a return, finding the priest to take him to the dying gringo, as he knew that the priest would come with him since it was his duty. The mestizo kept saying no one but the gringo would be there, but the priest knew that the Lieutenant and other police would capture him there; he knew he was close to his prosecution. After being captured, the mestizo asks for the priest’s forgiveness, yet his only response is “I’ll pray for you” (197). The priest, however, explained that he would not hold a grudge, as he would expect any other human being to do the same in order to get the reward. While the character parallels are not completely the same, Greene get’s the most important message across to the reader, and at the same time she portrays the characters’ free will to choose their own paths in life. In addition, his choice to not give some character’s specific names, such as the Whiskey Priest and the Lieutenant, helps to connect their representation with all of society during the time period, as the priest portrayed all human beings, and the lieutenant portrayed the communists. All in all, Greene’s use of Christian symbolism plays a crucial role in the novel. The story would not relate to the Roman Catholic prosecutions in Mexico as well as it does had the symbolism been left out.