The Role of Religion-Noah Durrance

In the novel, religion is not one of the most pressing themes, but still contributes to the plot and drives certain characters. Most folks in Maycomb consider themselves quite religious, and their faith influences the way the people of the country act toward one another, and even pervades their treatment in the legal system to certain individuals. When Scout is inquiring Miss Maudie about the reason Arthur Radley is stuck in his house, Miss Maudie explains that Mr. Radley is a "foot-washing Baptist", and that they are much more intense than other forms of religion. During his lifetime, Arthur, being different, disobeyed the religious teachings in some ways, and therefore was too religious to step outside  lest he face the disapproval and contempt of the population of Maycomb. The reclusion of Arthur is an important plot and religion may be a contributing factor. Another interesting role religion takes in the book is how it is related to social injustices such as discrimination. Both the white and black churches indicated the notion of women being subservient to men, as shown in Miss Maudie's speech about religion and Reverend Sykes sermon. Miss Maudie informs Scout and Jem that "foot-washers think women are a sin by definition. Reverend "Sykes enforces this notion when he warns of "strange women" and says that "Boot-leggers caused enough trouble in the quarters, but women were worse." Scout recongizes this and tells that she was "confronted with the Impurity of Women doctrine that seemed to occupy all clergymen." Whether she consciously made the connection, this may be Lee's way of saying that religion contributes to sexism. Religion and racism also have strong ties in this book. The church Calpurnia attends is where "Negroes worshipped in it on Sundays and white men gambled in it on weekdays. A place that is holy and spiritual to one group of people is defiled by another because they consider themselves above the other group. Reverend Sykes uses "his pulpit more freely to express his views on individual lapses from grace", and actively seeks to help those who have been wounded by racism's reach. The argument can also be made that religion contributes to racism as well. When they first enter The African American church, Jem and Scout are confronted by a woman named Lula, and she tells Calpurnia "You ain't got no business bringin' white chillum here-they got there church, we got our'n. It is our church, ain't it, Miss Cal?" This presents opposite racism, as the darker skinned Christians are used to being segregated from their lighter bretheren. and this has created divides between race when it comes to religious practices. Miss Maudie sums up the role of religion when she says that "Sometimes the Bible in the hand of one man is worse than a bottle of whiskey in another's" and that "There are just some kind of men who-who're so busy worrying about the next world they've never learned to live in this one."