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tomhill 's review for:
The Power and the Glory
by Graham Greene
I read a review online that says that this novel "takes faith at face value" and I just don't agree with that at all. I don't think Graham Greene or most Catholic novelists/novelists that write about Catholic themes are all that interested in presenting an uncomplicated view of faith, nor have much desire to evangelize. At least the serious writers. That would, quite frankly, make for really bad literature, and Graham Greene is too good of a writer for that. The "whiskey priest" at the center of this novel has failed at being a good priest in almost every conceivable way. He's an alcoholic, has fathered a child, is cowardly, pathetic, feels little when praying or saying mass, places his own safety above everyone else's. Yet there is a stubbornness and a persistence in him that just won't go away. Although it is hinted at and stated outright that this has as much to do with the priest's own ego as it does with any deep held convictions. To unpack and examine all of what Greene is trying to get at here would take a long time. At times he is highly critical of the church and of the clergy. On the other hand, there is no doubt he is vehemently opposed to the persecution the clergy and the church faced during the 1930s in Mexico. Of course. But he's not interested in portraying the clergy as saints. Again, it would be bad, uninteresting literature. And the priest's faith here seems to be more of a default, more of a habit, and certainly one that has many cracks in it because of the pressure that has been applied. And yes, at the end of the novel I'm pretty sure we are supposed to see his decision as an expression of faith and of duty, a decision made with full awareness of the consequences. But you cannot really expect Greene not to preach just the tiniest bit. The Church was made for sinners, I'm sure Greene would say. Also, this is a well paced, well-plotted thriller. A lot of memorable scenes, the most memorable for me being the night the priest spends in a crowded jail cell. I think that chapter really demonstrates what Greene is getting at here.