Candide Ch 14 and 15: Is Religion As Bad As Voltaire Shows It?

"You should never judge the book by its cover" is a very common maxim. The meaning of this is never to judge a person before you get to know his situation and life. Normally when you judge a servant you would say that he is there and he is dumb and can't do anything for himself. In Candide the exact opposite of this thought happened. According to Voltaire: "And had been successively chorister, verger, sailor, monk, commercial traveler, soldier, and footman" (pg.61). These are a lot of qualities for a slave. Sometimes the person at the bottom or less expected to be something ends up being the most intelligent and able person of all. Cacambo is like the multipurpose person in this story and he also serves as Pangloss to Candide. Since the death of Pangloss there have been two people that have replaced in some way Pangloss. First there was the old lady that when Candide and Cunègonde had no idea what to do the old lady proposed a solution. In this case Cacambo also became Pangloss when Candide needed help. After killing Cunègonde's brother Cocambo recommended him to disguise as the priest. As I am reading I find that Voltaire is stressing each time more Candide's problems to act by himself and make the crucial decisions. It is as if Candide was always the master of his new tutors, but without them he would be hopeless.

The church is a holy place where Catholics go to pray to God. God has always been sending us messages through the Pope, priests and other members of the church. What would happen if suddenly we realize that there are corrupt priests that bias God's teachings. If you ask me if I thought that God's teachings were biased I would certainly say no, because I strongly believe in God and his teachings. If you were to ask a different person like for example Voltaire your answer would be a definite yes. According to Voltaire: "The reverend fathers own the whole lot, and the people own nothing" (pg.62). Before in the Middle Ages there was the thought that priests were the ones who determined the afterlife of each person. There were people who had been bad all their life and would pay the priests and they would grant him heaven. Voltaire can be referring to this in some way by saying that the priests are way richer that everyone else. If religion is meant to be good and help everyone the why did they have so much territory and the rest of the people had nothing? Religion is supposed to help the poor but it is ironical how Voltaire shows to us that instead of them helping the poor that is what they are supposed to do they are not helping them. The target of over here is very clear that it is religion and how they claim to be helping human kind but they are corrupt and want power and money for themselves.

Cassock: a close-fitting ankle-length garment worn especially in Roman Catholic and Anglican churches by the clergy and by laypersons assisting in services (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cassock)