(Bates) Religion in Dublin

Throughout James Joyce’s The Dubliners, the author takes a negative approach towards the Catholic Church. In many scenes across the various short stories, the Church is depicted as corrupt and hypocritical. One jibe appears in “The Boarding House,” in which the Madam’s daughter, Mary, is described as a “little perverse Madonna.” This description becomes appropriate when she is caught sleeping with one of the borders. The sacrilege of naming an unchaste character after the Blessed Virgin suggests that the Church is less pure than it would have its followers believe. 

Yet the story “Grace” carries many more implications about the Church. Here, a group of friends try to convince Mr. Kernan to return to the Church, hoping to inspire a conversion of sorts. They discuss the doctrine of papal infallibility, and Joyce’s treatment of the doctrine highlights the absurdity in the belief. For instance, Mr. Kernan asks about corrupt popes in earlier times, and after grudgingly acknowledging the criticism, Mr. Cunningham says, “Not one of them, not the biggest drunkard, not the most… out-and-out ruffian, not one of them ever preached ex cathedra a word of false doctrine.” Ex cathedra literally means “from the chair,” meaning that the pope speaks with authority as head of the Church, and Catholic teaching states that anything the pope preaches ex cathedra is infallible. Yet Mr. Cunningham’s statement is illogical, as one cannot take another’s word about morality as infallible, least of all a drunkard’s. Mr. Cunningham does not offer any proof of his declaration, yet the men all blindly agree with him, as mirrored in the line, “He drank and the other gentlemen followed his lead.” Through this scene, Joyce emphasizes how Church teaching governs the Dubliners’ thinking. It prevents them from questioning, thus hampering growth and change.

Finally, the last scene of “Grace,” finds the group of men listening to a priest’s homily, which describes God’s mercy in terms of business. These associations violate the Church’s sacredness, making it seem cold and secular. Thus, Joyce views the Catholic faith as an unfavorable quality in the Dubliners.