Religion In Manlio Argueta's One Day Of Life

In the daily lives of the Salvadorians the theme of religion frequently appears, which is presented in Manlio Argueta’s novel, “One Day of Life.” Christianity influences the routine activities of the civilians. In the novel, religion is used as a method of corruption by the people in power, but as a tool of freedom for the common people.
On pages 21-22, Lupe expresses the amount of faith the people have based off what the priest’s would tell them. The people would listen to whatever the priests would tell them, easily corrupting the way they think. Instead of finding a proper cure for the children dying, the priests would tell them that terrible acts are a result of one’s carelessness.
The priest’s always wanted to keep people believing in
The treatment they received and the lessons they were taught at church convinced the people that all the disparities happening in the country were all their own faults. Lupe represented the faith that most of the people had in their religion. The Salvadorians hold onto hope in life by going to these religious places, but the government actually controls the way religion is being presented to the people.
The elite and the masses both held religion in high regards, but used Christianity in different ways. On pages 94-95 the way the authorities view religion is represented. They believe that in the United States they are practicing Christianity the right way. The people in power seem to always compare themselves to America.
Everything that the Americans do is the proper way and the Salvadorians were taught religion incorrectly because it came from the Spaniards. It is mentioned that the Catholic religion is poisoned by communism. In this passage, sects of Christianity such as Jehovah’s Witness and Mormons are seen as the better sects compared Catholicism, which is practiced by most of the
The monsignor knows he’s defeated because all the people are already in the church and it would look immoral if the authorities were to take action against the people inside.
The Monsignor goes on to say that they are in the most sacred place of Catholicism in El Salvador and that is when Adolfina speaks up to say that is why the protestors are there. There is great significance in Adolfina’s statement because it shows the people selected a place that will get the attention of the masses. They used a very popular religious place because people respect religion and they will more likely listen to what the protestors have to say when they are in that church.
The book reveals that people such as Adolfina and the protestors use religion as a way to gain freedom, using the church as their tool. On the other hand people such as the authorities try to make sure the priests in these churches are only preaching religion in a certain way to prevent the masses from rising up. The elite and the masses are using the same religion and institutions to spread each other’s point of views. The elite use religion as a tool of power while the masses use it as a tool of