# Critique of Religious Hypocrisy in Candide

> Theme guide for Candide by Voltaire.

Voltaire satirizes organized religion through corrupt clergy, the Inquisition's autos-da-fé, the hypocrisy of friars and Jesuits, and the gap between religious doctrine and the cruelty or greed of its practitioners.

## Where it surfaces

- [How Candide Made His Escape from the Bulgarians, and What Afterwards Became of Him](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/candide_se/chapters/iii-how-candide-made-his-escape-from-the-bulgarians-and-what-afterwards-became-of-him): The orator who preaches charity refuses to help Candide and his wife pours excrement on him, while the Anabaptist James shows true Christian kindness.
- [IV: How Candide Found His Old Master Pangloss, and What Happened to Them](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/candide_se/chapters/iv-how-candide-found-his-old-master-pangloss-and-what-happened-to-them): Pangloss traces his syphilis to a Grey Friar, a Jesuit, and other religious figures, satirizing the moral failings of the clergy.
- [How the Portuguese Made a Beautiful Auto-Da-Fé, to Prevent Any Further Earthquakes; and How Candide Was Publicly Whipped](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/candide_se/chapters/vi-how-the-portuguese-made-a-beautiful-auto-da-f-to-prevent-any-further-earthquakes-and-how-candide-was-publicly-whipped): The auto-da-fé is portrayed as a cruel and absurd ritual meant to prevent earthquakes, highlighting the hypocrisy and irrationality of religious authorities.
- [VIII: The History of Cunégonde](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/candide_se/chapters/viii-the-history-of-cun-gonde): The Grand Inquisitor, a religious authority, engages in a sordid arrangement with a Jew and uses the auto-da-fé for personal intimidation.
- [IX: What Became of Cunégonde, Candide, the Grand Inquisitor, and the Jew](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/candide_se/chapters/ix-what-became-of-cun-gonde-candide-the-grand-inquisitor-and-the-jew): The Grand Inquisitor, a religious authority, is killed while visiting his mistress, and his body is given a dignified burial while the Jew's is thrown on a dunghill.
- [XI: History of the Old Woman](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/candide_se/chapters/xi-history-of-the-old-woman): The knights of Malta and the pirates' religious rituals are depicted as hypocritical and brutal, mocking organized religion.
- [XII: The Adventures of the Old Woman Continued](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/candide_se/chapters/xii-the-adventures-of-the-old-woman-continued): The Iman's sermon justifying cannibalism and the Old Woman's identity as a Pope's daughter highlight the corruption and absurdity within religious institutions.
- [XIV: How Candide and Cacambo Were Received by the Jesuits of Paraguay](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/candide_se/chapters/xiv-how-candide-and-cacambo-were-received-by-the-jesuits-of-paraguay): The Jesuit Commandant, a religious figure, lives in luxury while the indigenous people eat from wooden dishes, highlighting hypocrisy.
- [XVI: Adventures of the Two Travellers, with Two Girls, Two Monkeys, and the Savages Called Oreillons](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/candide_se/chapters/xvi-adventures-of-the-two-travellers-with-two-girls-two-monkeys-and-the-savages-called-oreillons): The Oreillons' hatred of Jesuits and Candide's mistaken identity as a Jesuit underscore the hypocrisy and violence associated with religious orders.
- [XVIII: What They Saw in the Country of El Dorado](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/candide_se/chapters/xviii-what-they-saw-in-the-country-of-el-dorado): El Dorado has no monks, no religious disputes, and no persecution, contrasting sharply with the religious intolerance and hypocrisy seen elsewhere in the novel.
- [Of Paquette and Friar Giroflée](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/candide_se/chapters/xxiv-of-paquette-and-friar-girofl-e): Friar Giroflée, a Theatin, admits his hatred for the convent and his dissolute life, exposing the hypocrisy of religious vows.
- [Chapter XXVIII: What Happened to Candide, Cunégonde, Pangloss, Martin, etc.](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/candide_se/chapters/xxviii-what-happened-to-candide-cun-gonde-pangloss-martin-etc): The Baron is condemned for a trivial act of bathing, and Pangloss is punished for picking up a bouquet in a mosque, exposing the absurd and hypocritical severity of religious laws.
- [Endnotes](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/candide_se/chapters/endnotes): Endnotes discuss the Inquisition's auto-da-fé, the rejection of bacon as a sign of Judaism, and the treatment of actors as excommunicated persons.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/candide_se/themes/critique_of_religious_hypocrisy
- Themes index: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/candide_se/themes