Bless Me, Ultima - Religion

Moché teaches him that he must seek to ask God the right questions, even though we will never understand the answers he gives us.

Christianity, Judaism, Islam. These are only a few of the many religions in this world. How does one choose which religion to follow? Is it their background, nationality, belief, or because that’s the only thing they have always known or come in contact with? The concept of religion is a complex one, a concept to be investigated and questioned. This is the journey that Antonio Marex Luna explores in Rudolfo Anaya’s (1972) Chicano novel Bless Me, Ultima.

     After reading the book, Bless Me Ultima, I realized the integral importance of religion and need for religion and answers to life’s questions. At first, while reading this book, I thought it was just about relationships and the meaning in them but as the plot progressed I realized the book, is more than that, it questions the structures that decide the rules, morals and values that society is composed of. There were three types of religion that I identified in the book that young Anthony chose to pursue. The first was the paganistic rituals of Ultima. Ultima came into the life of Tony at a very young age and had great influence n the child. Ultima saved the life of Lucas through Tony’s

chocolate without actually taking a bite of it and feeling it melt in your mouth?

that anyone can look forward to eternal happiness with God. Henceforth, a newly transformed Alfred

The way it gets its prey is by using its long tongue. This tongue has a sticky spot on the tip just like frogs. It can use this tongue for like a grip. If it happens not to use its tongue, it can use its powerful jaw.

questions about faith as there seemed to be answers. She had grown to admire her father's ideals

"I pray to the God within me for the strength to ask Him the real questions." (p.5)

After this I went to church; and having never been at such a place before, I was again amazed at seeing and hearing the service. I asked all I could about it; and they gave me to understand it was worshipping God, who made us and all things. I was still at a great loss, and soon got into an endless field of inquiries, as well as I was able to speak and ask about things. (Equiano, 82)

When people say history repeats itself, they are not lying. A modern conflict in today’s world can relate to the events that happened in a play written in the 1500’s. The play, The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet, by William Shakespeare, can relate to the ongoing Syrian Civil War. In both circumstances, people not anticipating the consequences of their actions made decisions. It resulted in devastating tragedies, all started by an ancient grudge. Which forced the government to retaliate in violence against the perpetrators, involuntarily displacing innocents, and the loss of many people or requiring them to flee

Personal beliefs and ideologies are one of the most important things that make us individual and unique. A person's morals define them, and in most cases, will directly impact how they act in their day-to-day inquiries. Usually, these beliefs will stay secure, but even the strongest people can fall victim to the vicious, mind-controlling force of mob mentality. One place where this is demonstrated is inside the novel To Kill a Mockingbird. This novel entails a battle against the ruthless nature of social pressure, and what it can do for people.

Throughout the course of history, society had stereotyped women, making it merely impossible for a woman to achieve her goals and desires in life. This had weighed them not as equals, and for this, they were given different standards by which to live. At this day and age, and during the ancient Greek times, women have always been treated as second best by biased men, although today’s society has started to understand this inequality better as time progresses further into the future. Even with society becoming more equal for women, females are still treated similar as to time of the ancient Greeks. Women still don’t have as much power as men, are still “blamed” for wrongdoings and thought as untrustworthy, and are still used as “currency”

“I pray to the God within me that He will give me the strength to ask Him the right questions.” (5)

And another is to understand a parable like an old story about the God helping the people mentally or something like that.

Descartes and Augustine, in their respective examinations of the mind and God, come to the conclusion that the true understanding of all things derives from the withdrawal of the self from foreign influence and the necessity to look inward. Although each thinker’s journey or course of understanding was different, and at times rather contrasting, their ultimate realizations about knowledge are very coherent.