Miss Maudie is suggesting that Mr. Radley's strict interpretation of the Bible had influenced the way he treated his son, Boo. Mr. Radley, who was a "foot-washing Baptist," believed that any type of pleasure was a sin. Mr. Radley kept Boo secluded inside the house as an extreme form of punishment for his youthful pranks. The "foot-washing Baptists" are so extreme in their beliefs that they view gardening as a sin. Mr. Radley's treatment of...
Miss Maudie is suggesting that Mr. Radley's strict interpretation of the Bible had influenced the way he treated his son, Boo. Mr. Radley, who was a "foot-washing Baptist," believed that any type of pleasure was a sin. Mr. Radley kept Boo secluded inside the house as an extreme form of punishment for his youthful pranks. The "foot-washing Baptists" are so extreme in their beliefs that they view gardening as a sin. Mr. Radley's treatment of Boo seems inhumane, but to Mr. Radley his actions were justified.
In my opinion, I do feel that Mr. Radley was a Christian. I feel that he was trying his best to keep his son from getting into more trouble. If one were to take the Bible literally, they would immediately become an outcast in society, much like Mr. Radley. In Luke 18:22, Jesus says, "sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me." Out of all the Christians I've met throughout my life, I have never met one that has sold "everything" they owned and given it to the poor. Mr. Radley's views would be in alignment with this verse, and he would be an outcast if he followed Jesus' directive exactly. Studying hermeneutics is difficult because there are so many different ways to interpret the Bible. In the eyes of a liberal or moderate Christian, Mr. Radley is "not" following Christ's message, but a strict conservative would feel different.
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