How we cite our quotes: (Part.Chapter.Paragraph.)
Quote #10
He had always been worried by the fate of pious women. As much as politicians, they fed on illusion. (2.3.79)
Greene is describing a common phenomenon in Catholic parish life: a false reverence for the Church and its clergy. In Catholic theology, the Church acts in the world on behalf of God, but it is also a human institution run by sinners. The priest isn't necessarily the holiest person in a congregation (kind of like how a teacher isn't necessarily the smartest person in a class), and it's an illusion to believe that he is. Notice the woman the priest is speaking to in the prison has a pure image of him because he's a priest. When he shatters her illusion, she wishes him dead.