The Catholic Church of Frank McCourt presented in Angela's Ashes played a key role in the way Frankie and also the way the whole society functioned. The Church mainly stood for the antagonist against Frankie but in contrast it also helped him survive through his rough childhood. Although, the Church might have averted Frankie from achieving a better life, it gave him a reason to keep on living and to go on with his goals. Along with the Church having control over Frankie's life, it also had control over the entire society. The Church hurt its members and limited their experiences, protected and nurtured its followers, and was confusing for Frankie.
The Church hurt its members and limited their experiences in many different fashions. First, the clergy men were stringent about issuing dockets even though they were essential for the survival their members. For example, one woman goes as far as threatening them to get boots for her children,When Nora comes out she's smiling and waving a piece of paper. Boots, she says. Three pairs I'm getting? for my children. Threaten the men in there with the Quakers and they?ll give you the drawers off their arses.? Also, the mother of Frankie explained the horrible situation they were in and the clergy men were still hesitant of giving the docket. Along from limiting the experiences of the society, they also prevented Frankie from being all that he could be. Frankie and his father prepared for weeks to make Frankie become a good altar boy, but when he went to try out for the job,Stephen Carey looks at him, then me. He says, we don't have room for him, and closes the door.? Then once again Frankie gets another door shut in his face; this time Frankie gets recommended to the school of higher learning but he gets rejected once again because of his social status. From the clergy men, not giving the families of Limerick the vital things in life such as food and clothing to not allowing Frankie to live a better life, the Church hurt its members and kept them living in an endless cycle of poverty.
