What is the theme in Skinny Legs and All by Tom Robbins?

Religion's impact on society is another theme in the story. To Robbins, Buddy Winkler isn't just the "bad guy" in his novel. Buddy encapsulates everything that is wrong with religion. Buddy is fearful and judgmental. He finds the devil in makeup, art, music, and dancing, among many things. It's this attitude that drives Verlin Charles to physically remove Ellen Cherry from college after he learns she is drawing nude portraits. As Ellen Cherry says in the novel, Verlin is a good man who is led astray by Buddy's extreme religious views.