Another theme in the story is God and faith. Julian's primary struggle has centered on the limits of his faith. He is a lay person, thus, in Butler's words, Julian is "o/the cloth but [he has] .. . not taken it." This position indicates Julian's indecision and his inability to accept the human-made institution of religion. Alone with Butler again, he clarifies his position: he fled to the asylum because he had lost his faith in God. He could not accept that humans made God into a "false God in their own image." Julian's rejection of this representation shows his distaste for making God into a symbol for worship; instead, he thinks, people should merely worship God.