Criticism of the Catholic Tradition

In "The Relic," Donne uses the prospect of his bones being dug up to criticize and mock the practices associated with the Catholic church. This theme becomes apparent in the second stanza when he says of the grave digger, "If this fall in a time or land, / Where mis-devotion doth command, / Then he that digs us up will bring / Us to the bishop and the king, / To make us relics" (12-16). The "mis-devotion" to which he refers is the Catholic practice of venerating saints and making relics out of discovered objects. If readers return to the first stanza, Donne's desire for the grave digger to leave the lovers be becomes reflective of the Protestant tradition: "Will he not let us alone, / And think that there a loving couple lies, / Who thought that this device might be some way / To make their souls...