What is the significance of this quote, and how does it revealHale's character? “Let you not mistake your own duty as I mistook my own. I came...

Engaging in religion can be as sinful as maintaining a
heathen or pagan lifestyle. Even in our society today, churches and mosques and
synagogues are filled with people who go through the motions of religion in order to
satisfy a particular longing of theirs to just do it as if it is necessary to check a
mark off the list.

Hale performed the duties of his
ministry with pride and thought himself to be quite the intellectual as did the people
he served. However, somewhere along the line, TRUTH caught hold of him. This happens for
people in many faiths. They do it in the beginning because someone else encouraged them
to. But at some point, there comes a defining moment wherein the whole-heartedly choose
the life of the faith, which relies more on the faith, and not the ritual of the
religion.

Hale could not escape the conviction in John
Proctor. This man would not lie to save his life because he was trying to do right by
God. I think as Hale looked at himself, he probably would have lied in John Proctor's
shoes. This moved Hale to watch a common man so set in relationship or faith as opposed
to ritual.