To balance priorities between a passion and a responsibility proved to be too much for Nathan Price. Nathan was determined to fix a wrongdoing in his past, ultimately leading to his downfall. His wrongdoing included being somewhat of a coward at war and leaving some of his fellow soldiers behind. He left his cavalry behind during the Bataan Death March which was one of the deadliest massacres of all time. The death march included many american prisoners of war that were forced to walk a very long way to a death camp. Not many soldiers even survived the march. Nathan had been struck in the side of the head with some shrapnel and decided not to go back and help his friendlies. Later knowing their fates, Nathan felt ashamed of abandoning them and was determined to repent for this sin he committed. In order for God to forgive him, Nathan felt it was necessary for him and his family to become missionaries in Africa and spread the story of Jesus. The passion to save his soul from Hell and to repent for his sins for leaving his fellow soldiers to die left Nathan with no other choice than to become the best Reverend possible instead of being a providing father when his family needed him the most. Nathan was unable to balance his duties of being a father as well as a preacher while in the Congo and this ultimately lead to his demise.
The conflict between Nathans passion to rid himself of his sins by being a preacher and his responsibility of being a father who provides for his family while living in the Congo lead to his demise by not succeeding at either one. Nathan Price tries to be a selfless person by claiming to save countless souls from damnation when in reality he is as selfish as one can get. This is evident when Nathan tries to get people to attend his Sunday ceremonies but instead attendance continues to lack. When talking about the possible baptizing of the young ones, the natives make it clear that they do not want their families mixed up in any other religion besides their own.