The Way

This film showed a realistic depiction of grief and sadness. Tom's struggle over his son's death really touched me and reminded me that grief is healed slowly with the help of friends and family. Additionally, the pilgrims' desire to improve their lives was inspiring. The way Tom evolved throughout the journey showed true personal growth, and his purpose for walking the Camino evolved along the way. He started out looking for a way to deal with the death of his son, but during the journey, it became more about Tom himself finding a better way to live his life. Tom did not just deal with his son's death, he improved himself. The movie showed that the pilgrimage is a really positive experience, no matter what the goal or purpose. Both religious or personal reasons are noble pursuits.

Mixed Messages

While I think Emily Reimer-Barry makes some good points about the way women are treated within the Catholic Church, I think it is important to recognize the positive messages sent to women. For example, the Church clearly states, with no room for doubt, that men and women are equal. This message is at the heart of feminism, and the Church's statement is very significant and powerful in today's society. The Church also encourages all people, especially young women, to respect and honor their bodies as a gift from God. This message encourages women to recognize their worth and treat themselves with the dignity they deserve. A lot of these messages have been translated to me through my years of Catholic schooling. Especially in high school, I have been taught that being a woman means being a powerful "agent of change." Although some of the message are a bit lofty, they convey an important message that being female does not make me any less of a person. Quite the contrary, it makes me a strong and powerful person capable of just about anything. However, as with anything, there are always some negative messages mixed in with the positive ones. I have heard many of the traditional opinions about the differences between men and women. For example, some people still believe that a woman's sphere is the home, and that this responsibility should come above all else. Nevertheless, the many positive messages tend to override the few negative ones.

Abortion

Bryan Cones's article sends a very different message than what one typically finds in Catholic publications. However, I completely agree with what he is saying. He is taking a very practical approach that better fits what the modern world needs. While I understand that the Church would not want to given up on such an important ideological belief as pro-life, I think it is worth noting that more lives may be lost from unsafe abortions than from safe abortions. In a safe abortion, the fertilized egg dies, destroying one life in the Church's opinion, but an unsafe abortion can lead to two deaths: the mother and the fertilized egg. I also think Cones brings up a good point that having access to birth control dramatically decreases the number of abortions. By providing some type of contraception to women in developing nations, the abortion rate would drop greatly. If the Catholic Church could consider these other factors, they might be able to develop a new position that better fits with modern society and modern views on abortion.