The Way

When I first heard about the premise of the film "The Way", I thought that the people on the pilgrimage would be living like actual pilgrims. They discussed the concept of true pilgrims a lot in the movie, but they did not live like them. They stayed in hotels and ate large meals and took a lot of breaks along the way. This was a little disappointing but of course the journey was still hard. The film did inspire me. I liked how they each had a goal and sometimes that goal changed along the way. For example, with Yost from Amsterdam, his self-hatred turned into self-acceptance; his original goal was to lose weight, but towards the end it changed to accepting himself for the way he is. The film inspired me that sometimes it is a good thing to escape from your normal daily routine and just spend time reflecting on your life. I liked how the "pilgrims" became friends at the end and put aside their differences. I liked how they all started the journey alone and then ended in a group. They met new friends that would change their lives for the better; that was my favorite part. It inspired me that sometimes it is okay to ask for help from other people because you can't always do everything alone.

Women in the Church

I think there are many positive messages that the Church sends to women.One of these is the sense of equality that the Church honors between men and women. This equality may not always be carried out completely, but it is still a prevalent idea in the Catholic Church. Another positive message is one of sexuality.The Catholic Church teaches about the need for intimacy, mutuality, consent, and respect for the dignity of one’s partner in sexuality, which are all important values. These messages help to balance out the negative messages that are also sent to members of the Church. The Church tells its members to value mutual pleasure and long term commitment in a sexual relationship. This positive message teaches us about healthy relationships, which in turn teaches us about a positive self-concept and seeing ourselves as gifts from God, made in his image and likeness. In a Catholic school environment, especially at an all-girls school, it has been drilled into my mind that women are to be empowered at a young age and can have a bright future if they are educated properly. Our school motto is "On the education of women largely depends the future of society." This has been repeated to me on several occasions and so it is very important to me.I have really only received positive messages from my school but the Church does not always uphold what it says about equality. Women are not allowed to be priests, how is that any different from women not being allowed to vote? In conclusion, there are some contradictory messages being sent about women from the Catholic Church.