Symposium Connection

Last week, we attended the Wellness Symposium in the Orton Center. During the time we were there, we were able to see 3 different presentations: one about a new wellness festival, one about Catholics fighting for social justice, and lastly, social justice and the difference between just and unjust . I specifically found Dr. Spickard’s presentation most interesting because I feel that it related a lot to the topics in the course that we have covered and also some of the articles I have read on my own. The topic coincides with the idea of modern religion. Personally, I have older family members who are very devoted to their Catholic beliefs. They would never think to stray from the Bible and its teachings, but I think that as generations have progressed, we are taking the Bible less literally and fitting it to our own lives. While my grandparents are still devout Catholics, my mother considers herself Catholic but does not attend church, and my brothers do not consider themselves to be religious. This is not the case for all families, but it shows that religion with an individualized interpretation is growing. The Catholics that were represented in the presentation represented people in the faith who are willing to go further than most I know. They stepped out of their comfort zones to do something that they truly believed and thought was right and godly. While they do not practice traditionally, they fulfill the duties that they believe belong to them. An individual’s level of religiosity cannot be measured by an outsider because the way everyone follows a tradition is different.