Dating

I disagree that dating is just practice for divorce. Although a dating relationship is something that can be ended without much consequence, having experiences before marriage can help you make sure that the person you're marrying is the right choice. If you've already dated, you know what kinds of personalities you like and don't like. However, I don't agree that people who are against dating have "a basic mistrust of others." I'm fairly certain that all of my peers will date before getting married. In my college interview, my friend told me that the majority of college students hook up, but she expressed the same uncertainty as the Busted Halo article about what exactly hooking up means. I think that, as long as hooking up is taken somewhat seriously and is within a relationship, it's fine.

Papal Characteristics

I think that it's important for the Pope to be open to modernization while still holding on to the tradition of the Church. This will be a hard but necessary task. I think that the Church needs to work to get more young people to join before it becomes all old people and loses power and authority. As a woman in the Church, I am content with the roles that women have now. Women can participate in the liturgy as eucharistic ministers, cantors, and lectors. At my church, both boys and girls serve as altar servers. I think the Church needs to make sure at all parishes are letting women hold these lay positions, as some conservative parishes don't allow women to participate at all. If I could change one thing about the Church, I would modernize some of the rules. Some rules, like the ban on birth control, are rules that nobody follows anyway. By creating rules that people might actually follow, the Church could look more appealing and not alienate the members it already has. The Holy Spirit works in every person and helps to guide them. Because of this, there is room for democracy within the Church, as the Holy Spirit will guide everyone to make the right decisions, although they may not know that they are being guided. This is especially true within the Papal Conclave. Of course, the Hoy Spirit doesn't have power over free will, so not all decisions are perfect.