“The Way” to God

In our final week of class, we had the opportunity to watch The Way, a movie in which the protagonist, Tom, loses his adult son, Daniel. At the time of his death, Daniel had just began the “Camino de Santiago,” a traditional journey from the Pyrenees in France to the shrine of St. James the Apostle in Galicia, Spain. Unfortunately, Daniel died in a violent storm on his first day of walking. In response, the mourning Tom decides to walk the Camino in his son’s place, spreading Daniel’s ashes along the way. During his travels, he runs into three other “peregrinos” (pilgrims): Jost, Sarah, and Jack. Each pilgrim has their own reason for the journey: to lose weight, to escape a violent lover, or to write a book, respectively.

Related to this movie, we read an excerpt from The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything: A Spirituality for Real Life by Father Jim Martin. In his book, Martin discusses the various paths that people may be on in their spirituality with God. These paths include: belief, independence, disbelief, return, exploration, and confusion. He also notes that a person may be on more than one path at once. As the word “camino” means “path” or “way,” in Spanish, it is only natural for us to apply Martin’s concepts to the characters in this movie!

For the sake of this blog post, let’s focus on Tom, our protagonist. He’s an older man, probably in his early seventies, and works as an ophthalmologist. At the beginning of the movie, we see Tom’s interactions with his secretary as well as his golf buddies. Although he has a successful career and enough money to live the country club lifestyle, Tom is visibly unsatisfied and even withdrawn. We can deduce that the source of his poor outlook is his strained relationship with his son.

According to Tom, he has not gotten along with Daniel since his wife died. Their most recent dispute occurred when Daniel said he would stop pursuing his doctorate and travel the world instead. In response, Tom was in firm disapproval and argued all the way to the airport. Unfortunately, that would be the last time he would ever see Daniel alive.

At that point in the movie, it is impossible for us to know Tom’s religious beliefs. However, when he gets news of Daniel’s death, Tom is seen sitting in a church, accompanied by a priest. The priest asks him if he would like to pray together, and Tom responds with, “What for?”

Based on that response, I would diagnose Tom on the path of confusion. According to Martin, someone on the path of confusion “runs hot and cold with their childhood faith, finding it relatively easy to believe in God at times, almost impossible at others.” Martin also notes that one in a confused state “may pray from time to time, particularly when in dire need, and they may go to services on key holidays.” In my opinion, Tom closely conforms to that description. On one hand, he apparently did make the effort to mourn at a church. On the other hand, he did not want to pray to God, because he doubted it would make a difference. This situation goes under the category of finding it “almost impossible” to believe at times. Tom also admits at another point in the movie, (while talking to a different priest), that he doesn’t really practice his faith, and he only goes to mass on Christmas and Easter. Regardless, the priest gives him rosary beads to use.

As mentioned by Martin, it is possible for one to walk on multiple paths at once. In my opinion, that concept accurately applies to Tom during the Camino. For instance, at the beginning of the journey, he encounters a crucifix in the ground, makes the sign of the cross, and spreads his sons ashes at the site. It is possible that Tom had this sudden spiritual inspiration because he saw a vision of Daniel near the crucifix. Indeed, a sign from God can help restore one’s faith. Regardless of the reason, Tom repeats this practice throughout the movie – finding various places to spread Daniel’s ashes, and generally making the sign of the cross before doing so. In addition, Tom later admits to praying the rosary during the Camino, which he says has helped him. Overall, these situations show that Tom is on a path of return to God. During the trip, he becomes more religious than he had been in years. He went from someone who barely went to Church, to someone who prays daily. However, Tom is simultaneously on a path of confusion, as conveyed by his drunken outburst and other negative moments.

During the course of the movie, we also see a visible transformation in Tom’s overall attitude. While he initially acts quite distant and is unkind to his trail-mates (because he is in mourning), Tom gradually opens up to them and becomes a sort of father figure for the group. It is possible that Tom’s regained spirituality improved his mood, or maybe it was the opportunity to become a father again. By the end of the movie, I believe we can consider Tom still on the path of return, or maybe on the path of belief. As with anything in spirituality, it is hard to define for certain since we do not know his thoughts.

All in all, The Way is a touching movie, and allowed for us to see some of the six “paths” to God in action. Tom, in particular, showcased the paths of confusion (and maybe even a mild disbelief) at the start of the movie, yet began on a path of return or belief by the end of the movie. It is apparent that the Camino is powerful and can aid in spiritual reflection!