What is real? Our perception of reality is often in the hands of the community we live in. We formulate ideas of reality using experience of our own as well as those of others around us. Our lives are constantly being influenced by our surroundings. The idea that our perception of reality is determined by the consensus of our community can be seen throughout history, movies and literature, as well as our personal lives. During the Holocaust, in the movie Stigmata, and in my personal experience in boarding school, my perception as well as the cognition of others were shaped by the community associated with the situation.
             Throughout history many events have occurred involving false perceptions of reality. The holocaust is a great example of the community molding the perception of the individuals within the society. Adolph Hitler, for example, used the media to degrade darker skinned races. The media convinced people that the darker skinned race hurts their community and economy, and genocide was a necessary action. The people of that time based their perception of reality on what they heard from the media, and from leaders of their country.
             A movie that I have recently seen changed my perception of reality in a religious aspect. The movie is titled Stigmata, and the message that the movie portrays involves criticizing the Catholic Church. This film implies that the Church is not necessary to worship God because God is everywhere and in all aspects of life. According to the movie the Church is aware of this, however, and they refuse to tell the people because they will loose power if the members of the Catholic community become aware that they have false perceptions.
             Within the movie, in a religious aspect, the perception of reality of the Catholic society is completely shaped by the Catholic Church. Believers of Catholicism will modify their own perception of religion depending on the me
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