#fr…. let people live��.. there is no right or wrong way to engage with stories we’re literally just hanging out….

[corpsentry]

it’s so funny to me when people make posts that are like i hate it when fandom mischaracterizes my favorite blorbo/fandom needs to stop reading the story this way/fandom reduces my blorbo to xyz trait when they actually contain multitudes bc they clearly have things they like and care about re: the topic but instead of simply sharing their thoughts they have to preface their joy with this kicking at the table leg bit that emphasizes how correct their opinion is and how everyone else is Lame and also Wrong like mein gotte it’s barbie dolls on some 35 year old who works in software engineering’s macbook you have contributed nothing to society by telling jessica from ohio software engineer to deepen their understanding of sakusa kiyoomi haikyuu. ‘fandom always ignores/forgets that’ ok and? your problem is? ? ? maybe people are happy writing chilfuck as a babygirl or marcille as something other than a girlfailure in which case good for them!! it sparks joy yahhhh!!! i’ve blocked enough people on twitter to mostly be at peace these days but tumblr is Not Safe everywhere i go on my dash there are these weirdos who think everyone else is doing fandom wrong. you silly man. you absolute buffoon. you mysterious moralist

like listen i am the most literaturepilled mf out here so i think i’m entitled to yap about this i like my characters fucked up and bizarre and quadruple-faced and so only read very particular fics but maine gotte i will not complain about it publicly because that’s my business! other people are here for other things. escapism. joy. Oviposition. and that’s great because life’s boring when it’s just you and 10 other guys like you. i’m telling you morally outraged random 18 y/o the oviposition guy is the key to the universe and i’m Old and Tired now so every time someone puts that ‘marcille is more than a genius and people need to stop writing her like awooga booga whatever the fuck’ shit on my dash they’re catching that block like a fist flying out of a can of tuna oh yeah i’m closing my eyes i do not see your dumb ahh shit i go to bed

[hoefette]

All the petty things I hate about fate!winx and their shitty universe/world building because

I'd added most if these in tags of other posts but I'm still so mad lmao

The way characters, Aisha and Mrs Dowling specifically make references to explicitly human or American things like instagram and Harry Potter

These people are from a different dimension for ffs why are they concerned with or are even aware of this very earth-specific shit? Do they teach earth classes at school over there?

I understand not wanting to have them be oblivious so Bloom wouldn't have to explain it to them, but it simply could be ✨omitted✨

Why would you go out of your way to date your work like this lmao ew

Ms. Dowling calling Tinkerbell an air fairy.. I cannot breeve with the stupidity why did they keep that in there

Why is Ms. Dowling.. the headmistress.. teaching classes? Where are the other teachers?

We ended up with a trio of antagonists (I guess you could call them that?) by the end of the season anyway so why not give us the trix, why have the characters play double roles as friends of our protagonists and also the villains/bullies? They clearly wanted a delinquent trio, in which case they could've gender bent the trix if they wanted to keep all the unnecessary sexual tension.

It just feels like the production team was lazy, they didn't want to hire more actors, they didn't want to bother with making the world immersive or lived in or believable at best, they just didn't give enough of a fuck

They wanted to make this show and attatch Winx to it for.. what? Like did you even google the main plot points? The abridged version or sparknotes to get details on the very literal, basic characteristics of our main characters or their roles or the world they inhabit????

It lacks wonder and intrigue.. I mean Bloom moves to another dimension, a school for fairies and we don't see her marvel once at anything.. and that's because she might as well have been in Switzerland because she's in exactly the same environment she would've been in over there anyway.

They could've said Alfea was in Europe and I'd believe it because nothing about the setting makes it feel otherworldly. I'm sorry but I'm not impressed.

Why do the teachers and graduated specialists communicate via facetime ?? In the magic dimension. ??? Why do they text each other and those texts then appear on screen like .. oh look, like a bad netflix teen movie ????? HELLO ??? it's the way technology and magic could've blended in so seamless into the world THE WAY IT WAS ALREADY DONE/SHOWN. Missed opportunity. it just takes you out of it imo every time you see the ugly, bland, gray text bar. Some fucking flavour pls I'm begging

How stupid the specialist must feel clonking around with the skinniest shreds of armor, plastic swords on their backs and battery powered flashlights and cellphones in their bags. R we larping?? I know I'd be laughing and asking why we hadn't already come up with something more effective .. idk like guns. I'm surprised I ain't see one gun in there.

In the beginning Ms. Dowling says some nonsense about fairies having lost the ability to transform to explain why there are no wings, which means they could've transformed before. So are we to assume that this supposed to be set in the time proceeding the original then?? Because something is not adding up with where they should be as a magical society technologically if that's the case

How does the production team want to keep the dark academia vibes with torches lining the walls and also want them to be face timing each other, presumably from miles and miles away in the dark forest???

Pls pick an aesthetic and stick to it everything was so unnecessarily dark. Where do they charge their phones since it's the only device we see that is the slightest bit modern and dont fucking tell me they charge it with magic I will punch you in the face

Why is there only one major monarchy that we are shown? Why are Solaria the only ones contributing to the efforts to defend the school and where is this mysterious battalion we never see lmaoo it's all so bad its laughable.

Is this set in the kingdom of Solaria? And why does the queen of an alleged interdimensional superpower monarchy pull up in black SUVs??????????? Why does she pull up with Andreas?? Is he not the king of Erakleon?? Where are his soldiers and his battalion and just?? Huh!? The world just feels empty like nobody lives here fr

Are we supposed to believe that the specialists get paired up with fairies just as a normal occurence and that they have to 'trust each other' and not because the plot demands it suddenly half way through when all we've seen so far are the fairies doing normalish school and homework, and the specialists outside, being physical everyday all day. This was never even implied that they'd have to work together apart from when we see the faculty as youngins with Rosalind. But even then.. it's like well why are they even together lmao? Is this a special team formed from Rosalind’s protégées? Were they formed after graduating from Alfea or what is this?? Are they the ONLY team of specialist/fairies hunting every single burned one?? What?

Are we now supposed to buy that Musa is being switched to 'support' because that's where her strengths lie and not in combat?? Are we supposed to believe that these girls know hand to hand combat?? When was this established? We see Terra wrapping some baby vines around a dude and I'm sorry is that the practical application of her power? Is this what the fairies are supposed to do once they graduate? Or is it just a switch in curriculum because of the threats outside the barrier?? This is never made clear.

Because if not then what's the point of this?? Why do they suddenly have endless classes together when the expectation was never set for the fairies to be like soldiers or out in the field fighting ?

Where exactly are they supposed to be what was the purpose of including Aster Dell and why is it a joy ride away from Alfea lmao?? Where Bloom is from and also not from?? Plot pls make it make sense

Why are fairies from another dimension vaping or smoking weed?? They are not human so why are they engaging in specifically human vices, yol couldn't come up with anything else to characterize 'delinquents'?? Very lazy very como se dices.. no effort. Nothing a little more spicy yol could invent, at least change the name and some properties holy shit did yol even try ??

So its fairies everywhere, having a lil party in the east wing of a phat castle.. and they are playing beer pong and dressed in t shirts and jeans..

Can you hear me screaming? Can you hear me vibrating with rage?

Not one floating decoration or magical anything in sight. Just purple lights and subpar vibes

Stella's costume design: tragic. I won't discuss further because we don't have the space or time but just know that it was absolutely atrocious and I hated it. Giving very debutante vibes

The entire budget going to that lame transformation sequence that was not a transformation sequence and those horrible, barely-there fire wings

Edgelord bloom and all her fucking leather jackets. Why do 30 yo, white cis men think girls exist in a binary? They could keep her earlier characterization and make her a hothead.. Bloom literally screamed herself into a couple power upgrades in the original come ooonnnn

Let girls be feminine without it being a character flaw what is wrong with yol its 2021. They could make her more mature, more angsty or whatever the hell else and not style her like that

The way Aisha's abilities flipflop between episodes and scenes. Very inconsistent. One minute she's struggling with a drop of water and the next she is moving an entire body of water for her bestie Bloom to fake transform because the plot demands it. Why even add in her struggles at all if you're just going to ignore it?

Why was Stella with them in that scene? She didn't do anything literally.. Aisha pulled the water and she did .. nothing.

Who the fuck is Rosalind? Why would they add her in,, to add nothing to story? The company of light was a thing, they could've plucked one of them hoes to be the antagonist. Why did the winx club need their own Delores Umbridge? Valtor was right there if you wanted an evil educator type character.

The camera work was so bland during the down beats, stagnant and fixed during a fairy party and erratic and ugly and disorienting during the fight scenes

I'm not getting over the fairy party because it was a good opportunity for the production and everyone else to show the differences between where Bloom was and where she is now but instead it just looks like a regular teen high school party?? This could have been set in Switzerland fr.

Everyone's just kind of standing?? You mean to tell me these people are from all different places in the magical dimension and their customs are all the same? They all throw parties like this ??

White and flavorless I am very bored

I guess the main question or takeaway I have is just.. who is this for? Because everyone, including the showrunners keep saying that it's for us, the fans of the original. But apart from the characters sharing some names, there are really no other similarities. So again, who was this supposed to appease or placate or satisfy? Because it sure as hell wasn't the winx club fans.

Overall, this feels very much like something I wrote and probably published on ff.net when I was 13 because I thought girls couldn't be taken seriously if they liked pink, and injected angst into everything that didn't need it and had no idea how to structure scenes or dialogue. It's just bad, objectively and N*tflix will keep making shit like this because apparently some people have bad taste??? Idk yol, be easy

[phoebehalliwell]

Ok I’m curious, how would you fix season 8? Which is objectively the worst season IMO but had the most potential

i mean like there were a lot of things wrong with season eight but i think by far the worst thing was their villains like. for starters. making billie and christy our big bad was. bad. and then there was dumain? the triad? the source came back for a second? it was sloppy, at best. like. like!! i think s8 would have benefitted best from a clear-cut villain from the get go, something that was evil with an agenda, that offered a couple one-off plots rather than like. a girl who was kidnapped an emotionally manipulated into believing she's right by older powerful men exploiting her and wrapping up her plot by literally(!!) incinerating her. she burnt to death i'll never be over this she was literally human lmao what the Fuck. so instead of doing a billie manipulated by christy manipulated by dumain who's like. the triad's bitch. Don't. the underworld is currently in chaos what with the source dying and then the avatars stint and the zankou bit. they need leadership. have someone vy for the throne. forget the ultimate power. leave that shit in the dust. we could still potentially have billie, but billie was just a really bad character for charmed where we were. like we just watched the girls go thru endless shit for a near decade and now we have some knockoff buffy like i know more than you!! like it doesn't matter that in some cases, billie is right (hello?? scrying with a laptop????), like, we’ve been with the charmed ones so long like it's so hard to read billie as anything other than annoying. and then both henry and coop were done So Fast like. those could stand to marinate a shade longer. every tho paige and henry's wedding is my fav out of all the weddings on the show (bc it was the cutest) um. it's very ooc. like they can just be in a long term committed relationship. moving in together could be their big thing. maybe getting engaged. but like the speedrun in three months? two months? unbelievable. and then i've mentioned this before coop entering phoebe's story of his own volition as a passing cupid who senses a blocked heart and tries to fix it and then ends up in way over his head when phoebe summons him and threatens to vanquish him. like way more believable than the elders just sending coop down as a sorry present girl what. other people have also pitched work rivals to lovers phoebecoop as two rival pop culture cupids. there are options. skip over dex obvi. i will give a shout out to the way they got rid of leo. the um. mechanics of it were stupid, as previously stated. but i'm always a fan of bringing in death, and i thought it was a good loophole for getting rid of brian 2 save money. oh you know what else i didn't like? agent murphy. fuck that guy he was both boring uninteresting bland and also a dickwad. so. :\

okay. so to salvage s8 on a budget. here's what i'd proposed: focus on seats of power. sets you already have: magic school, the manor, the underworld (presumably). first thing under siege so 2 speak is the manor, now that the charmed ones are dead. paige keeps trying to help charges on the dl, phoebe still practices magic and intervenes in like. letters that warrant it from the advice column. piper and leo are living that domestic life and maybe we get a quote from wyatt just like from melinda in s2 don't worry mommy i promise not to use my magic and like all these girls kinda hit the conclusion hey. this is wrong. we are the charmed ones. let's own up to it. they're back!! we give paige two relevant charges: speed, a future whitelighter who just graduated high school in the spring. no he's not going to college, despite henry's insistence, and later paige's. he'll hit that epiphany later. billie. wicked smart, independant, freshman at berkeley with a tragic past. they r gonna be each other's love interests, giving us a plotline off the sisters so the actresses can have a break because evidently that was a requirement as well. speed's first 2 notice, but billie's first to put the pieces together: there's something demonic afoot in san francisco. and up-and-coming demon clan have been like. like giving mortals demonic powers, granting them magic in exchange for fealty. this can lead for kind of a big final battle, with the charmed ones vs like an army that can easily be disarmed once they find the necessary magical pathway. we can also have the sidequest of magic school, which will soon be falling into the hands of the charmed ones. in fact, we can have the demon clan going for a "magical seat of power" which the girls interpret as the manor but realize almost too late that it is magic school. from there, all the mortals who went demonic can like. be knocked unconscious have their memories wiped and place back in the world like nothing ever happened, wrapping that up in a neat bow. the girls finish the fortification of magic school, resealing its protections and confirming its place as a haven for the next generation of magic. speed almost dies and you think he's gonna die fr fr because he's a future whitelighter and you're like oh that's how we're gonna wrap that plot up but psych! billie saves him at the last minute. they get to stay in a healthy normal relationship together <3 piper gets leo back after the great battle, phoebe and coop get married in the manor and take the place of the paigehenry wedding because like. again they should also hold off on that (maybe we just include it in the flash forward montage) but we kinda do need at least one wedding to wrap this motherfucker up. and paige and henry get a domesticity beat and also maybe a roadtrip we give them a literal drive off into the sunset symbolizing how piper gets the domesticity the white picket fence life she's always wanted phoebe gets true love and the ability to feel whole again and paige gets freedom and independence symbolized by her road trip, which also shows us how magic has reached such a point of stability that each of the charmed ones can actually live on their own. paige drives off into the sunset And Then we get the flashforward montage of everyone's individual happy endings. fin <3

[verobatto]

Destiel Chronicles

Vol. XXXIX

It was a love story from the very beginning.

Forbidden Love

(8x22 2nd part; 8x23)

Hello My Friends This is the last meta from season 8.

Here I will talk mostly about how Angels see Castiel and Dean's relationship, and how Castiel is showing us a lot of foreshadows of Human!Cas plot and his aknowledged about his true feelings for Dean. Just like Dean in Purgatory, who saw he was in love with Castiel, the same will happen to CAS when he becomes human in season 9.

I want to say thank you to my friend @agusvedder she made the gifs for this meta. Thank you girl!

Now, let's start...

Trying to fix things with Dean

After watching the video in episode 8x22, Castiel wanted to go with Dean and Sam, but Dean was still mad at him, even if he had given him those pop corns... 🤣 Yes... It wouldn't be that easy...

Dean was mad at him but even so, he cares about Cas the... "And get better" avoiding Castiel's puppy's eyes is the proof that Dean can't be mad at him for too long.

But after this... We had Cas shopping in the Gas'n Sip. And the list is weird, but not that much...

It was a funny scene, and everything he was buying was related to Dean and Humanity. He wanted to fix things with him. It was funny right? But it was a foreshadow for Human!Cas as well.

Let's check the list: dried meat (bc he saw Dean was giving that for eat to his brother) so... Maybe is something humans eat... Or Dean. Asian Women and boobs, okay, yeah, Dean likes it... Boobs... There's a foreshadow there when he will be on Street like a human, overwhelmed, and he will see a woman showing her neckline, remember? Then... Beer, Dean loves beers... Some toilet paper yeah, humans and digestive process. (Poor baby, he will be tired of pee...)eggs... Fragile and it breaks easily. (Symbolism everywhere, my friends). And finally, where's the pie??

He gets very pissed off when he can't get Dean's favorite thing of all, the PIE! Without Pie, there's not reconciliation!!! (They are so married, I swear...)

Falling for a forbidden love

Between episode 22 and 23 (Sacrifice) we had this spell Metatron was trying to achieve.

And the ingredients were a symbolic representation of Dean and Cas "forbidden" relationship, an ANGEL can't fall in love with a HUMAN. An angel can't have that kind of intimate relationship with God's creation.

That's what Metatron's spell meant. An angel in love with a human is an abomination, is unforgivable, is a sinful and forbidden path.

Let's just take a look to the ingredients here...

1) A heart of a Nephilim

Look at this... Castiel is talking about the Nephilim as the OFFSPRING OF AN ANGEL AND A HUMAN (is the representation of an angel and a human involve into a romance) and then he added... I THOUGHT IT WASN'T ALLOWED . Is like if he was saying... Being in love with a human is allowed? I thought it wasn't. Because the mere existence of that Nephilim is the proof of a romance between and angel and a human existed. And then Metatron replied: IT'S NOT. Is not allowed, is forbidden, is sinful, is wrong.

And Metatron is showing Cas how angels see Dean and Cas relationship...

And why his heart? Why the Nephilim's heart? Because the Nephilim, like a representative ROMANCE, JUNCTION, BETWEEN AN ANGEL AND A HUMAN, that's the heart, the heart represents both of them, the angel and the human joined in one heart.

2) Cupid's bow

In episode 8x22, we kept seeing the ingredients to "close Heaven", but after that, Metatron and Cas talked about God.

CASTIEL: What was he like?

METATRON: Who? Oh. God? Mm, pretty much like you'd expect. [ Sighs ] Larger-than-life, gruff, bit of a sexist.

This last characteristic isn't good at all, and immediately after that... Metatron charged against the Nephilim (human/angel junction) again ..

And how was it very very symbolic, why the Cupid's bow??? Why? Okay, is a live spell? No, wait, is a spell to make angel fall... Ooohhh more symbolism?? Like Castiel? Who fell for Dean! (Carver, I love you).

When all the finding love chat started, Cas was kind of... Flustered... Why talking about "finding love" makes him feel uncomfortable? Even with his lack of knowledge about LOVE, something in that issue makes him feel kind of suspicious about him and Dean...

Okay, the arrow that engages two people, and immediately fell in love with each other. The destiny... Right? But, if we are strictly correct with Destiel, Accord to my theory, it wasn't supposed to happen, so... They didn't needed the Cupid's bow or the arrow... So... That's why they took it from Cupid. Something that wasn't written, they defied destiny, against Heaven's will.

And not just that, but, this Cupid reunited two men that were good friends. So... They went from friends... To lovers... And that's a beautiful mirror of CAS and Dean.

3) Castiel's grace

And the last ingredient to make angel fall fr grace... Is Castiel's grace, an angel in love with a human. The most abominable way to fall from Heaven. Each one of these Ingredients have a romantic allusion.

So... How do you make an angel to fall from grace?

1) A profound romantic bond with a human (forbidden)

2) Defy destiny and fall in love with that human.

3) Give up your grace for love (maybe a foreshadow for some Human!Cas in season 9... Or maybe this last season .. even if I don't like this not even a little bit, bc I want Cas to be an angel for ever, but... )

Oh, and, all of this was a ironic joke from Metatron, ofc, as we will see in the next season.

Dean and gay panic

We have Dean and Cas in that bar, waiting for Cupid's apparition. The two men in that bar wet watching archery at the tv... Everything was about bows and arrows... We knew Cupid was about to come so... The subtext in this bar was romantic.

Two friends, that fell in love with each other.

And the dialogue between Dean and Cas was full of melancholy and concern...

DEAN: Anything? You've been gone long enough.

CASTIEL: No. There was one female, but...

DEAN What?

CASTIEL ...I don't think she was female. Anything here?

Okay, they're waiting for a female to the bar's owner, because is what they thought... This man on the bar..m will fall for a woman today..m but that was wrong...

And then, Dean is worried about Cas, he wants him to talk bout it, and Cas talks... Briefly...

Dean is seeing that maybe this could be the last time he will see Cas, and he uses the ET reference, even knowing Cas won't pick up the joke.

Castiel's face here is priceless, he looks at Dean and made a grimace as if he was saying "Yes, my friend... This is the goodbye..." *Sobbing*

Then... Cupid entered in action... But the thing was... She reunited TWO MANLY MEN WATCHING ARCHERY ON THE TV, and that was... Unexpected... Mostly for Dean. Watch his gay panic raising right there...

Yes Dean, two manly men can fall in love with each other...

To Conclude:

Castiel buying human's stuff was cute bc he wanted to fix things with Dean but also, it was a foreshadow for his painful human life in season 9.

The ingredients for Metatron's spell was a romantic coded for Destiel, and how angels see Cas and Dean relationship as an abomination.

Two manly men falling in love with each other was a huge example of how love can be unexpected, and how Dean panicked right there 🤣🤣

I hope you liked this last Chronicles from season 8, see you in the next one!

Tagging @metafest @magnificent-winged-beast @emblue-sparks @weirddorkylittlediana @michyribeiro @whyjm @legendary-destiel @a-bit-of-influence @thatwitchydestielfan @misha-moose-dean-burger-lover @lykanyouko @evvvissticante @savannadarkbaby @angelneedshunter @trickster-archangel @dea-stiel @poorreputation @bre95611 @thewolfathedoor @charlottemanchmal @neii3n @deathswaywardson @followyourenergy @dean-is-bi-till-i-die @hekatelilith-blog @avidbkwrm @anarchiana @mishka-the-angel-of-saturday @dickpuncher365 @vampyrosa @foxyroxe-art @authorsararayne @anonymoustitans @mybonsai1976 @love-neve-dies @wildligia @dustythewind @wayward-winchester67 @angelwithashotgunandtrenchcoat @trashblackrainbow @deeutdutdutdoh @destiel-is--endgame @destiel-shipper-11 @larrem88 @charmedbycastiel @ran-savant @little-crazy-misha-minion @samoosetheshipper

@shadows-and-padlocked-hearts @mishtho @dancingtuesdaymorning @nerditoutwithbooks @mikennacac73 @justmeand-myinsight @idontwantpeopletoknowmyname @tenshilover20 @teddybeardoctor @pepevons @helevetica

If you want to be tagged just let me know.

If you want to read the previous metas from s8, here are the links...

Vol. XXXI, XXXII, XXXIII, XXXIV, XXXV, XXXVI, XXXVII, XXXVIII.

Buenos Aires November 27th 2019 7:51 PM

[hcllridge-blog]

when u thought you were gonna be hella later than this but you got off work three hours early here comes your highness ---- the trash queen. aloha, for those of you who don’t know me, i’m rach/rachel, a resident of the gmt+1 timezone who’s twenty n goes by she/her pronouns !! straight up, this intro is gonna be a copy-paste of the og one i used because.. nothing changed. i mean, lowkey teegs is now engaged to neil ( lmfao ) bc #arranged marriage lyf ---- but everything else is the same. below the cut you can read all about this piece of literal trash and also my second character aka a literal anGel !! 

VICTORIA JUSTICE ˙ ｡♦ ⋅ ⋆ — here comes TEEGAN HELLRIDGE. did you hear that they are TWENTY-ONE, & a CISFEMALE SHADOWHUNTER. people tend to call HER OBSTINATE & IMPULSIVE. however, i say they are AUDACIOUS & DAUNTLESS. rumor has it, they are FOR the war

TW: MENTION OF ABUSE.

little teegan hellridge was practically raised on hearing stories about her magnificent father, alexander hellridge— the shadowhunter was a great and powerful man, a man who had a name to honor from centuries before him and who planned on keeping it that way.

alexander dedicated his life to being the best he could, constantly training, constantly working and wanting to do all that he could for the shadowhunting world. he threw himself into mission after mission and while he may never had made it as a head of the institute— he was certainty still an important figure.

teegan could never get enough of his stories, her father was her hero, she would beg for him to tell her stories of his missions— no matter how many times she’d heard some of the stories beforehand.

growing up, teegan knew that she too would have to continue to honor the hellridge name, something that coming after as great of a man as her father; made her feel insecure or concerned that she may not be the best that he was, that she wouldn’t live to be as legendary and heroic as alexander.

from the minute she could walk, alexander was eager to train his daughter— believing that starting early would be the key to her success, and it only helped that teegan showed great interest and determination.

despite the fact that teegan often was top of her class, it seemed that this was never enough for alexander— while his daughter would try to celebrate her success he would put her down, telling her not to get too ahead of herself and that she still needed to perfect her skills,  that what she had done wasn’t good enough yet.

alexander pushed his daughter to every limit possible, and the older she got, the more teegan began to convince herself that it was a case of ‘tough love’. sometimes he would smile at her like he did when she was a child, when he would tell her those stories that she oh so loved to hear— but as for the rest of the time, he was stoic. he wasn’t her father, he was her commander and she was his personal solider.

alexander’s wife had stuck by him throughout it all, despite the fact she may not have agreed with his ways of training, she couldn’t voice her opinion without teegan jumping down her throat that he was trying to train her to perfection, that it’s what she wanted.

albeit, victoria hellridge cracked— one day the once loving wife and mother threw in the towel, offering alexander an ultimatum and threatening to take her daughter away from him.

what made her suddenly crack was alexander’s obsession been taken to a level no one would’ve expected— he was consumed by the idea of creating a perfect little solider, of having HIS daughter’s name go down in history.

between his daughter being blinded by her admiration for him, and how easily he could manipulate her by whispers of how powerful he was going to make her; it was only natural that upon her father suggesting experimenting on his own daughter, she agreed.

victoria, however was not going to stand for this— calling her husband all names under the sun and making out that he was psychotic, twisted, a disgusting man; something he then only proved to be right when she threatened to take teegan from him. he wasn’t about to let his pride and joy be taken by anyone, not even his wife.

with being such a well-known, loved man, alexander easily wound himself into getting his wife de-runed; and furthermore, getting her out of the picture. though, as far as teegan knows, her mother left them both; her father twisting the image into her mind that victoria was a selfish woman, that she didn’t want teegan to suceed; which only further fueled her desire to be that perfection her father pictured her as.

this is getting excessively long so to cut to the chase; alexander lowkey very much experimented on teegan— literally he’s kinda very much the worst dad in the world but she’s entirely blinded by this because she loves and admires him so much and fr someone needs to smack her bitch ass and tell her to wake the fuck up because everything about her relationship with her father is wrong wrong WRonG.

oh !! i should say that the only reason teegan is FOR the war is because daddy-o was whispering in her ear about it and has convinced her that it’s for the best because he ain’t a fan of them downworlders soOoo.

and of course teegan gonna do and follow what he says sooOo.

okay so little added bonus !! ya gurl has angel blood. thOUGh. she’s totally unaware of this factor as it’s from her mamma and her mamma never told her or her pops about it. her fathers experimentation have all been seen as failures by him considering they never had any impact or outcome on teegan, though he’s unaware the entire time that she already has what he desires her to have.

basically, as i’ve probably repetitively said throughout the many bullet points above; she’s daddy’s little solider-— teegan will do literally ANYTHING he asks of her, he could ask her to cut off her own arm and tell her it would benefit her and make her a better shadowhunter and she’d fucking do it like? it’s pretty extreme. she’s very much a down-to-business kind of person, likes to get shit done. can 100% be found training all the fucking time like.. even if she’s injured she’s gonna train. can be fairly snarky and just.. comes off generally not nice because she’s not here to make friends rly she’s here to be the best lmfao. iDk mAn. she’s a mess i’m a mess who isn’t a mess.

as for plots.. ya’ll i’m a big plot slut please give me eVerYTHINg. like, especially someone who might’ve accidentally found out about her dad’s exterminations on her? because he would’ve obviously kept that hella lowkey so pls? give me this plot? we can discuss if teegan knows this muse knows about it or their reactions etc. IDK MAN I WANT IT ALL.

{ TROIAN BELLISARIO } ˙ ｡♦ ⋅ ⋆ — here comes (OCTAVIA NIX). did you hear that they are (APPEARING TWENTY-FOUR/TWENTY-NINE), & a (CISFEMALE) (WARLOCK). people tend to call (HER) (MANIPULABLE) & (FEARFUL) however, i say they are (INTELLIGENT) & (COMPASSIONATE). rumor has it, they are (AGAINST) the war.

TW: MENTION OF ATTEMPTED MURDER.

so first off, octavia is a fairly 'new' warlock i guess one could say? considering most are hundreds, centuries of years old she is only five years older than the year she stopped visually ageing at.

she's still very much coming to terms with her magic, learning new things on daily basis. it's only something of recent she's been trying her hand at, as for years she refused to acknowledge her power.

octavia was the offspring of an american-italian by the name of juliana, while her 'father' was that of a demon shape-shifted to the appearance of juliana's husband, alberto.

she was deemed a 'normal' child for many years, despite the fact on rare occasions alberto swore he saw her eyes light a vibrant shade of lilac.

skipping forward, basically alberto started to study closer into the eye-changing? and therefore wound up spending hours upon hours researching ---- the deeper he got into the idea of it being a supernatural cause the more repulsed and horrified he felt. coming from such a christian background he felt disgusted to think he had been taking his demonic, devil-child to church each sunday.  

it was then he began to form the perfect plan, he could make it look like an accident ---- juliana would never know, it could be written off as a suicide.

however, his plan went to ruins when his wife landed home in the midst of alberto with both hands against octavia's shoulders, attempting to drown her in their family bathtub.

i just realized both my girls have #daddy issues daMn.

anywho, basically juliana saved octavia and tried to search out help ?? considering she was entirely unaware of octavia's 'gift'.

which octavia wound up living with a friend of her mothers for a time whom was also a warlock; the older female promising to teach octavia how to use her powers wisely.

however, being scarred from the doings of her father, she refused her help.  

wanting to try her hand at leading a normal life, octavia moved to manhattan ---- finding herself a comfortable one bedroom apartment and for a period of time, she even had a job. which, she somewhat still has. after taking a job in a florists it was something she found a deep adoration for; finding the trade itself rather relaxing. making use of the extensive balcony her apartment was supplied with, octavia began to grow her own flowers and creating her own bouquets at home ---- opening her own small business were she worked from home.

this is trash but i swear i'm going to write up proper, detailed bios for my children in the future i sWear. but basically, octavia has only began to just drabble into magic and her abilities? it's something she's still very reluctant about and until this point has been trying to live life as a mundane. lowkey wakes up sweating and screaming sometimes because she has night terrors of her attempted murder lmAo. is a hella pushover? the reason she probably got into magic was because someone asked her to do a thing so she had to learn how to do it for them. honestly, you could manipulate her to do anYthing for you. emotionally just.. s m o l? her outfit aesthetic is basically spencer hastings like ?? not sorry. lowkey grew up wearing a little gold cross around her neck that she still wears but it's often hidden under the collar of her shirts lmaO. probs is always drinking herbal teas, feeds stray cats 10/10, apartment is covered in flowers and millions upon millions of books. i hope that ?? kinda covers the basis of my smol child but please !! plot with her ?? pls. lowkey feel like when the day met the night --- p!atd describes her in terms of she's the moon tbh ??

IDK GUYS PLS JUST GIMMIE ALL THE DAMN PLOTS.

[jessette20]

8 tips to build customer relationships with social media

Customer experience has become a top priority for companies in 2019.

Today’s consumers base their perception of a brand on the meaningful moments they have with it. Importantly, those moments don’t just happen at the checkout page, or on the service line. Social media has emerged as a crucial touchpoint in building customer relationships.

According to Gartner, churn increases by up to 15% for businesses that fail to respond to messages on social media.

Used correctly, your social channels are more than just a way to respond to complaints. They’re how you build lasting connections and brand loyalty.

Building customer relationships on social media

Brands have only just begun to unlock the full power of social. Channels like Instagram, Facebook and Twitter aren’t just for promotion. They can also be a way to connect with your customers.

Our recent report “Creating Connection: What consumers want from brands in a divided society” found that:

91% of people believe in social’s power to connect communities.

78% of consumers want brands to help people connect through social.

76% of respondents were more likely to buy from a brand they felt connected to on social media than a competitor.

What’s more, our research found that building customer relationships on social media helped brands to improve their bottom line. When consumers felt connected to brands, more than half increased their spending with that company.

So, how do you start developing these rich relationships?

1. Listen before you talk

Building customer relationships is all about delivering value to your followers.

If you can provide helpful, informative or even entertaining content, people will want to connect with you. Unfortunately, there are still many brands out there that take the “what’s in it for me” approach to social. If you’re ready to flip the script, start by listening to your audience.

Sprout’s social listening tools will give you an overview of what your audience is talking about online. From there, you can collect keywords, ideas, and inspiration to generate meaningful material on social.

The more you create content that responds to your audience, the more you show them that you value their thoughts and feelings. According to our study into call-out culture, 55% of people who call out brands on social just want to be heard. Make sure you’re listening.

2. Respond quickly

Listening is just the first piece of the puzzle.

You also need to respond to what you hear.

According to The Social Habit, 32% of customers expect a response within 30 minutes online. Fail to address their concerns fast enough, and you could see your customers’ anger spread across social media. Fortunately, there are tools to help you catch every message as they come in. Sprout Social’s Smart Inbox will help you to track what customers are saying and respond with speed.

Speeding up your response time does more than just delight your customer – it can also improve your revenue. A report by Twitter found that airlines responding to Tweets in 6 minutes or less earned customers willing to pay $20 more per fare. Quick responses provide not only the speed and convenience that people crave, but also build your brand as one customers can trust and rely on when there’s an issue. These are benefits that customers are willing to pay for.

3. Personalize conversations

Importantly, while responding quickly is essential, a standard automated message may not be enough. Bots can help show your customer that you care about their problem, but only if you can follow up with human correspondence soon after.

Social media is an intimate way to connect with your customers. It’s where your followers also interact with friends and family members. People expect their discussions with brands to be just as comfortable as a message to a friend.

For brands building connections on social media, it makes sense to embrace personalization. When talking directly to customers:

Use their first name when possible (it should be present on their profile)

Sign off on comments with your team name or company name

Be friendly – let your customers know that you’re there for them.

After the conversation, make sure you let your customer know you’re not going anywhere. Leave them feeling happy that they talked with you. Look at this example from Nike, for instance, where the customer found the resolution themselves, but the brand stayed engaged and showed that they’re available regardless.

4. Show your human side

Don’t reserve your unique personality for when you’re talking one-on-one with customers.

Social media is a place where people can showcase their style and tone of voice. Since human beings connect with other humans, not just faceless corporations, it’s important to give your company a heart.

There are plenty of ways to show off your human side when building customer relationships on social media. For instance:

Introduce people to your staff with photos, bios, names, and stories.

Adopt a fun and friendly tone in your messages, complete with emoji if it fits your brand.

Take part in trends and discussions that your customers are interested in.

Another great way to show your human side is through video. Video is a direct insight into your team, and people. With streaming features like Facebook Live and Instagram Live, you can even deliver an unfiltered view of your company. This is an excellent opportunity to demonstrate your transparency as a brand. Try using video for Q&A sessions with team members, behind the scenes snapshots and more.

Check out this post by Starbucks on Twitter. It’s a great example of the brand showing off their fun and playful side:

We really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really really need another cup of coffee. ☕️

— Starbucks Coffee (@Starbucks) January 23, 2019

5. Reward your customers

While building customer relationships shouldn’t mean constantly bribing your followers, it’s worth showing them how much you appreciate them. Remember, they’re choosing you over all the other brands out there. That deserves a little love.

One great way to reward people is with competitions and contests. Run an Instagram campaign that asks people to vote on their favorite product through a Stories poll. Try a Facebook contest where customers can share photos that also highlight your products. Not only will you generate buzz around your brand, but you might learn something too. You can even use competitions to expand your brand reach, as Trunki did here, by asking people to tag a friend for a chance to win:

View this post on Instagram

Time for a new Competition everyone ⭐ Win a Trunki for yourself & another for a friend 😀 — — — — — — — — — — All you have to do to enter is leave a comment and tag the friend you want to nominate… Make sure you let them know why you're tagging them though, they might want to nominate someone else 😉 — — — — — — — — — — Make sure you follow our page as well, don't miss out on more competitions & Trunki related content 😍 — — — — — — — — — — UK / DE / FR entries only please – This competition will close at midnight on the 24th of February, and a winner will be chosen and announced shortly after… Good luck everyone 😀🎉 — — — — — — — — — — #Trunki #HappyTravels #TravelWithKids #Travel #Luggage #Competition #Giveaway #Win #Prize #Enter #GoodLuck #Competitions #CompetitionTime #CompetitionDay #Contest #ContestAlert #CompetitionAlert #DontMissOut #DontMissIt #Entry #ContestDay #ContestGram #GiveawayContest #ContestDay #Winner #Friends #Friend #WinItWednesday

A post shared by Trunki (@trunkitravels) on Feb 6, 2019 at 1:01am PST

Another way to show your appreciation of your customers is through a client of the month post or regular case studies. This type of content helps emphasize your customers’ achievements while also demonstrating how your product contributed.

6. Make the most of feedback

With a little luck, listening to customers on social will generate more positive comments than negative ones. However, there’s always a chance that you’ll come across someone that’s unhappy with your business. Rather than trying to sweep these negative issues under the rug, appreciate them for what they are. They’re great for building customer relationships on social media.

Our previous study into call-out culture shows that 70% of customers go to social media to raise awareness of an issue. Your audiences want you to know what’s going wrong with your company, products or servies so that you can fix it.

Respond quickly to these pain points that your customers have, and you could transform even the most unhappy customers into brand advocates. All it takes is one great experience to remind your consumers of what they love about your brand.

Just remember to use the right tools to monitor mentions of your brand even from users who aren’t directly tagging or @mentioning you.

7. Delight customers with something unexpected

Have you ever received a surprise gift from a friend or loved one? Maybe your spouse brought you some flowers after a tough day at work. These little gestures make a world of difference to our relationships. It’s the same with businesses.

When you’re building connections on social media, always look for ways to go the extra mile. Treat your followers on your most active social platform, by giving them access to exclusive discounts, promotions or events. Everyone loves a deal, and they’ll appreciate it even more if they feel like it’s an exclusive.

Sometimes, going the extra mile means offering additional support before your follower even asks for it. For instance, Samsung Mobile US posts helpful guides on their Twitter page to get ahead of frequently asked questions and provide their audience with helpful resources:

Does your Galaxy’s layout look different? This 👇 should help.https://t.co/p1ulnOsONR

— Samsung Mobile US (@SamsungMobileUS) February 5, 2019

Remember, going above and beyond for your customers takes more effort in the short-term. However, in the long-term, you’ll benefit from happier customers and a stronger brand. A PWC study shows that companies offering great experiences have a 16% premium on services and products.

8. Embrace user generated content

Finally, when it comes to building customer relationships, there are few things more important than respect. If you want your consumers to be loyal to you, then you need them to see that you value their opinion. Perhaps the easiest way to do this is with user-generated content (UGC). User-generated content tells your followers that you take their views and ideas into account when building your brand.

It’s also a great way to build your social proof and generate sales. According to Photoslurp, user-generated photos are 5 times more likely to convert customers.

Starbucks is an excellent example of a brand that frequently re-shares and regrams content from followers.

View this post on Instagram

Mittens: a sure sign of hot chocolate season. ❄☕ Regram: @pas.si.belle

A post shared by Starbucks Coffee ☕ (@starbucks) on Jan 16, 2019 at 10:50am PST

Perhaps the best way to use UGC is to ask your customers for ideas on what your business should do next. This simultaneously delivers inspiration for your team and gives you an insight into what people want from your company. What’s more, when you bring your followers’ ideas to life, they’ll feel more invested in them, because they played a part.

Just remember that if you do repost any content or use any ideas, you’ll need to give credit where it’s due.

Start building customer relationships

According to Wunderman, 79% of customers say that they want brands to show that they “understand and care” about them before they buy anything.

Social media is the perfect place to start building connections with your customers. It’s an environment that’s naturally intimate, where we celebrate the need to share.

How do you use social media to forge connections with your customers? Let us know in the comments!

  This post 8 tips to build customer relationships with social media originally appeared on Sprout Social.

from http://bit.ly/2IDk0YI

[romancatholicreflections]

18th June >> Fr. Martin’s Gospel Reflections / Homilies on Matthew 5:38-42 for Monday, Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time: ‘Offer the wicked man no resistance’. Monday, Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time Gospel (Europe, Africa, New Zealand, Australia & Canada) Matthew 5:38-42 Offer the wicked man no resistance Jesus said to his disciples: ‘You have learnt how it was said: Eye for eye and tooth for tooth. But I say this to you: offer the wicked man no resistance. On the contrary, if anyone hits you on the right cheek, offer him the other as well; if a man takes you to law and would have your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. And if anyone orders you to go one mile, go two miles with him. Give to anyone who asks, and if anyone wants to borrow, do not turn away.’ Gospel (USA) Matthew 5:38-42 But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil. Jesus said to his disciples: “You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil. When someone strikes you on your right cheek, turn the other one to him as well. If anyone wants to go to law with you over your tunic, hand him your cloak as well. Should anyone press you into service for one mile, go with him for two miles. Give to the one who asks of you, and do not turn your back on one who wants to borrow.” Reflections (5) (i) Monday, Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time The principle of an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth which Jesus quotes from the Jewish Scriptures was meant at the time to put a restraint on the desire for revenge. There was only to be one eye for one eye not 100 eyes for one eye. In relatively recent times, some waring nations adopting the principle of taking ten or more times the number of lives for lives that were taken. It has always been a tendency of war time to behave in this way. In that context, an eye for an eye could be understood as an enlightened policy. Revenge was to be proportionate. However, as in so much else in the Jewish Scriptures, Jesus goes beyond even this relatively enlightened principle. There is to be no place for revenge or retaliation within the community of his followers. ‘Offer the wicked man no resistance’. In other words, evil is not to be met with evil, not even with proportionate evil. Rather evil is to be met with goodness and generosity. Saint Paul in his letter to the Romans expressed this teaching of Jesus very succinctly, ‘do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good’. It is a hugely challenging teaching. Our human instinct is often to fight fire with fire, wrong with wrong, violence with violence, rejection with rejection, insult with insult. It is the human instinct but it is clearly not the divine instinct. We can only operate out of the divine instinct of overcoming evil with good, with divine help, with the help of the Holy Spirit. We do occasionally witness within human relations evil being overcome by good. When that happens, we can be certain that there the Holy Spirit is at work. And/Or (ii) Monday, Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time There is a very strong contrast between this morning’s first reading and gospel reading. In the first reading, the queen of Israel, who was a pagan, arranged for one of her hard working and decent subjects to be killed so that her husband could take possession of his land. Here was a glaring example of the irresponsible misuse of power. She responded to goodness with evil. In the gospel reading Jesus calls on his disciples not to repay evil with evil, with to respond to evil with goodness. St Paul says something similar in his letter to the Romans, ‘Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good’. The worst instinct in human nature is to overcome good with evil, which is what we find Jezebel doing in the first reading. The best instinct of human nature is to overcome evil with good. This in fact could be termed the divine instinct, God’s instinct. It was the way of Jesus. He lived and died to overcome evil with good. It is not easy to remain good in the face of evil, to be loving in the face of hatred, to be faithful in the face of unfaithfulness, to remain just in the face of injustice done to us, to be peacemakers in the face of violence done to us. We cannot live in this way drawing on our own strength and resources alone. We need God’s strength, God’s resources, God’s Spirit, because such a way of life is the fruit of God’s Spirit at work within us. And/Or (iii) Monday, Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time In the gospel reading Jesus calls on his disciples not to repay evil with evil, but to respond to evil with goodness. St Paul says something similar in his letter to the Romans, ‘Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good’. The worst instinct in human nature is to respond to human goodness in an evil way; the crucifixion of Jesus was an example of that instinct. The best instinct of human nature is to overcome evil with good. This in fact could be termed the divine instinct, God’s instinct. It was the way of Jesus. He overcame the evil that was done to him with good. In the very moment when he was being violently rejected he revealed his love most fully. He lived and died to overcome evil with good. It is not easy to remain good in the face of evil, to remain loving in the face of hostility, to be faithful in the face of unfaithfulness, to be peacemakers in the face of violence done to us. We cannot live in this way drawing on our own strength and resources alone. We need God’s strength, God’s resources, God’s Spirit, because such a way of life is the fruit of God’s Spirit at work within us. In the first reading this morning Paul calls on us ‘not to neglect the grace of God you have received’. God is always gracing us and if we rely on his grace we will be able to keep giving expression to that divine instinct of overcoming evil with good. And/Or (iv) Monday, Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time We are all aware that there is great evil in the world. We only have to listen to or look at the news in the evening to be reminded of the terrible evil that can be inflicted on people. A person goes into a peaceful setting where people are engaged in ordinary social activities and shoots at random and takes a human life. Someone’s life is changed forever by the evil and irresponsible actions of others. Jesus was very aware of this darker side of human nature; he came to see that he would suffer the ultimate loss of his own life because of it. In this morning’s gospel reason he makes reference to the wicked person who seeks to do people harm; he mentions the greedy person who would take someone to court to get their tunic. His real concern is how his followers would react to such experiences when it affects them. Jesus’ call to his disciples in this morning’s gospel reading is summed up in the call that Paul makes in his letter to the church in Rome, ‘Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good’. Jesus declares that we are not to meet wickedness with wickedness, evil with evil, but rather with generosity of heart and spirit. So, if a Roman soldier unfairly orders a disciple to carry his rucksack for one mile, the disciple is to carry it for two miles. This attitude that Jesus is promoting goes against all human reasoning; it is not the way the world operates. Yet, it is the way of Jesus and he calls on us to make it our way too. We cannot possibly live this way in our own strength alone. We need the Lord’s strength, the strength of the Holy Spirit, which the Lord gives to those who ask for it. And/Or (v) Monday, Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time The first reading provides us with a disturbing instance of the corrupt use of power. The wife of the king of Israel, Jezebel, had an innocent man, Naboth, killed so that her husband the king could have Naboth’s vineyard. Deadly violence was inflicted on someone by the powerful in the land for purely selfish gain. The story of Naboth’s vineyard happens in every generation and in every culture. It is a reminder of how power is often used scrupulously to benefit the powerful. The author of the first book of Kings in which we find this story was very clear that the crime of Ahab and Jezebel was a crime not just against Naboth but against God. Immediately after this crime God sent the prophet Elijah to Naboth to warn him of the consequences of his crime. In any situation of injustice, such as the one we have just read about, God is always on the side of those who suffer the injustice. Injustice done to others is done to God and those responsible for the injustice will be held accountable by God. In the gospel reading Jesus addresses a situation where his own disciples will suffer injustice. They too will be the victims of self-serving violence; they too will have to come to terms with what the gospel reading calls ‘the wicked man’. Jesus declares that when they find themselves the victim of unjust violence they are not to retaliate in kind; they are not to meet evil with evil. The practice of eye for eye and tooth for tooth no longer applies within the realm of the kingdom of God present through Jesus. Instead, the disciples are to remain generous and self-giving even when confronted with evil in its various forms. This is the way of Jesus which he would display in the hour of his passion and death and which we are all called to follow. Fr. Martin Hogan, Saint John the Baptist Parish, Clontarf, Dublin, D03 AO62, Ireland. Email: sjtbclontarf@eircom.net or frmartinhogan@gmail.com Parish Website: www.stjohnsclontarf.ie Please join us via our webcam. Twitter: @SJtBClontarfRC. Facebook: St John the Baptist RC Parish, Clontarf. Tumblr: Saint John the Baptist Parish, Clontarf, Dublin.

[frmartinshomiliesandreflections]

18th June >> Fr. Martin's Gospel Reflections / Homilies on Matthew 5:38-42 for Monday, Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time: ‘Offer the wicked man no resistance’.

Monday, Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time

Gospel (Europe, Africa, New Zealand, Australia & Canada)

Matthew 5:38-42

Offer the wicked man no resistance

Jesus said to his disciples: ‘You have learnt how it was said: Eye for eye and tooth for tooth. But I say this to you: offer the wicked man no resistance. On the contrary, if anyone hits you on the right cheek, offer him the other as well; if a man takes you to law and would have your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. And if anyone orders you to go one mile, go two miles with him. Give to anyone who asks, and if anyone wants to borrow, do not turn away.’

Gospel (USA)

Matthew 5:38-42

But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil.

Jesus said to his disciples: “You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I say to you, offer no resistance to one who is evil. When someone strikes you on your right cheek, turn the other one to him as well. If anyone wants to go to law with you over your tunic, hand him your cloak as well. Should anyone press you into service for one mile, go with him for two miles. Give to the one who asks of you, and do not turn your back on one who wants to borrow.”

Reflections (5)

(i) Monday, Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time

The principle of an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth which Jesus quotes from the Jewish Scriptures was meant at the time to put a restraint on the desire for revenge. There was only to be one eye for one eye not 100 eyes for one eye. In relatively recent times, some waring nations adopting the principle of taking ten or more times the number of lives for lives that were taken. It has always been a tendency of war time to behave in this way. In that context, an eye for an eye could be understood as an enlightened policy. Revenge was to be proportionate. However, as in so much else in the Jewish Scriptures, Jesus goes beyond even this relatively enlightened principle. There is to be no place for revenge or retaliation within the community of his followers. ‘Offer the wicked man no resistance’. In other words, evil is not to be met with evil, not even with proportionate evil. Rather evil is to be met with goodness and generosity. Saint Paul in his letter to the Romans expressed this teaching of Jesus very succinctly, ‘do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good’. It is a hugely challenging teaching. Our human instinct is often to fight fire with fire, wrong with wrong, violence with violence, rejection with rejection, insult with insult. It is the human instinct but it is clearly not the divine instinct. We can only operate out of the divine instinct of overcoming evil with good, with divine help, with the help of the Holy Spirit. We do occasionally witness within human relations evil being overcome by good. When that happens, we can be certain that there the Holy Spirit is at work.

And/Or

(ii) Monday, Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time

There is a very strong contrast between this morning’s first reading and gospel reading. In the first reading, the queen of Israel, who was a pagan, arranged for one of her hard working and decent subjects to be killed so that her husband could take possession of his land. Here was a glaring example of the irresponsible misuse of power. She responded to goodness with evil. In the gospel reading Jesus calls on his disciples not to repay evil with evil, with to respond to evil with goodness. St Paul says something similar in his letter to the Romans, ‘Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good’. The worst instinct in human nature is to overcome good with evil, which is what we find Jezebel doing in the first reading. The best instinct of human nature is to overcome evil with good. This in fact could be termed the divine instinct, God’s instinct. It was the way of Jesus. He lived and died to overcome evil with good. It is not easy to remain good in the face of evil, to be loving in the face of hatred, to be faithful in the face of unfaithfulness, to remain just in the face of injustice done to us, to be peacemakers in the face of violence done to us. We cannot live in this way drawing on our own strength and resources alone. We need God’s strength, God’s resources, God’s Spirit, because such a way of life is the fruit of God’s Spirit at work within us.

And/Or

(iii) Monday, Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time

In the gospel reading Jesus calls on his disciples not to repay evil with evil, but to respond to evil with goodness. St Paul says something similar in his letter to the Romans, ‘Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good’. The worst instinct in human nature is to respond to human goodness in an evil way; the crucifixion of Jesus was an example of that instinct. The best instinct of human nature is to overcome evil with good. This in fact could be termed the divine instinct, God’s instinct. It was the way of Jesus. He overcame the evil that was done to him with good. In the very moment when he was being violently rejected he revealed his love most fully. He lived and died to overcome evil with good. It is not easy to remain good in the face of evil, to remain loving in the face of hostility, to be faithful in the face of unfaithfulness, to be peacemakers in the face of violence done to us. We cannot live in this way drawing on our own strength and resources alone. We need God’s strength, God’s resources, God’s Spirit, because such a way of life is the fruit of God’s Spirit at work within us. In the first reading this morning Paul calls on us ‘not to neglect the grace of God you have received’. God is always gracing us and if we rely on his grace we will be able to keep giving expression to that divine instinct of overcoming evil with good.

And/Or

(iv) Monday, Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time

We are all aware that there is great evil in the world. We only have to listen to or look at the news in the evening to be reminded of the terrible evil that can be inflicted on people. A person goes into a peaceful setting where people are engaged in ordinary social activities and shoots at random and takes a human life. Someone’s life is changed forever by the evil and irresponsible actions of others. Jesus was very aware of this darker side of human nature; he came to see that he would suffer the ultimate loss of his own life because of it. In this morning’s gospel reason he makes reference to the wicked person who seeks to do people harm; he mentions the greedy person who would take someone to court to get their tunic. His real concern is how his followers would react to such experiences when it affects them. Jesus’ call to his disciples in this morning’s gospel reading is summed up in the call that Paul makes in his letter to the church in Rome, ‘Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good’. Jesus declares that we are not to meet wickedness with wickedness, evil with evil, but rather with generosity of heart and spirit. So, if a Roman soldier unfairly orders a disciple to carry his rucksack for one mile, the disciple is to carry it for two miles. This attitude that Jesus is promoting goes against all human reasoning; it is not the way the world operates. Yet, it is the way of Jesus and he calls on us to make it our way too. We cannot possibly live this way in our own strength alone. We need the Lord’s strength, the strength of the Holy Spirit, which the Lord gives to those who ask for it.

And/Or

(v) Monday, Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time

The first reading provides us with a disturbing instance of the corrupt use of power. The wife of the king of Israel, Jezebel, had an innocent man, Naboth, killed so that her husband the king could have Naboth’s vineyard. Deadly violence was inflicted on someone by the powerful in the land for purely selfish gain. The story of Naboth’s vineyard happens in every generation and in every culture. It is a reminder of how power is often used scrupulously to benefit the powerful. The author of the first book of Kings in which we find this story was very clear that the crime of Ahab and Jezebel was a crime not just against Naboth but against God. Immediately after this crime God sent the prophet Elijah to Naboth to warn him of the consequences of his crime. In any situation of injustice, such as the one we have just read about, God is always on the side of those who suffer the injustice. Injustice done to others is done to God and those responsible for the injustice will be held accountable by God. In the gospel reading Jesus addresses a situation where his own disciples will suffer injustice. They too will be the victims of self-serving violence; they too will have to come to terms with what the gospel reading calls ‘the wicked man’. Jesus declares that when they find themselves the victim of unjust violence they are not to retaliate in kind; they are not to meet evil with evil. The practice of eye for eye and tooth for tooth no longer applies within the realm of the kingdom of God present through Jesus. Instead, the disciples are to remain generous and self-giving even when confronted with evil in its various forms. This is the way of Jesus which he would display in the hour of his passion and death and which we are all called to follow.

Fr. Martin Hogan, Saint John the Baptist Parish, Clontarf, Dublin, D03 AO62, Ireland.

Email: sjtbclontarf@eircom.net or  frmartinhogan@gmail.com

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