#i want to write but i can't bear to write more than 500 words now

[alastorssimpforever]

Writing is still kicking my ass.

ANYWAYS WIP WEDNESDAY BECAUSE I CAN

“She’s bad for you, Charlie.”

A long finger dragged through the ashes. The walls crumble away into nothingness around her. The flames licked away at what little memories were etched into the wood, the floor, the place she had once called home. The sky was stricken with blood, the blood of the old and the new. A low moon hung in the smoldering night, grazing the bits of her world with a gentle, delicate hand. 

Something seized inside her, wretching her heart into the deepest part of the earth. Long black nails dug into the earth veiled with gray. It slipped through her fingers just as easily.

“You were right…” she whispered to the walls. 

She had always been right. And…she was too blind to see it. Too whipped up in a whirlwind of charm to notice she was being dragged under. Her knees were stinging. She had been too late. A minute too late. A million years too late it seemed.

It’s over. 

“Fuck you,” she spat onto the ground. Onto her burning world. Her hands pressed into the ground and she stood up. Shouting, screaming into the void of her home, “FUCK YOU! FUCK YOU!” And even those words weren’t enough to quell the anger. Did she dread the reply or the silence that would follow?

Were they all dead? Her nails dug into her hair. Angel, Husk, Niffty, Alastor…Va—NO. They couldn’t be. They could never be. She had been gone for an hour. Only an hour. An hour far too long.

[glitterquadricorn]

Another Leclerc - social media

+ summary: When rumors go around about another Leclerc joining the f1 grid, people automatically assume its Arthur, completely forgetting about y/n leclerc. She'll do anything for a formula one seat. Even if it meant going behind a certain driver's back. +pairing: none. + warning(s): sexism, google translate (I don't speak Italian nor French but if I have something wrong, let me know), like one curse word.

face claim: Lindsay brewer

+ author's note: for a while now I've been wanting to get back into writing, but writing fics stress me out, so I figured making social media/instgram posts will be a lot easier to put together. I've also decided to change how I do social media posts and I'm trying to figure things out, so in the meantime, bear with me.

itsy/nleclerc

liked by charlesleclerc, scuderiaferrari, and 20,102 others

itsy/nleclerc: *insert Sebastian Vettel quote here*

view all comments

charles_leclerc: isn't that my jacket? ⤷itsynleclerc: If I said no would you believe me? ⤷charles_leclerc: give me back my jacket or I'll tell mom ⤷itsy/nleclerc: go ahead and tell mom, you snitch

user1: Charles and y/n is exactly how my sister, and I are whenever she burrows my clothes.

patriciooward: when are you going to let me drive your Ferrari?⤷itsy/nleclerc: never. ⤷josefnewgarden: she won't even let me drive it and I'm her teammate! ⤷12willpower: she's let me drive it ⤷patriciooward: Y/N! I THOUGHT YOU LOVED ME!! ⤷itsy/nleclerc: other than my beloved Ferrari, I only love my bed and my mom I'm sorry!

user2: this made me feel ✨poor✨

scuderiaferrari: you have great taste, miss leclerc ⤷itsy/nleclerc: thank you! :)

user3: you look real good in red liked by itsy/nleclerc

user4: I so badly want her to race for Ferrari with Charles! liked by itsy/nleclerc

arthur_leclerc: is there something you want to share with the class?⤷itsy/nleclerc: nope 🤐

user5: y/n clearly knows something we don't ⤷user6: you don't think she's the leclerc deuxmoi is talking about, right? ⤷user5: I hope not because Arthur honestly deserves that f1 seat more than her.

ScuderiaFerrari:

liked by itsy/nleclerc, charles_leclerc, f1 and 3,689,758 others.

scuderiaferrari: two-time indy 500 winner & one-time indycar champion and the first woman to be in formula one since Lella Lombardi, y/n leclerc joins Ferrari in 2026!

view all comments

itsy/nleclerc: this has always been a childhood dream of mine to race for Ferrari! grazie per questa sorprendente opportunità! (thank you for this amazing opportunity) liked by scuderiaferarri

carlossainz55: you can't be serious

charles_leclerc: papa and jules would be proud ⤷itsy/n_leclerc: I know 😭😭

pierregasly: Congrats little leclerc! ⤷itsy/nleclerc: thank you, mon fr��re (my brother)

josefnewgarden: I'll miss having you around ⤷itsy/nleclerc: you and misses are always welcome to come to Monaco ⤷josefnewgarden: we might just take you up on that offer

lewishamilton: hopefully this is a step in the right direction in making the paddock more inclusive and welcoming for everyone! liked by itsy/nleclerc

user1: y/n doesn't belong in formula one. ⤷user2: and the fact that she's replacing someone that didn't need to be replaced is astounding! ⤷user3: the pressure will be too much for her and she'll fail like past women who've tried to make it in f1 ⤷user4: I predict she won't make it to summer break before she quits ⤷user5: why is it so hard for you to comprehend a woman being in formula one? I mean, if you hate women, just say so.

user6: my daughter has expressed interest in karting because of y/n

12willpower: I wish you nothing but the best, kid. ⤷itsy/nleclerc: thanks, old man! 😘

user7: y/n signing to Ferrari is great and all, but I'm over here asking myself what tf is in the water in monaco because it should be illegal to be this good looking! ⤷user8: you're out here asking the real questions ⤷user9: all I'm saying is God bless mama Leclerc

Chili man🌶️ How could do this to me? I thought we were friends.

Mini Leclerc What do you mean?

Chili man🌶️ Don't play dumb, y/n. You know exactly what you did.

Mini Leclerc Yes, I did sign with Ferrari. Yes, I did take your seat. You didn't sign an extension and they reached out to me. I saw an opportunity and I took it.

Chili man🌶️ I was getting ready to talk to Fred about an extension.

Mini Leclerc Early bird gets the worm?

Chili Man🌶️ You're a real bitch, you know that?

Mini Leclerc You think that's the first time a man, much less anyone has called me that? You know as much as I do that Formula one is a competitive sport and in order to get a seat, you may have to do some unspeakable things. Let me ask you a question, though. If the roles were reversed and you were me, would you have done the same thing?

*read*

Mini Leclerc you leaving me on read lets me know you would've. But I'll never apologize for my actions, Carlos. If you have any interest in IndyCar, I can give you some resources to help you out. Good luck in any of your future endeavors, Carlos.

---

thank you to @lorarri and @majaverse for helping me out. they didn't have to do that, but they did, so this is dedicated to them! :)

tagging list:

@letsgetfuckingsuperwholocked @patzammit @yagirlmexic @tinycyberhacker @keenmarvellover @mrspeacem1nusone @lendeluxe @alexxavicry

if your name is crossed out, I couldn't tag you.

I'm going clean out my tagging list again, so if you want to stay on it, let me know.

[masterjedilenawrites]

I'm just going to make it a tradition to write about tender loving spicy Crosshair on my birthday each year 😊

Crosshair x fem!reader | 500 words

Content: just a short drabble where Crosshair acts suggestively while you make a cake

You slowly twisted the cake stand in front of you, careful to keep your other hand steady as the knife glided along the frosting. What had started out as a simple birthday cake had now turned into an ostentatious mess... multiple layers askew, clashing colors of frosting, sprinkles galore... You were having a blast.

Now you were focused on the finishing touches. With your frosting designs all set, you then reached over for the box of candles. No sooner had you placed the first on top, however, did two mischevious hands start to snake around your middle.

"Cross," you warned as he pressed himself up against your back and held you close. You weren't sure what kind of mood he was in, but you highly doubted it was a helpful one.

"Looking good," Crosshair mumbled before wiggling his nose into your neck.

You couldn't help but squeeze your shoulders in response to the feathery tingles it sent across your skin. You paused to refocus yourself and then placed the next candle into the cake.

"It'll taste better than it looks."

"I sure hope so," he hummed, bringing his mouth up to the shell of your ear. You felt yourself immediately flush from head to toe.

"You weren't talking about the cake were you," you forced out a laugh and continued to place more candles. Gods, there sure were a lot this year.

Crosshair unburied himself from your neck and rested his head gently against the side of yours. "Oh, yeah, that looks good too."

You only had one candle left. You held it up toward him. "Care to do the honors?"

He plucked it out of your fingers and gently stuck it right in the center. And then swiped at some frosting as he withdrew his hand. You didn't have time to react, though, as he deposited some of it onto your nose before licking the rest away.

"Cross!" you finally gasped. You turned in his hold to find an amused glint in his eyes. His whole face seemed so light and carefree. You loved to see this side of him. Even if it was at the expense of your cake.

He leaned in to kiss the frosting off your nose, causing you to giggle and scrunch up your face in protest. His lips then found yours and you allowed yourself to taste the sweetness on them for a slow, blissful moment.

"Happy Birthday, sweetheart," he pulled away with a smile. But the fondness in it quickly shifted back into mischief. "Can't wait to eat."

You wanted to roll your eyes but found you couldn't. Even after being spoiled for most of the day already, you were eager to continue being dotted on. It was your birthday after all. You were allowed to be a little greedy.

"Not until I open my presents first," you flashed a playful smile of your own, accentuating your meaning by rubbing your hands along his chest.

Crosshair crouched just enough to get his hands under your thighs and hoisted you up onto his waist. "We have a lot to do then. Let's not waste any time, birthday girl."

Every Character Tag: @dangerousstrawberrypie, @justanothersadperson93, @arctrooper69, @sleepycreativewriter, @techie-bear, @theroguesully, @cw80831

Bad Batch Tag: @kaijusplotch, @rebel-finn, @lucyysthings, @marvel-starwars-nerd, @nekotaetae, @severalseashellsbytheseashore, @lackofhonor, @flowered-bicycles, @foodmoneyandcats, @nahoney22, @dangraccoon, @mishakoon

✨Join A Tag List Here!✨

🍾 One Shots Master List | 🌙 Master List of Master Lists

[gunshou]

(it's not 500 words but I'd very much love to have a dvd-esque commentary <3)

And afterward, Rumlow would disassemble his weapon, wipe him down carefully and perform any necessary maintenance before returning him to storage, unlike the last time when Skelton had the Soldier shoved back into cryo still full of come that froze and ruptured his rectum, a bloody frothy mess the technicians discovered upon thawing later. Brock Rumlow knew how to properly care for his weapons, how to clean and oil his guns and keep his knives sharp, and maintaining the Winter Soldier would be no different. 

Rumlow was only a junior member of the team, however. Assigned to babysit and explain to the Solider how to act like a fucking human being instead of a death machine. He’d have to pay his dues for a while before he got his chance.

The asset nodded at him now, seeming to understand the implied command to hold off on dropping into his role until he was placed downstairs at the party. Again, Rumlow frowned. 

“You know, I don’t think you’re stupid at all,” he said very softly, “even if your brain’s been fried to hell and back. I think you know exactly what you’re doing most of the time. Don’t you?”

The Winter Soldier narrowed those disconcertingly bright eyes, listening to the thin thread of danger mixed with admiration in Rumlow’s voice. Assessing it for threat.

“Yeah,” Rumlow continued in that same quiet, soothing tone. “Don’t worry.” He smiled in what he hoped was a reassuring manner, because he really didn’t want his neck snapped today. “I’ll keep your secret.” Murderbot wouldn’t remember the threat Rumlow posed for longer than a couple of days anyway; once he got strapped in the chair everything would disappear for him in a blaze of electricity.

“Hey,” Skelton called, “you two done making out over there? Time to roll.” 

Rumlow raised an eyebrow and asked, “We good?” 

Yay, thank you for the ask!

To start, I swear I didn't abandon this fic. My depression has had the better of me for awhile and I've been in a creative slump. But I do have at least another few chapters planned for this fic.

I love a hyper competent Winter Soldier, but anything that isn't muscle memory is going to have to be retrained each time he gets wiped, as well as new technologies as the decades pass. He picks up on things fast -- the memories are in there, but he can't access them -- but he has to be explicitly coached to bring them out. And of course, pulling on some memory threads runs the risk of unraveling the whole thing, so it's a delicate job. The agent tasked with it has to be proven reliable, but low enough on the ladder to be expendable in case the Soldier snaps. Rumlow, recently recruited into STRIKE, fits the bill.

The idea of TWS as a weapon, particularly Rumlow's weapon like The Gun, comes to me from SubverbalDreams and itallstartedwithdefenestration. They have a way of writing Winterbones that's codependant and wonderfully warped, and I really wanted to explore that vibe more.

I think it's easy for HYDRA to characterize TWS as stupid and obstinate: he's not chatty, shows no clear personality, and fresh out of cryo or the Chair he's a dazed and barely responsive wreck. But in the field, he's fucking terrifying. He kills precisely and relentlessly, and he does. Not. Stop. until the mission ends. His squad is trained to support him, but also to keep their guns trained on him, like he's a barely tamed bear they've collared and make dance in a circus. So they dehumanize him further and mock him to alleviate their terror of him. That shows up in the repeated rapes and in this case, a deliberate breach of storage protocol that caused just enough damage to agonize the Soldier on thawing without hopelessly compromising his ability to complete his mission.

Rumlow sees that shit as petty, and it irritates him. TWS is this perfectly crafted deadly weapon, one of a kind (as far as they know), and these dipshits scratch the paint and bust up the engine just to prove they can in some sort of pissing contest. And for what? It's not like the Soldier will react or retaliate: he can't.

Except Rumlow's not stupid. Rumlow is fascinated by the Soldier and has studied everything he can get access to on the man. And Rumlow has noticed that handlers who repeatedly abuse the Soldier tend to have a higher than normal chance of ending up dead. It's nothing obvious, and no evidence can be traced back to the Soldier even circumstancially, but still. The statistics paint a frightening picture there.

Except Rumlow isn't frightened; he's gleeful he figured it out and impressed that the Soldier is even more capable and crafty than HYDRA suspects... and completely, thoroughly responsive to his handler's will. That's a lot of power for one person to hold. Here's this devastating force of death held on the thinnest of leashes, and god, does Rumlow want to be the one holding that leash.

What could he accomplish for HYDRA's world order if he had total control over the Fist? What would it feel like to know the most dangerous assassin on Earth would follow his orders and protect him with his life?

All Rumlow needs to do is earn the Soldier's trust and he'll have TWS eating out of his hand. And earning his trust begins with a calculated risk: saying he suspects and respects the Soldier's intelligence, and then keeping that between them. The Soldier won't explicitly remember the conversation, but some part of him will recognize Rumlow next time they meet.

And when Rumlow has the Soldier's complete trust, when the Weapon fits perfectly to Rumlow's hand, his place in HYDRA will be secured.

[alparlaboratories]

To Another Abyss - Chapter 3: Along the way

(Chapters -which are usually between 500-1000 words- will be posted daily here first on Tumblr, and will later be posted in 7-8 chapter batches on AO3.)

-

Kanto has changed a lot in the past ten years. The League is no more, and trainers are now only tools for the rich and powerful, either mercenaries or dogs of the government.

Sabrina is the latter. She is to play the role of Gym leader in a sick, twisted mockery of the art she once admired, bearing the name of her childhood idol, a woman who is now wanted across the region. All for the entertainment of Kanto's shadowy new rulers.

It's a role she doesn't mind playing. At least until an unusual challenger comes into her Gym, into the life she's worked so hard to build, and begins to unravel it all.

-

Chapter 3: Along the way:

The door to Sabrina's room swung open violently. And there under the sill stood none other than Azure, sporting a sickening grin from ear to ear. The girl looked up from her book –a leather volume so old it was practically disintegrating– and her eyes narrowed with pure spite.

"Well?" Azure asked excitedly. "How'd it go, how'd it go?"

It'd been almost a week since that first battle. Multiple band-aids peppered the girl's face, a splint covered her left arm and –as Azure noticed when she rose to her feet– she had a limp as well.

"How the fuck do you think it went!?" she bellowed, clutching at the collar of his suit. "Of course I lost! What did you want me to do with a Pokemon that can't even attack? There were easier ways to kill me if that's what you wanted you cretin!"

Azure stared at her, his smile frozen in place.

"…But you didn't die," he whispered.

"What?"

"Nothing, nothing!" Azure hummed, freeing himself from her grasp. "Anyway, it looks like you finally made this place your own, huh?"

In truth, the room looked just as dingy and dilapidated as before. Clearly, Sabrina had only cleaned up as necessary and hadn't touched anything otherwise, with the exception of the small mountain of books around the couch and the many vinyl records scattered everywhere.

"Oh, I just remembered. There's some… business I need to take care of, so I probably won't be back for a few weeks," said the man. "But before that… here you go."

Sabrina instinctively opened her palm as the man deposited something on it, small and metallic. The Marsh badge. It was almost identical to the one given by the original Sabrina, only the golden circle was inserted into a black triangle.

"I'd say you've earned it, wouldn't you?" smiled Azure. "And now… I must bid you adieu."

"W-wait!"

But Azure had already walked out of the room by the the time Sabrina came back to herself. She could do little but stand there, staring blankly ahead.

"What… what the hell!?"

Had he really sent her to die with a smile on his face, or would he have stopped her opponent before it came to that? It was impossible to tell. She couldn't read him at all, which meant for now she couldn't trust him as far as she could throw him.

Azure… just what–?

But before she could finish the thought, the door opened once again. This time, it was that man with salt and pepper hair; one of the Gym's caretakers, she'd figured.

"Ah… there you are," he grumbled. "Master Azure said–"

"I know," Sabrina cut him off. "He'll be skipping town for a while."

"No, not that. He forgot to give this to you."

"Huh?"

The man gave her a folded-up piece of paper and left without another word. Sabrina opened and blinked down at the fancy writing. Azure's, no doubt.

'Dear Sabrina,

How are you? Have you been sleeping well? I sure hope so!

Like I said, I'll be absent for a while, so I wanted to inform you of a few things, just to avoid confusion.

First of all, the maintenance crew–'

Sabrina scoffed; as if there were such a thing in this shithole.

'–accidentally misplaced all the Pokeball boxes with the exception of the red one, so you'll have to make do with freshly-caught Pokemon until my return. Ah, how careless these brutes can be! I can't imagine who would've given them such an order. Oh, by the way, there's a good possibility the police will pass by for a routine raid today or tomorrow, or at least that's what people in the streets say. Still, I'm sure you'll be able to handle it without trouble.

Love: Azure ♥'

By the time she made it to the end, she'd practically crushed the note between her fingers, face red and shoulders shaking with fury.

"That… that son of a bitch…!"

An overwhelming desire to punch the wall washed over her, but after a few long, slow-breathing seconds, that fury was transformed into something more. A sudden determination flared up inside her.

"…Alright," she muttered. "It's alright. So that's how you wanna play, eh? That's fine by me. You can take away my Pokemon, you can throw me at every police officer and smelly punk in the city, it doesn't matter. I won't give you the satisfaction of seeing me fall. No matter how dirty you play, I'll play ten times as dirty! This is my Gym now, so give me your best shot you bastard!"

And that's how the weeks passed. The girl not only wore the title of Gym leader like a glove; she made a profession out of surviving, and an art out of playing dirty.

Little by little as the victories piled up, the rumors spread and both the girl's infamy and her number of challengers grew, bringing with them more and more spectators. The lowest and the highest in Saffron. All of them vile and corrupt, all of them coming to her Gym with the hope of seeing a violent, bloody spectacle.

And that is exactly what they were given, time and time again.

Without even realizing it, without it even bothering her, the girl's day to day became an endless parade of battles to the death.

[rolesplayed]

|| quick overview; HotD, Dead Dove, Toxic Yaoi, NSFWE

🌈|| WELCOME! 💋✨

26 | He/Them | CST/GMT-6 | MDNI | 21+

This is my first time here so please bear with me. 

I'm looking for a roleplayer to play canon male characters with me in a CCxCC MxM ship! I wanna make em makeout! (Info and Fandoms below!)

⚠️|| content warning; 

•explicit topics

•noncon ships

•incest ships

📰|| about me

I have been roleplaying for well over a decade now! I enjoy writing romance, usually paired with darker themes and topics! Frankly put, I really love toxic ships! 

I'm partial to "typical" relationships as well, but there's just something about enemies or even just two people who really shouldn't be smooching that I can't get enough of.

I'm definitely a porn with plot type as well, so if you don't like occasional sex scenes then you probably won't like me. ^^' I love AUs, but I'm afraid I'm a bit basic with my tastes. Omegaverse and modern are always my faves!

| my stats;

•multi-paragraph, advanced literate to novella style

•third person, past tense, sometimes present ngl

•~500-1500 words per post, depending on context.

•I usually try to reply at least once every 24 hours!

 •I can roleplay on here, Reddit, or Discord! 

•willing to double in fandoms I'm familiar with, but I'd prefer to stick to canon characters and MLM ships!

| my expectations;

• be 21+, please and thank you. 

• fandom based, MxM, CCxCC roleplay! 

• just be literate and multi-paragraph! 

• you don't have to write as much as me!

• if you do write more than me, I'll try to keep up. 

• a DMs based roleplay as I'm not super interested in the making a whole character blog and roleplaying in public posts thing.

📖|| fandoms

+ ships!

I am open to playing literally any of the characters mentioned below, I usually don't have a huge preference either way.

I'm only really looking for roleplay in one fandom atm lmao sorry Listed are the ships I'm looking for!

| House of the Dragon

Aegon or Aemond Targaryen x Criston Cole

In which Criston somehow ends up bedding another royal family member. Oops, he did it again, or whatever.

Aegon Targaryen x Larys Strong

Probably the most wholesome option, and they can never make me hate Larys. I have a big soft spot for this ship, I think they're cute.

Aegon Targaryen x Jacaerys Velaryon

Cousins to Enemies to Lovers, huzzah!

Aemond Targaryen x Lucerys Velaryon

I love when one half of the ship wants to fuck and kill-- I mean fucking kill the other half.

Aemond Targaryen x Daemon Targaryen 

We all saw how Aemond looked at his uncle after chopping someone's head off. What's the medieval version of stanning? 

Aegon Targaryen x Aemond Targaryen

The way the bully/victim dynamic switches between them is very yummy to me. They're very complicated with each other, I love it.

[androxys]

20 Questions for Fic Writers Tag Game

Thank you @cuephrase for the tag!

1. how many works do you have on AO3?

Time of posting, I have 18 fics publicly available under my name. I have one or two tucked away in anonymous collections though.

2. what's your total AO3 word count?

343,227!

3. what fandoms do you write for?

Right now I'm pretty heavily involved in the DC Universe. There are a few different characters within DC that I like to write for, but it's primarily Batman and his expanded cast. At one point I had a pretty lengthy original work series up too, but I've moved it out of the public sphere because a) I don't personally feel it's within the AO3's mission and b) I keep telling myself I'm going to polish it and see if it can go anywhere.

4. what are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Can't Prove It - Murder-mystery AU where Jason never died and Tim joins the family. I understand its popularity entirely.

What Does the Fourth of July Mean to You? - Timber identity reveal fic set around a Wayne family cookout. This is also one where I understand why people like it. It's a fun romp.

Deux ex Machina - Jason and Death of the Endless. People really like the fics I write with Jason in them, and I think this one got bumped when the Sandman TV show came out.

Bernard Dowd Week 2022 - 7 fics at 500 words each celebrating Bernard. I'm honestly surprised this one is all the way at #4! This was written pretty soon after Tim and Bernard started dating, so it was fun to celebrate the relatively new status quo for Bernard.

Cautionary - Steph and Jason talking. This is the first fic I ever posted, and honestly I have to suspect that its age is what's buoyed it up. I love that people love it, but it's one I look at now and think about how I would remaster it.

5. do you respond to comments?

Yes! I love chatting with folks on AO3. I think there's only ever been one comment I ever chose not to respond to, and it was because the person was just asking me to update an unrelated fic.

6. what is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Definitely Can't Prove It. I won't say any more than that.

7. what's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

My Kingdom for a Thin Mint is really fluffy, which is nice. Other than that, Fourth of July.

8. do you get hate on fics?

Thankfully, none so far!

9. do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Yes, but all my currently published smut is in anonymous collections, and the rest is still in my drafts while I try to figure out how to make this blowjob plot bearing.

EDIT: Wait I'm an idiot, yes I wrote Tim/Bart/Kon smut for a Thanksgiving joke challenge. People with superpowers like to tease their friend.

10. do you write crossovers?

I have! The Vigilante is a Welcome to Night Vale crossover, written in the style of a WTNV script. Ghost Dragon is a gen Miraculous Ladybug fic (I know, I know) set in the Batman: Reborn era that reimagines the Miraculouses as having a connection to DC's Lords of Order and Chaos. I took a break from it to dive deeper into the lore, but then never got back around to actually finishing the fic.

11. have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not to my knowledge, and I hope it doesn't happen!

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Nope. Right now my fics live exclusively in the Anglosphere.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

I haven't, but one of my dream projects is to do a round robin-esque, comic book event style fic where three or four authors each write a single chapter with a single character following their own plot, where the chapters all add up to a larger story.

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

Ooh, this is tough. Dick Grayson and Barbara Gordon are eternally one of DC's premier couples in my mind... they have history together, they're both stubborn, they know each other like the backs of their hands.

Overall, I'd say I'm pretty ship neutral. It's just not the primary thing that pulls me through media. Write it compellingly, and I'll probably go for it.

15. What's a WIP you want to finish but doubt you will?

I had brief and lofty dreams of a reimagined Final Crisis fic that was a little more Kirby and a little less Morrison. (The fact that it would have more of my favorite characters was a perk) It's just a big project to really get into, and I don't know if it'll ever fully get there.

16. What are your writing strengths?

Hmm... it's always hard to pull our praise for yourself, because I think most artists often get stuck on seeing the things that didn't quite make the leap from their head to the world. That said, I think my dialogue is pretty good--I generally try to make it always sound like characters talk like real people. I'm also fond of big Plots with moving parts, though I fully accept that's something I'm still in the process of working on.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

I don't often do it, but I do actually have thoughts about it, so I was glad to see this question! Personally, I have come to be against italicizing non-English words. I did it in Ghost Dragon when characters were speaking French, but whenever I update the fic I'm going to change it.

I only like to write dialogue in another language if the characters/readers are not necessarily supposed to immediately understand what's being said. In the case of Ghost Dragon, I had parallel chapters--in Ch 1 we know what the characters are saying, because we're meant to understand them, even though they're technically speaking in French the whole time. But in Ch 2, when it's from a non-French speaker's POV, I write out the French dialogue because the francophones are specifically trying to have a conversation between themselves, excluding those who they think can't understand them.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

First fandom I ever wrote for was either Batman or Star Wars, but which one is anyone's guess.

20. Favourite fic you've written?

I wish The Town O'Mallow got some more love, because it's probably my favorite thing I've written so far. Jean Paul Valley and Selina Kyle go into a Southern Gothic Omelas to save a soul. Other than that, I'm pretty excited for this Oracle: Year One fic I'm working on currently.

I'll pass on some no-pressure tags to @zahri-melitor @upswings @havendance @scintillyyy and @silverwhittlingknife, but if any of y'all have already done this or just don't want to, no pressure! And if anyone else sees this and wants to answer, take this as your tag! Just tag me back so I can see ❤️

[sanzu-sanzu-sanzu]

as your longtime fan AND a blue lock stan I just want to say I am SO thrilled to see you writing for blue lock now!!!!! and that Sae first chapter is just UGH D: CHEF'S KISS. I can't wait to see more <3

p.s. I'm sure you've been told this many times but your writing is just superb. I always get the sense that you seem to see so much more than most people do and oh it's amazing the way you're able to express that in writing. Reading your works sometimes would make me feel like crying even when there's nothing sad about it, if only because the things you write feel SO real. I don't think I've ever read a Reader fic writer like you. You're a real precious writer for me and I hope you will never stop writing!

BY THE WAY before I forget, who's your favorite bllk character hehehe

oh my goodness Y_Y hello. i am down on the floor weeping from your words. you have no idea how happy this makes me. please know i am truly truly grateful to you for giving my works a chance! i will write at least 500 more fics just for you hahaha ilysm PLEASEEE.

and yes! i will be writing more blue lock now hahahaha but please bear with me as they will most likely be sae ones at least for now i hope hahaha!

so yeah, my top fave is sae!!!! tbh i started reading bllk for him (and boy the hype was REAL. both the manga and him), but i also like them:

rin : i'm very very into the overdramatic/emo on the verge of pathetic guys. and rin is THAT guy for me.)

ego : i wanna pick his brains

anri : SHE'S SUCH A BREATH OF FRESH AIR AMIDST ALL THE BOYS TRYNA MURDER EACH OTHER VIA FOOTBALL?

ok, so that's not a very long list ahahaha, tho actually i like so many of them they're all so interesting in their own way (honorary ones are bachira, chigiri, yukimiya, reo, nagi I LOVE THEM. kaiser also kinda growing on me haha he's such a brat and i'm curious how far his bratness/meanness goes, but not in the i'd like to see him meaner way i just wanna see how he'll be able to evolve past the typical strong/talented bully trope).

thank you for the ask! ILY.

[nkhrchuwuya]

✨I was debating whether I wanted to join or not, but I decided to give it a shot, so…

I’m nb but don’t usually care what pronouns are used. I’m very insecure about a lot of stuff, especially my looks, my asexuality, my art and writing. I struggle with depression and anxiety, and usually it makes me feel like I’m very… forgettable, I guess? Like I’m not anyone’s first choice:0c

I’m very shy, and kind of hard to get to open up unfortunately >.< But I do enjoy doing things with others, like card or board games; or, if we’re close enough, just sitting together and reading or watching tv or something.

Idk if this is enough, I know I sort of lack personality. Thank you, and congratulations on 500!!

-🍀

hey 🍀 anon! i'm so glad you decided to join!! i hope you enjoy the stuff i've written for you, it was really lovely to be able to write for you personally! it was totally enough- i know you might feel a little insecure about "lacking personality" but i promise, i bet you are so much more than what you see in yourself, and other people know it! again, thank you for all your support in this blog!

japanese doesn't have pronouns, but chuuya still tries to refer to you in the most gender neutral way he can. he probably resorts to そいつ or あいつ, basically meaning, "that guy", and it sounds kinda rude but he says it with so much love and i promise, the people who hear it can tell it's affectionate.

chuuya cradles every insecurity you have in your hand and tries to brace you for them. he knows you carry a lot of them on your shoulders and he likes to shield you from things that bring them up whenever possible. he wishes you could see yourself the way he saw you- and if it takes just slowly going day by day protecting you from your thoughts, then he will.

alternatively, he also tries proactive measures to keep your insecurities at bay. insecure about your looks? definitely has an armful of compliments for you, ready to be unleashed at any point in the day. insecure about your art stuff? he's your number one hypeman and would love to submit your stuff to magazines or shows or collections just so you can hear the positive (never the negative! he's holding that down for now until you're ready for them) comments on them. he's always there to remind you you are enough.

chuuya doesn't hesitate to tell you that you are very important to him, and that you are so much more than your brain tricks you to be. he knows what depression and anxiety looks like. he knows how it can trick the brain, and when he sees you falling into that he does it his best to be with you and with words for you that hopefully you'll hear and listen to.

if it gets too much to bear, he's also the first one to drag you to someone who can help, like a therapist of some sort or, if that's too much still, a friend of yours he knows he can rely on. he knows he can't do the job all by himself, so he will use all the means necessary to help you up.

chuuya finds your shyness so adorable, especially since he knows what it is like when you've opened up. when you're meeting other people with him, the way you flutter backward in your hesitation, the way he can step up and protect you from the "harm" that is other people you do not know quite well yet. it unleashes his Protector Mode and he loves being in that headspace.

loves doing things with you in silence once you finally let him. if you're not too big on more "adventurous" things to do, or even just not so much, he's absolutely willing to just sit by your side and chill with his glass of wine. he loves keeping you company, and he will never tire of doing so.

has a thing where every time he passes by you he pats your head a little bit. it became a habit after you were doing some art and needed encouragement and he'd pat your shoulder, but eventually it evolved to patting your head whenever he's around and you're about headpat level.

i think chuuya will let you unleash a little fire in you little by little the longer you're with him. his energy is just infectious; and even if you don't become a social butterfly, you'll definitely be able to stand a little stronger and straighter with him at your back.

[annonmaly]

Ok, It's Not Red. So What? (continuation)

Noé and his left eye

At this point, I'm wondering why I decided to do this. At first, I just saw this official artwork collection, and I'm like: "These are cool, let me post something short about what I think (cos' I got a lot of time). Some of these ideas may already be out there. But still, I may drag someone else in this 'what if' hole I'm in". I meant this to be one post with 500 words only. But lo' and behold! I'm now on the fourth part of this thought dump. My lazy brain is so proud of me right now.

These posts could be read separately. But if you have some minutes to waste and have nothing better to do. Check out the previous parts here:

Part 1: Regarding some of VnC Artwork

Part 2: Oh, It's Not Red

Part 3: Ok, It's Not Red. So What?

No promises that it's worthwhile tho'.

Hopefully for the last time, a friendly reminder that best in writing is an award I never received. I'm not the person who could analyze, explain, or theorize things. Please bear that in mind while reading. Photos are not mine, of course. Also, spoiler alert to be safe.

Now that I said everything I want to say. Let's finish this thing. This would be the last absurd idea that I want to share.

I read this theory a while ago that Noé's left eye was partially blind. This was the result of his injury during his childhood. As proof, Noé always received an injury on the left side. I totally agree with this theory. There's something wrong in that left eye of his. What if Noé's left eye lost its original power? Or What if it's not his eye to begin with? Sounds farfetched? Yeah, it is, but give me a break here. This was on my head for a long time now, and this needs to be out of my system.

Ok, first, let me tell you why I think his left eye is suspicious.

1. Noé had an eye injury when he was a kid. But after a while, it healed as nothing happened. This could easily be explained. It was healed totally by his vampire's power.

2. How and when he received that injury is questionable. (Actually, that whole story is suspicious) Did he receive it before or after being kidnapped? I don't much about slave trade in VnC world. But, if you're going to sell something you don't want it to have visible damage, right? (Sorry if the comparison sounds offending)

3. This may be for artistic purposes. However, there are panels where Noé's left eye was hidden by his hair or something. Most of them are when he is emotional. Or, more precisely, when it's about Vanitas. This is not always the case, and maybe I'm just reading to it more than necessary. But let me give you some examples:

(I had a hard time in this cos' I'm confused about what is left and right)

Let me briefly explain the picture from left to right

Bal Masque Arc: (It is not noticeable in this arc, actually. But when Noé is scolding Ruthven, we can't see his left eye.) The image above is when human Vani told Noé to leave him alone Then the one beneath is the moment when Noé declared that he will stay with human Vani.

Catacombs Arc: This is the time when Noé forgot to cut his hair. His left eye is hidden at about 90 percent of this arc. I only saw it again when Noé got angry with the weird doctor because he keeps calling human Vani by number "69". Even after the conclusion of this arc, his left eye is hidden.

Pre-Gevaudan Arc: We all know what happened the night before this. In the panel above, his eye was hidden when he was expressing his guilt. Then when he's being honest, Mochijun-Sensei showed his left profile.

Misha Arc: I know it's still fresh in your memories. To make this short, they are fighting to the death. The above panel is when Noé's reevaluating the events that happened. Then below is when he realized that he did not look at human Vani properly.

I'm a VaNoé shipper so I could go on all day, but I think I already get my point across. There's a pattern here when human Vani and Noé are having an issue. Or when Noé can't understand the former, his left eye is hidden. After they kiss and makeup Mochijun-sensei shows Noé's left eye.

I think I already established that Noé's left eye is weird, so let's move on. If you encountered my prior post, I assumed that Luna and Noé are twins. Let's ignore that notion. For now, I will settle with the idea that the blue vampire and Noé are related. They could be siblings, parent-child, or kinsmen. I'll believe that Noé is related to the blue moon vampire until Mochijun-Sensei says otherwise.

So, I emphasized Noe's hidden eye a moment ago. Who else out there that we don't see her left eye? Yup, the vampire of the blue moon. (I already mentioned this on my previous post)

This is not related but look at these panels:

After hearing human Vani's childhood story, Noé and Luna both asked the question about hating the vampires. Take note that Luna is on the right, the eye that was she's not hiding. Noé on the left profile, the hidden eye at times. I don't know if there's a meaning in this or what, it's just interesting.

Going Back,

If Noé is related to the blue vampire and the cursed book. (I think Grandpa DeSade won't ask him to observe the book without reason, he possibly be the real owner). Maybe at some point, his eyes are blue. Or maybe one of his eyes is blue. The left eye, perhaps?

So far, we only saw Noé gazing at the blue moon in the first chapter.

Left profile, left eye, interesting. (I'll say this again and again, Sensei is shady. Even that smile)

Well, it's his right eye. However, it's his left that noticed the moon first.

Next...

The whole sentence is "and see for yourself with your own eyes..." Is it just a coincidence that the panel with the words "with your own eyes" was a close-up of Noé's left eye? (He's still looking up the blue moon here)

Now, assuming that his eyes are blue before. What happened? As I said earlier, maybe he lost the power of his left eye or just transferred it to someone. Is there someone heterochromatic that is always with Noé? Oh, yes, Murr.

So, in a nutshell: What if Noé has the power of a blue and red moon vampire before the series' timeline started? (He's kind of special since it would only show when he's using his vampiric powers) Then, something terrible happened that we don't yet. And they had no choice but to transfer that power to Murr?

At one point, I imagined that Noé and Murr exchanged eyes, but dismissed it since I thought that Murr's eyes are red. But now that I changed my mind about Murr's eye color, I think this could still be a possibility.

I'll leave it up to your imagination as to how everything happened. This is just a half-boiled theory I had that needs to get out of my mind. I'll try to expound it furthermore when I found out more (or maybe I would already change my mind)

This scene would negate my thousand words post entirely. Because the injury Noé had is shown when he met Sensei for the first time. This means he should still be heterochromatic here. The old man knows that he's a vampire. So, it's either, Noé told them, or the couple saw his vampiric characteristics. They would tell Noé that his eyes was strange, right? But it looks like had no idea at all.

(I'll just copy and paste from my previous post)

I believe that Mochijun-sensei is keeping the timeline vague since it would reveal too much information. I mean, we don't know how long time passed from the day Noé was found by the old couple to the day Sensei brought him to the castle in the forest. Keep in mind that the vampire's growth differs for each person, as well. Also, is the story the Noé and Sensei told trustworthy? As far as I could tell, Sensei is shady, like really. Besides, Noé's memory is also not reliable. After all, someone out there may have the ability to manipulate memories. What if Noé was was born ages ago and was induced to sleep for a long time for whatever reasons?

(Copy Paste ends here)

I really love Noé and Murr. You see, the title of the series is The Case Study of Vanitas, but I'm more curious about Noé. My guts tell me that he would unexpectedly surprise us in the future chapters. Do you have any ideas or thoughts you want to share about VnC? tell me, I'm so bad at digging gold here.

That's the end folks, I warned you this might not make any sense. I'm just a person who has a lot of time on hand got bored waiting for the next chapter. Still, I had fun writing this. It's entertaining to crack our heads with the possibilities of what would happen in the story. But remember to always respect the authors. It's their work and art.

Note: I wrote this to indulge my over-thinking self. This is just a random theory, thoughts, assumptions, and/or head-canons. Thank you for taking the time to read and understanding if I made any mistakes or post whatever it is you don’t agree on.

[whatsarasaid]

For that 40 question fanfic meme, I'm sorry I picked so many! 1 through 11, 13, 15, 17, 21, 23, 28, 29, 31, 37, and 38. Can't wait to see more work from you btw :)

😭 Jessica, why are you so lovely?

1. Describe your comfort zone—a typical you-fic.

Short. Delicate, careful moments. Theme and imagery-heavy. Little dialogue. Almost poetry. Focused on the human experience and (dis)connection.

​2. Is there a trope you've yet to try your hand at, but really want to?

One of these days, I'd like to take a swing at AU. I get self-conscious about it, though, ​because a) many people dislike them and b) it's my own world, and the amount of decision-making is dizzying. I'm better at observation than ideation.

3. ​​Is there a trope you wouldn't touch with a ten-foot pole?

I don't write explicit content, and so that eliminates a great many tropes, and thankfully, most of the worrisome ones. Any sort of suffering for suffering's sake is off the table. Let's just say that, in general, I try to avoid gratuity and extremes.

4. How many fic ideas are you nurturing right now? Care to share one of them?

If I talk about ideas, I get the gratification of having shared them without having done any of the work, and am therefore less likely to produce the actual thing! It's for everyone's benefit that I keep my cards close to my chest.

5. Share one of your strengths.

Leaving the reader going "Oh!" or "Oh." at the end of a fic.

6. Share one of your weaknesses.

The outrageous inability to write a real plot or anything long. I've studied Dan Harmon's Story Circle and Joseph Campbell's Hero's Journey but run into the problem I have in many facets of life: I'm better at theory than praxis. Filling in the gaps with what actually happens in a story shatters my brain. This has everything to do with the fact that I don't think in language or events, but rather impressions. Having to translate thoughts into words is difficult enough when it's 500 words. Over 5000, and I start repeating phrases and tangling imagery and tripping over myself. It's a mess.

7. Share a snippet from one of your favorite pieces of prose you've written and explain why you're proud of it.

My pieces are basically snippets themselves. 😕

​​8. Share a snippet from one of your favorite dialogue scenes you've written and explain why you're proud of it.

Nearly every line of dialogue in scales & measure is written one or two steps away from what the characters are actually saying. The quippy humor also works well in that fic.

9. Which fic has been the hardest to write?

scales & measures (because it was over 5000 words) and absolute bearing (because I wrote it in a pandemic during finals​ and had many people asking for it).

10. Which fic has been the easiest to write?

the refrigerator and velocity were written in fugue states.​

11. ​​Is writing your passion or just a fun hobby?

​It's a hobby, but an important one. I used to play instruments or draw, but as I got older and busier, those skills atrophied and I could no longer express myself with them. Writing, however, has (somewhat) stayed sharp because I use it in my day-to-day, and so I can still scratch that creative itch with it. When I don't write fiction, I crust over.

13. ​What's the best writing advice you've ever come across?

Answered here. ​15. ​If you could choose one of your fics to be filmed, which would you choose?

scales & measures or ever the survivor, maybe?

17. ​Do you write your story from start to finish, or do you write the scenes out of order?​ ​Do you use any tools, like worksheets or outlines?

Start-to-finish. If I'm in a real rut, out of order. No worksheets or outlines, we die like men.

21. How many times do you usually revise your fic/chapter before posting?

Answered here. ​23. ​Share three of your favorite fic writers and why you like them so much.

Passing on this one. It's too overwhelming.

29. ​If you could write the sequel (or prequel) to any fic out there not written by yourself, which would you choose?

If a story has left me wanting more, then it did it right, and anything I could add would detract.

31. ​Do you take liberties with canon or are you very strict about your fic being canon compliant?

I prefer to be canon-compliant if only because I have more skill in research than I do in creation. Why make it up when I can look it up? Unless I think I can make things cooler or more logical than in canon. In which case....oops. Slipped.

37. ​Talk about your current wips.

• Death Stranding prompt: Fragile partnering with the UCA. • Control ficlet: Trench and the NSC. • Silicon Valley fic(let, maybe): Sorting Richard and Jared now that Jared no longer blindly idolizes Richard. • Resident Evil fic: Carlos(-centric) and Jill post-RE:3 to RE:5.

​38. ​Talk about a review that made your day.

On the hellscape that is the internet, I've somehow had the pleasure of receiving some of the kindest, most articulate comments. Like, really. The reviews my readers leave make me all flustered. I'm so thankful.

Ones that stuck with me, though: Both @visualheresy​ and @tallmatcha​ have read fics of mine that aren't even in fandoms they follow, and took the time to comment, saying they were beautiful. And I think about that a lot. Like, it wasn't even their thing, they were just there for my writing, even if they didn’t understand the context, and that makes me watery inside if I think about it too much.

[claudinei-de-jesus]

The existence of God

1. Its declared existence.

Nowhere do the Scriptures attempt to prove the existence of God through formal evidence. It is recognized as a self-evident fact and as a natural belief of man. The Scriptures nowhere offer a series of proofs of the existence of God as a preliminary to faith; they declare the fact of God and call man to venture into the faith. "Whatever comes to God, believe that there is God", is the starting point in the relationship between man and God.

The Bible, in truth, speaks of men who say in their hearts that there is no God, but these are "fools", that is, the ungodly practitioners who would expel God from their thoughts because they have already expelled him from their lives. These belong to the large number of practicing atheists, that is, those who proceed and speak as if there were no God. Their number far exceeds the number of theoretical atheists, that is, those who claim to adhere to the intellectual belief that denies the existence of God. Note that the statement "there is no God" does not imply that God does not exist, but that God does not deal with the affairs of the world. Counting on his absence, men become corrupt and behave in an abominable way. (Sal. 14.)

Thus writes Dr. A. B. Davidson: (the Bible) does not attempt to demonstrate the existence of God, because in all parts of the Bible it is understood that he exists. There seems to be no passage in the Old Testament that represents men seeking to know the existence of God through nature or the events of providence, although there are some passages that imply that false ideas about the nature of God can be corrected by studying nature. and of life ... The Old Testament considers as little about the possibility of knowing God as it does about proving his existence. Why would men argue about the knowledge of God when they were already persuaded that they knew him, aware of being in communion with him, their thoughts being filled and enlightened by him, knowing that his Spirit moved in them, and guided them throughout your story?

The idea that man comes to knowledge or fellowship with God through his own efforts is totally foreign to the Old Testament. God speaks; it appears; the man hears and sees. God approaches men; establishes a concert or special relationship with them; and give them commandments. They receive him when he approaches: they accept his will and obey his precepts. Moses and the prophets are nowhere represented as thinkers reflecting on the Invisible, forming conclusions about it, or reaching high concepts of Divinity. The Invisible manifests itself to them, and they know him.

When a man says, "I know the president," he doesn't mean, "I know the president exists," because that is implied in his statement. In the same way, biblical writers tell us that they know God and these statements signify his existence.

2. Its proven existence.

If the Scriptures offer no rational demonstration of the existence of God, why are we going to make this attempt? For the following reasons: First, to convince those who genuinely seek God, that is, people whose faith has been overshadowed by some difficulty, and who say, "I want to believe in God; show me that it is reasonable to believe in him." But no evidence will convince the person, who, wishing to continue in sin and selfishness, says: "I challenge you to prove that God exists." After all, faith is a moral issue, not an intellectual one. If the person is not willing to accept, he will put aside any and all evidence. (Luke 6:31.) Second, to strengthen the faith of those who already believe. They study the evidence, not to believe, but because they already believe. This faith is so precious to them that they will gladly accept any fact that increases or enriches it.

Finally, to be able to enrich our knowledge about the nature of God. What greater object of thought and study is there than him? Where will we find evidence of the existence of God? In creation, in human nature and in human history. From these three spheres we deduce the five evidences of the existence of God:

1) The universe must have a First Cause or a Creator. (Cosmological argument, from the Greek word "cosmos", which means "world".)

2) The design evident in the universe points to a Supreme Mind. (Teleological argument, from "Teleos", which means "design or purpose".)

3) The nature of man, with his impulses and aspirations, points to the existence of a personal Governor. (Anthropological argument, from the Greek word "anthropos", which means "man".)

4) Human history gives evidence of a providence that rules over everything. (Historical argument.)

5) Belief is universal. (Common consensus argument.)

(a) The creation argument. Reason argues that the universe must have had a beginning. Every effect must have a sufficient cause. The universe, being the effect, must therefore have a cause. Consider the extent of the universe. In the words of Jorge W. Gray: "The universe, as we imagine it, is a system of thousands and millions of galaxies. Each of them is composed of thousands and millions of stars. Close to the circumference of one of these galaxies - the Milky Way - there is a medium-sized star with a moderate temperature, already yellowed by old age - which is our Sun. " And imagine that the Sun is millions of times bigger than our little Earth! The same writer continues: "The Sun is spinning in a dizzying orbit towards the circumference of the Milky Way at 19,300 meters per second, taking the Earth and all the planets with it, and at the same time the entire solar system is spinning in a gigantic circuit at speed an incredible 321 kilometers per second, while the galaxy itself spins, like a colossal giant ferris wheel. By photographing some sections of the sky, it is possible to count the stars.

At the Harvard College observatory I saw a photograph that includes images from more than 200 Milky Way - all recorded on a 35 x 42cm photographic plate. It is estimated that the number of galaxies that the universe is composed of is in the order of 500 trillion. "

Let us consider our small planet and on it the various forms of life that exist, which reveal divine intelligence and design. The question naturally arises: "How did all this originate?" The question is natural, as our minds are so constituted that they expect every effect to have a cause. Therefore, we conclude that the universe must have had a First Cause, or a Creator. "In the beginning - God" (Gen. 1: 1). In a simple way this argument is exposed in the following incident:

Said a skeptical young man to an elderly lady: - I once believed in God, but now, since I studied philosophy and mathematics, I am convinced that God is nothing more than a hollow word.

"Well," said the lady, "it is true that I have not learned these things, but since you have already learned, can you tell me where this egg came from?"

"Naturally from a chicken," was the reply.

- And where did the chicken come from?

- Of course an egg.

Then the lady asked: - Allow me to ask: which one existed first, the chicken or the egg?

"The chicken, for sure," replied the young man.

- Oh, so, the chicken existed before the egg?

- Oh, no, I should say that the egg existed first.

- So, I suppose you mean the egg existed before the chicken.

The boy hesitated: - Well, you see, that is, of course, well, the chicken existed first.

"Very well," she said, "who raised the first hen from which all successive eggs and hens came?"

- What do you mean by all this? He asked.

- Simply this - she replied: - I say that the one who created the first egg or the first chicken is the one who created the world. You can't even explain, without God, the existence of an egg or a chicken, and you still want me to believe that you can explain, without God, the existence of the whole world!

(b) The design argument. Design and beauty are evident in the universe; but design and beauty imply an architect; therefore, the universe is the work of an Architect endowed with sufficient intelligence to explain his work. The great Strasbourg clock has, in addition to the normal functions of a clock, a combination of moons and planets that move, showing days and months with the exactness of the celestial bodies, with their groups of figures that appear and disappear with equal regularity when the hours on the big timer. To declare that there was no engineer who built the watch, and that this object "happened", would be to insult intelligence and human reason. It is foolish to assume that the universe "happened", or, in scientific language, that it proceeded from "the random contest of atoms"!

Suppose that the book "The Pilgrim" was described as follows: the author took a wagon of press types and with a shovel threw them into the air. As they fell to the ground, they naturally and gradually came together to form the famous story of Bunyan. The most incredulous man would say: how absurd! And we say the same thing about the assumptions of atheism in relation to the creation of the universe.

Examination of a watch reveals that it bears the signs of design because the various pieces are brought together with a previous purpose. They are placed in such a way that they produce movements and these movements are regulated in such a way that they mark the hours. From this we infer two things: first, that the watch had someone who made it, and second, that its manufacturer understood its construction, and designed it for the purpose of marking the time. In the same way, we observe the design and operation of a plan in the world and, of course, we conclude that there was someone who did it and who wisely prepared it for the purpose it is serving.

The fact that we never observed the manufacture of a watch would not affect these conclusions, even if we never knew a watchmaker, or if we never had an idea of ​​the process of this work. Likewise, our conviction that the universe had an architect, in no way changes due to the fact that we have never seen its construction, or that we have never seen the architect.

Likewise, our conclusion would not change if someone informed us that "the clock is the result of the operation of the laws of mechanics and is explained by the properties of matter". Even so, we will have to consider it as the work of a skilled watchmaker who knew how to take advantage of these laws of physics and their properties to make the clock work. Likewise, when someone informs us that the universe is simply the result of the operation of the laws of nature, we are embarrassed to ask, "Who designed, established and used these laws?" This, because the presence of a legislator is implicit since there are laws.

Take, to illustrate, the life of insects. There is a species of beetle called "Staghom" or "Horned". The male has magnificent horns, twice as long as his body; the female has no horns. In the larval stage, they bury themselves in the earth and, silently, wait in the darkness for their metamorphosis. They are naturally mere insects, with no apparent difference, yet one of them digs a hole twice as deep as the other. Because? So that there is room for the male's horns to develop perfectly. Why do these larvae, apparently the same, differ in their habits? Who taught the male to dig his hole twice as deep as the female does? is the result of a rational process? No, it was God, the Creator, who put in those creatures the instinctive perception that would be useful to them. Where did this insect get your wisdom from? Someone may think that he inherited it from his parents. But does a taught dog, for example, convey its cunning and agility to its offspring? Do not.

Even if we admit that instinct was inherited, we still encounter the fact that someone had instructed the first horned beetle. The explanation of the wonderful instinct of animals is found in the words of the first chapter of Genesis: "And God said" - that is, the will of God. Anyone who watches a watch know that intelligence is not in the watch but in the watchmaker. And whoever observes the wonderful instinct of the smallest creatures, will conclude that the first intelligence was not theirs, but that of their Creator, and that there is a Mind that controls the smallest details of life.

Dr. Whitney, a former president of the American Society and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, once said that "one day repels the other by the will of God and no one can give a better reason." "What do you mean by the expression: the will of God?" someone asked him. Dr. Whitney replied: "How do you define light? ... There is the corpuscular theory, the wave theory, and now the quantum theory; and none of the theories is more than an educated guess. With an explanation as good as these , we can say that the light walks by the will of God ... The will of God, this law that we discovered, without being able to explain it - is the only final word. "

Mr. A. J. Pace, designer for the evangelical periodical "Sunday School Times", talks about his interview with the late Wilson J. Bentley, expert in microphotography (photographing what you see under the microscope). For more than a third of a century, this man photographed snow crystals. After photographing thousands of these crystals, he observed three main facts: first, that no two flakes were the same; second: they were all of a beautiful pattern; third: all were invariably hexagonal. When asked how this hexagonal symmetry was explained, he replied: "Certainly, nobody knows but God, but my theory is this: As everyone knows, snow crystals are formed by water vapor at temperatures below zero, and water is made up of three molecules, two of hydrogen that combine with one of oxygen. Each molecule has a positive and negative charge of electricity, which has a tendency to polarize on the opposite sides. on the subject from the beginning. " "How can we explain these very interesting dots, the graceful turns and curves, and these beveled corners so delicately chiseled, all of them arranged with perfect symmetry around the central point?" asked Mr. Pace. He shrugged and said, "Only the Artist who designed and modeled them knows the process."

His statement about the "figure three in the subject" got me thinking. Is it not then that the triune God, who shapes all the beauty of creation, initials the trinity itself in these fragile ice crystal stars as if he signs his name in his masterpiece? When examining snowflakes under a microscope, it is instantly seen that the basic principle of the snowflake structure is the hexagon or the six-sided figure, the only example of this in the entire realm of geometry in this regard. The radius of the circumscribed circle is exactly equal to the length of each of the six sides of the hexagon.

Therefore, six equilateral triangles result in the central nucleus, all angles being sixty degrees, the third part of the entire area on one side of a straight line. What a suggestive symbol of the triune God is the triangle! Here we have unity: a triangle, formed of three lines, each part indispensable to the integrity of the whole. Curiosity now compelled me to examine the biblical references to the word "snow", and I discovered, with great pleasure, this same "triangle" inherent in the Bible. For example, there are 21 (3 x 7) references containing the noun "snow" in the Old Testament, and 3 in the New Testament, 24 in all. So I found references, which speak of "leprosy as white as snow". Three times the cleansing of sin is compared to snow. I found three more that talk about clothes "as white as snow". Three times the appearance of the Son of God is compared to snow. But the biggest surprise was to discover that the Hebrew word, "snow", is made up entirely of "three" figures! It is a fact, although it is not generally known that, having no figures, both the Hebrews and the Greeks used the letters of their alphabet as figures. A casual look from a Hebrew to the word SHELEG (Hebrew word meaning "snow") was enough to see that it means the number 333, as well as it means "snow". In Hebrew the first letter, which corresponds to our "SH", is worth 3OO; the second consonant "L" is worth 30; and the final consonant, our "G", is worth 3. Adding them together, we have 333, three digits of three. Curious, isn't it? But why not expect mathematical accuracy from a fully inspired book, as wonderful as the world that God created?

About God, Jo said, "Do great things that we cannot understand. For he says to the snow: Fall on the earth" (John 37: 5, 6). I have already spent two full days to copy the drawing of God with six snow crystals with pen and ink and I was very tired. And how easy it is for him to do it! "He says to the snow" - and with a word it is done.

Imagine how many millions of billions of snow crystals fall on a hectare of land for an hour, and imagine, if you can, the amazing fact that each crystal has its own individuality, a design and model without duplicate in this or any other storm. "Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain it" (Ps. 139: 6). How can a sensible person, in the face of such evidence of designs, multiplied by any number of varieties, doubt the existence and work of the Designer, whose capacity is immeasurable ?! A God capable of doing so many beauties is capable of everything, even of shaping our lives by giving them beauty and symmetry.

(c) The argument of man's nature. Man has a moral nature, that is, his life is regulated by concepts of good and evil. He recognizes that there is a right course of action that he must follow and a wrong path that he must avoid. This knowledge is called "conscience". When he does good, conscience approves him; when he does evil, she condemns him. Conscience, whether obeyed or not, speaks with authority. So Butier said of conscience: "If it had power in the same proportion as its manifest authority, it would rule the world, that is, if conscience had the strength to put into action what it commands, it would revolutionize the world." But it turns out that man is endowed with free will and, therefore, can disobey that intimate voice. Even if misguided, without clarification, the conscience still speaks with authority, and makes man feel his responsibility.

"Two things impress me," declared Kant, the great German philosopher, "the high starry sky and the moral law within me." What is the conclusion to be drawn from this universal knowledge of good and evil? That there is a Legislator who idealized a standard of conduct for man and made human nature capable of understanding this ideal. Consciousness does not create the ideal; it simply testifies about it, recording its compliance or non-compliance.

Who originally created these two powerful concepts of good and evil? God, the Just Lawgiver! Sin overshadowed the conscience and almost annulled the law of the human being; but on Mount Sinai God engraved this law on stones so that man would have the perfect law to direct his life. The fact that man understands this law, and feels his responsibility towards it, manifests the existence of a Lawgiver who created man with this ability.

What is the conclusion that we can draw from this feeling of responsibility? That the Lawgiver is also a Judge who rewards the good and punishes the bad. The one who enforced the law will finally defend that law.

Not only the moral nature of man, but also all aspects of his nature testify to the existence of God. Even the most degraded religions demonstrate the fact that man, as blind, groping, seeks something that his soul longs for. Physical hunger indicates the existence of something that can satisfy it. When a man is hungry, that hunger indicates that there is someone or something that can satisfy him. The exclamation, "My soul is thirsty for God" (Ps. 42: 2), is an argument for the existence of God, for the soul would not deceive man with thirst for what did not exist. So a scholar from the early church once said, "You made us for yourself, and our hearts will be restless until they find rest in you."

(d) The storyline. The march of events in universal history provides evidence of a dominant power and providence. The entire biblical story was written to reveal God in history, that is, to illustrate God's work in human affairs. "The principles of divine moral government are found in the history of nations as well as in the experience of men," writes D. S. Clarke. (Ps. 75: 7; Dan. 2:21; 5:21.) "English Protestantism sees the defeat of the Spanish Armada as a divine intervention. The colonization of the United States by Protestant immigrants saved them from the fate of South America. , and in this way he saved democracy. Who would deny that the hand of God was in these events? " The history of mankind, the rise and decline of nations, such as Babylon and Rome, show that progress accompanies the use of God-given faculties and obedience to his law, and that national decline and moral rot follow disobedience "( DL Pierson.) AT Pierson, in his book, "The New Acts of the Apostles," exposes the evidence of God's dominant providence in modern evangelical missions.

Especially God's way of dealing with individuals provides evidence of his active presence in human affairs. Charles Bradiaugh, who at one time was the most notable atheist in England, challenged Pastor Charles Hughá Price to a debate.

The challenge was accepted and the preacher, in turn, challenged the atheist in the following way: As we all know, Mr. Bradiaugh, "the man convinced against his own will always maintains his point of view", and, since the debate, as mental gymnastics that he is, he probably will not convert anyone, I propose that we present some concrete evidence of the validity of the claims of Christianity in the form of men and women redeemed from worldly and shameful life by the influence of Christianity and that of atheism. I will bring a hundred of these men and women, and I challenge you to do the same.

If Mr. Bradiaughá is unable to present a hundred, against my hundred, I will be satisfied if I bring fifty men and women to stand up and testify that they have been transformed from a shameful life by the influence of their atheistic teachings. If I am unable to present fifty, I challenge you to present twenty people who testify with radiant faces, as my hundred will do, who have a great new joy in their high life as a result of atheistic teachings. If I cannot present twenty, I will be pleased to present ten. No, Mr. Bradiaugh, I challenge you to bring in a single man or woman who gives such a testimony about the ennobling influence of his teachings. My redeemed people will bring irrefutable proof as to the saving power of Jesus Christ over their redeemed lives from the slavery of sin and shame.

Perhaps, Mr Bradiaugh, this will be the true demonstration of the validity of Christianity's claims. Mr. Bradiaughá withdrew his challenge!

(e) The universal belief argument. The belief in the existence of God is practically as widespread as the human race itself, although it is often manifested in a perverted or grotesque form and covered with superstitious ideas. This opinion has been contested by some who argue that there are races that have no conception of God at all. But Mr. Jevons, an authority on the subject of comparative races and religions, says that this opinion, "As is known to all anthropologists, has already gone to the limbo of dead controversies ... everyone agrees that there are no races, however primitive as they are, totally devoid of religious conception! Although someone cites exceptions, we know that the exception does not render the rule useless. man is essentially a creature without feelings. The presence of blind people in the world does not prove that all men are blind. " As William Evans said, "the fact that certain nations do not know the multiplication table does not affect arithmetic."

How did this universal belief originate? Most atheists seem to imagine that a group of theologians met in a secret session in which they invented the idea of ​​God, which they then presented to the people. But theologians did not invent God, just as astronomers did not invent stars, nor did botanists invent flowers. It is true that the ancients held wrong ideas about celestial bodies, but this fact does not deny the existence of celestial bodies. And since mankind has already had faulty ideas about God, this implies that there is a God about which they could have erroneous notions.

This universal knowledge did not necessarily originate from reasoning, because there are men of great reasoning ability who also deny the existence of God. But it is evident that the same God who made nature, with its beauties and wonders, also made man endowed with the ability to observe, through nature, his Creator. "For what can be known of God is manifest in them; for God has made it manifest. His invisible perfections, his eternal power, and his divinity, are clearly seen since the creation of the world, being perceived by his works" (Rom. 1:19, 20). God did not make the world without leaving certain signs, suggestions and clear evidence, which speak of the works of his hands. "But men, knowing God, did not glorify him as God, nor did they give thanks, but rather became infatuated with his speculations and his foolish heart was in darkness" (Rom. 1:21). Sin blurred his vision; they lost sight of God and, instead of seeing God through the creature, they despised him for ignorance and worshiped the creature. It was in this way that idolatry began. But even this proves that man is an adoring creature and that he is necessarily looking for an object of worship.

This universal belief in God is proof of what? It is proof that the nature of man is so constituted that he is able to understand and appreciate this idea, as one writer put it: "Man is incurably religious", which in the broadest sense includes: (1) The acceptance of the fact of the existence of a being above the forces of nature. (2) A feeling of dependence on God as one who dominates man's destiny; this feeling is awakened by the thought of its own weakness and smallness and by the magnitude of the universe. (3) The conviction that a friendly union can be achieved and that in this union he, the man, will find security and happiness. In this way we see that man, by nature, is constituted to believe in the existence of God, to trust in his goodness, and to worship in his presence.

This "religious feeling" is not found in the lower creatures. For example, anyone who tried to teach religion to the highest of apes would lose their time. But the lowest of men can be instructed in the things of God. Because? The animal lacks the religious nature - it is not made in the image of God; man has a religious nature and seeks an object of worship.

3. Its existence is denied.

Atheism consists in the absolute negation of the idea of ​​God. Some doubt that there are real atheists; but if there are, it is impossible to prove that they are sincerely seeking God or that they are logically consistent.

Since it is atheists who oppose the deepest and most fundamental convictions of the human race, the responsibility for proving the non-existence of God lies with them. they cannot sincerely and logically call themselves atheists until they present irrefutable evidence that in fact God does not exist. Undeniably, the evidence for the existence of God far exceeds the evidence against the existence of God. In this connection, D. S. Clarke writes: A small proof will demonstrate that there is a God, since no proof, however great it may be, can attest to his non-existence. A bird's footprints on a rock by the sea would prove that at some time a bird visited the lands adjacent to the Atlantic. But before it was declared that no bird had ever been there, it would be necessary to know the entire history of this coast since the beginning of life on the globe. A little bit of evidence will show that there is a God. Before it is said that there is no God, all the elements of the universe must be analyzed; all mechanical, electrical, biological, mental and spiritual forces must be investigated - all beings must be known and fully understood; one must be in all points of space at the same time, so that possibly God is not somewhere else and thus escapes your attention. That person must be omnipotent, omnipresent, eternal; in fact, that same person must be God before he dogmatically asserts that there is no God. As strange as it may seem, only God, whose existence the atheist denies, would have this ability to prove that there is no God! Furthermore, even the most remote possibility that there is a moral Sovereign puts immense responsibility on man, and the atheistic conclusion is unacceptable as long as the existence of God is not irrefutably demonstrated.

The contradictory atheist position is demonstrated by the fact that many atheists, when they are in danger or in difficulty, have prayed. How many times, life's storms and struggles have swept its theoretical refuge, revealing the spiritual foundations, and demonstrating human behavior. We say "human" because he who denies the existence of God shakes and suppresses the deepest and noblest instincts and impulses of the soul. As Pascal said, "Atheism is a disease." When man loses faith in God, it is not due to the arguments (no matter the apparent logic with which his denial is presented), but "to some intimate disaster, betrayal, or neglect, or some corrosive acid distilled in his soul that dissolved the pearl of great price ".

The following incident, told by a Russian nobleman, clarifies this matter:

It was in November 1917, when the Bolsheviks overcame Kerensky's government and began a reign of terror. The nobleman was at his mother's house, filled with constant fear of being arrested. The doorbell rang and the servant who answered brought a business card with the name of Prince Kropotkin - the very father of anarchism. He came in and asked for permission to examine the apartment. There was nothing else to do but allow him to enter, because he was evidently allowed to search and even requisition the house.

"My mother allowed it to pass," says the narrator. "He entered one room and then another, without stopping, as if he had lived there before and knew the order of the rooms. He entered the dining room; he looked around and suddenly went to the room occupied by my mother.

- Oh! forgive me - said my mother, when the Prince was going to open the. door - ; it's my bedroom.

He stopped for a moment in front of the door, looked at my mother then, as if he were ashamed, and in a shaky voice, said quickly:

- Yes yes I know. Forgive me, but I need to get into this room!

He put his hand on the doorknob and slowly started to open the door, and then suddenly closed it behind him after entering. "I was so agitated by the Prince's conduct that I found myself tempted to look. Prince Kropotkin was kneeling praying before the oratory in my mother's room. I saw him kneeling making the sign of the cross; I did not see his face or his eyes because he saw him from behind. His kneeling figure and his fervent prayer made him look so humble as he slowly whispered the prayer. He was so busy he didn't even notice me. " "Suddenly all my anger and hatred for this man had evaporated, like fog in the rays of the sun. I was so moved that I carefully closed the door." Prince Kropotkin remained in my mother's room for perhaps twenty minutes. He finally came out looking like a boy who had made a mistake, and he didn't even look up, as if recognizing his mistake. However, there was a smile on his face. He came close to my mother, took her hand, kissed her and then said in a very small voice: - I thank you very much for allowing me this visit to your home. Don't be nervous with me ... you see, it was in this room that my mother died. It was a great consolation for me to be in her room again. Thank you, thank you very much. "His voice trembled, and his eyes were moist. Then he said goodbye and disappeared." This man, despite being an anarchist, revolutionary, and atheist - still prayed!

Is it not evident that he became an atheist because he crushed the deepest feelings of his soul? Atheism is a crime against society, because it destroys the only foundation of morality and justice - a personal God who places on man the responsibility of keeping his laws. If there is no God, then there is no divine law, and all laws are man's. But why should we proceed legally? Why does a man, or a group of men, command him? It is possible that there are people with a relative nobility of spirit, and that they do good and are right, without, however, having belief in God, but for the great mass of humanity there is only one sanction to do what is right and that it is - "Thus saith the Lord", the Judge of the living and the dead, the mighty Governor of eternal destiny. To remove this is to destroy the foundations of human society.

James M. Gillis comments: The atheist is like a drunken drunken man who enters a research laboratory and begins to add certain chemicals that can destroy him, as well as everything around him. In fact, the atheist is facilitating with more mysterious and more powerful forces than anything in test tubes; more mysterious than the much talked about death ray. Nor can one imagine what the outcome would be if an atheist really extinguished faith in God; the entire tragic history of this planet does not register a single event that illustrates such a universal cataclysm that would occur.

Atheism is a crime against man. He seeks to pull from the heart of man the yearning for spiritual things, his hunger and thirst for the infinite. Atheists protest against crimes committed in the name of religion; we recognize that religion has been perverted by priestly and ecclesiasticism. But trying to erase the idea of ​​God because there has been abuse is as absurd as trying to pull love out of the human heart because in some cases that love has become distorted. ... A existencia de Deus

1. Sua existência declarada.

Em parte alguma como Escrituras tratam de provar a existência de Deus mediante provas formais. Reconhece-se como fato autoevidente e como restaur natural do homem. As Escrituras em parte alguma propõem uma série de provas da existência de Deus como preliminar à fé; declaram o fato de Deus e chamam o homem a aventurar-se na fé. "O que se chega a Deus, creia que há Deus", é o ponto inicial na relação entre o homem e Deus.

A Bíblia, em verdade, fala de homens que dizem em seus corações que não há Deus, esses são "tolos", isto é, os ímpios praticantes que expulsariam a Deus dos seus pensamentos porque já o expulsaram das suas vidas. Esses pertencem ao grande número de ateus praticantes, isto é, esses que procedem e falam como se não existisse Deus. Seu número ultrapassa em muito o número de ateus teóricos, isto é, esses que pretendem aderir à religião intelectual que nega a existência de Deus. Note-se que uma declaração "não há Deus" não implica dizer que Deus não exista, mas sim que Deus não se ocupa com os negócios do mundo. Contando com a sua ausência, os homens corrompidosem-se e se comportam de maneira abominável. (Sal. 14.)

Assim, o Dr. A. B. Davidson: (a Bíblia) não tenta mostrar a existência de Deus, porque em todas as partes da Bíblia subentende-se a sua existência. Parece não haver nenhuma passagem no Antigo Testamento que represente os homens procurando conhecer a existência de Deus por meio da natureza ou pelos eventos da providência, embora haja algumas passagens que impliquem que idéias falsas sobre a natureza de Deus podem ser corrigidas pelo estudo da natureza e da vida ... O Antigo Testamento cogita tão pouco da possibilidade de conhecer a Deus quanto cogita de provar a sua existência. Por que os homens argumentariam sobre o conhecimento de Deus quando já estavam persuadidos de que o conheciam, cônscios de estarem em comunhão com ele, levando seus pensamentos cheios e iluminados por ele, sabendo que seu Espírito neles movia, e guiava-os em todo a sua história?

A idéia de que o homem chega ao conhecimento ou à comunidade com Deus por meio de seus esforços próprios é totalmente estranho ao Antigo Testamento. Deus fala; ele aparece; o homem ouve e vê. Deus aproxima-se dos homens; normal um concerto ou relação especial com eles; e dá-lhes mandamentos. Eles o apresentam quando ele se aproxima: aceitam a sua vontade e obedecem aos seus preceitos. Moisés e os profetas em parte alguma são representados como pensadores refletindo sobre o Invisível, formando clicando sobre dele, ou alcançando conceitos elevados da Divindade. O Invisível manifesta-se-lhes, e eles o conhecem.

Quando um homem diz: "Eu conheço o presidente", ele não quer dizer: "Eu sei que o presidente existe," porque isso se subentende na sua declaração. Da maneira mesma os escritores bíblicos nos dizem que conhecem a Deus e essas declarações significam a sua existência.

2. Sua existência provada.

Se as Escrituras não suportam nenhuma demonstração racional da existência de Deus, por que vamos nós fazer essa tentativa? Pelas seguintes razões: Primeiramente, para convencer os que genuinamente buscam a Deus, isto é, cuja fé tem sido ofuscada por alguma dificuldade, e que dizem: "Eu quero crer em Deus; mostrame que razoável seja crer nele." Mas evidência nenhuma convencerá a pessoa, que, por desejar continuar no pecado e no egoísmo, diz: "Desafio-te a provar que Deus existe." Afinal, a fé é questão moral e não intelectual. Se a pessoa não está disposta a aceitar, ela porá de lado todas as evidências e quaisquer evidências. (Luc. 6:31.) Segundo, para fortalecer a fé daqueles que já crêem. Eles estudam como provas, não para crer, mas sim porque já crêem. Esta fé lhes é tão preciosa que aceitarão com alegria qualquer fato que a faça aumentar ou enriquecer.

Finalmente, para poder enriquecer nosso conhecimento acerca da natureza de Deus. Que maior objeto de pensamento e estudo existe do que ele? Onde acharemos evidências da existência de Deus? Na criação, na natureza humana e na história humana. Dessas três esferas deduzimos como cinco evidências da existência de Deus:

1) O universo deve ter uma Primeira Causa ou um Criador. (Argumento cosmológico, da palavra grega "cosmos", que significa "mundo".)

2) O desígnio evidente no universo aponta para uma Mente Suprema. (Argumento teleológico, de "Teleos", que significa "desígnio ou propósito".)

3) A natureza do homem, com seus impulsos e aspirações, assinala a existência de um Governador pessoal. (Argumento antropológico, da palavra grega "anthropos", que significa "homem".)

4) A história humana dá evidências duma providência que governa sobre tudo. (Argumento histórico.)

5) A decoração é universal. (Argumento do consenso comum.)

(a) O argumento da criação. A razão argumenta que o universo deve ter um princípio. Todo efeito deve ter uma causa suficiente. O universo, sendo o efeito, por conseqüência deve ter uma causa. Consideremos a extensão do universo. Nas de Jorge W. Gray: "O universo, como o imaginamos, é um sistema de milhares e milhões de galáxias. Cada uma delas se compõe de milhares e milhões de estrelas. Perto da circunferência de uma dessas galáxias - a Via Láctea - existe uma estrela de tamanho médio e temperatura moderada, já amarelada pela velhice - que é o nosso Sol. " E imaginem que o Sol é milhão de vezes maior que a nossa pequena Terra! Prossegue o mesmo escritor: "O Sol está girando numa orbita vertiginosa em direção à circunferência da Via Láctea a 19.300 metros por segundo, levando consigo a Terra e todos os planetas, e ao mesmo tempo todo o sistema solar está girando num gigantesco circuito à velocidade incrível de 321 milhas por segundo, enquanto uma gira própria galáxia, qual colossal roda gigante estelar. Fotografando-se algumas fontes dos céus, é possível fazer uma contagem das estrelas.

No observatório de Harvard College eu vi uma fotografia que inclui como imagens de mais de 200 Vias Lácteas - todas as funções numa chapa fotográfica de 35 x 42cm. Calcule se o número de galáxias de que se compõe o universo é da ordem de 500 milhões de milhões. "

Consideremos nosso pequeno planeta e nele como várias formas de vida existentes, como quais revelam inteligência e desígnio divinos. Naturalmente surge a questão: "Como se originou tudo isso?" A pergunta é natural, pois as nossas mentes são constituídas de tal forma que origina que todo efeito tenha uma causa. Logo, concluímos que o universo deve ter tido uma Primeira Causa, ou um Criador. "No princípio - Deus" (Gên. 1: 1). Dum modo singelo este argumento é exposto no seguinte incidente:

Disse um jovem cético a uma idosa senhora: - Outrora eu cria em Deus, mas agora, desde que estudei filosofia e matemática, estou convencido de que Deus não é mais do que uma palavra oca.

- Bem - disse a senhora - é verdade que eu não aprendi essas coisas, mas desde que você já aprendeu, pode me dizer donde veio este ovo?

- Naturalmente duma galinha - foi a resposta.

- E veio a galinha?

- Naturalmente dum ovo.

Então indagou a senhora: - Permita-me pergunta: qual existiu primeiro, a galinha ou o ovo?

- A galinha, por certo - respondeu o jovem.

- Ah, então, a galinha existia antes do ovo?

- Oh, não, desvie dizer que o ovo existia primeiro.

- Então, eu suponho que você quer dizer que o ovo existia antes da galinha.

O moço vacilou: - Bem, a senhora vê, isto é, naturalmente, bem, a galinha existiu primeiro.

- Muito bem - disse ela -, quem criou a primeira galinha de que preencheu todos os sucessivos ovos e galinhas?

- Que é que a senhora quer dizer com tudo isto? - perguntou ele.

- Simplesmente isto - replicou ela: - Digo que aquele que criou o primeiro ovo ou a primeira galinha é aquele que criou o mundo. Você nem pode explicar, sem Deus, a existência dum ovo ou duma galinha, e ainda quer que eu creia que você pode explicar, sem Deus, a existência do mundo inteiro!

(b) O argumento do desígnio. O desígnio e a formosura evidenciam-se no universo; mas o desígnio e a formosura implicam um arquiteto; portanto, o universo é a obra dum Arquiteto dotado de inteligência suficiente para explicar sua obra. O grande relógio de Estrasburgo tem, além das funções normais dum relógio, uma combinação de luas e planetas que se movem, mostrando dias e meses com a exatidão dos corpos celestes, com seus grupos de figuras que aparecem e desaparecem com regularidade igual ao soarem como horas no grande cronômetro. Declarar não ter havido um engenheiro que construiu o relógio, e que este objeto "aconteceu", seria insultar a inteligência e a razão humana. É insensatez presumir que o universo "aconteceu", ou, em linguagem cientifica, que procedeu "do concurso fortuito dos átomos"!

Suponhamos que o livro "O Peregrino" foi descrito da seguinte maneira: o autor tomou um vagão de tipos de imprensa e com pá os atirou ao ar. Ao caírem no chão, natural e gradualmente se ajuntaram de maneira formar uma história famosa de Bunyan. O homem mais incrédulo diria: que absurdo! E a mesma coisa dizemos nós das suposições do ateísmo em relação à criação do universo.

O exame dum relógio revela que ele leva os sinais de desígnio porque diversas peças são reunidas com um propósito prévio. Elas são colocadas de tal modo que movimentos e esses movimentos são regulados de tal maneira que marcam as horas. Disso inferimos duas coisas: primeiro, que o relógio teve alguém que o fez, e em segundo lugar, que o seu fabricante compreendeu a sua construção, e o projetou com o propósito de marcar as horas. Da mesma maneira, observamos o desígnio e uma operação dum plano no mundo e, naturalmente, concluímos que houve alguém que o fez e que sabiamente o preparou para o propósito ao qual está servindo.

O fato de nunca termos observado a fabricação dum relógio não afetaria essas informações, mesmo que nunca conhecêssemos um relojoeiro, ou que jamais tivéssemos idéia do processo desse trabalho. Igualmente, a nossa convicção de que o universo teve um arquiteto, de forma nenhuma sofre alteração pelo fato de nunca termos observados a sua construção, ou de nunca termos visto o arquiteto.

Do mesmo modo a nossa conclusão não se alteraria se alguém nos informasse que "o relógio é resultado da operação das leis da mecânica e explica-se pelas propriedades da matéria". Ainda assim teremos que considerá-lo como obra dum hábil relojoeiro que soube aproveita essas leis da física e suas propriedades para fazer funcionar o relógio. Da forma mesma, quando alguém nos informa que o universo é simplesmente o resultado da operação das leis da natureza, nós nos vemos constrangidos a pergunta: "Quem projetou, estimou e consumiu leis?" Isso, em razão de ser implícita a presença de um legislador uma vez que existem leis.

Tomemos, para ilustrar, a vida dos insetos. Há uma espécie de escaravelho chamado "Staghom" ou "Chifrudo". O macho tem magníficos chifres, duas vezes mais compridos do que o seu corpo; a fêmea não tem chifres. No estágio larval, eles enterram-se os mesmos na terra e, silenciosamente, surgem na escuridão pela sua metamorfose. São naturalmente meros insetos, sem nenhuma diferença aparente e, no entanto, um deles escava para si um buraco duas vezes mais profundo do que o outro. Porque? Para que haja espaço para os chifres do macho se desenvolverem com perfeição. Por que essas larvas, aparentemente iguais, diferem assim em seus hábitos? Quem ensinou o macho a cavar seu buraco duas vezes mais profundo do que o faz a fêmea? é o resultado dum processo racional? Não, foi Deus, o Criador, quem pôs naquelas criaturas a percepção instintiva que lhes seria útil. De onde indicar esse inseto em sua sabedoria? Alguém talvez pense que a herdara de seus pais. Mas um cão ensinado, por exemplo, transmite à sua descida sua astúcia e agilidade? Não.

Mesmo que admitamos que o instinto fosse herdado, ainda deparamos com o fato de que alguém havia instruído o primeiro escaravelho chifrudo. A explicação do maravilhoso instinto dos animais acha-se nas palavras do primeiro capítulo de Gênesis: "E disse Deus" - isto é: a vontade de Deus. Quem observa o funcionamento dum relógio sabe que a inteligência não está no relógio mas sim no relojoeiro. E quem observa o instinto maravilhoso das menores criaturas, concluirá que a primeira inteligência não era a delas, mas sim do seu Criador, e que existe uma Mente controladora dos menores detalhes da vida.

O Dr. Whitney, ex-presidente da Sociedade Americana e membro da Academia Americana de Artes e Ciências, certa vez disse que "um dia repele o outro pela vontade de Deus e ninguém pode dar razão melhor." "Que quer o senhor dizer com a expressão: a vontade de Deus?" alguém lhe perguntou. O Dr. Whitney replicou: "Como o senhor define a luz? ... Existe uma teoria corpuscular, uma teoria de ondas, e agora a teoria do quantum; e nenhuma das teorias passa duma conjetura educada. Com uma explicação tão boa como essas , podemos dizer que a luz caminha pela vontade de Deus ... A vontade de Deus, essa lei que descobrimos, sem a podermos explicar - é a única palavra final. "

O Sr. A. J. Pace, desenhista do periódico evangélico "Sunday School Times", fala de sua entrevista com o finado Wilson J. Bentley, perito em microfotografia (fotografar o que se vê através do microscópio). Por mais de um terço de século esse senhor fotografou cristais de neve. Depois de haver filhotes de dois filhotes de cristais, ele observou três critérios principais: primeiro, que não existem dois padrões; segundo: todos eram de um padrão formoso; terceiro: todos eram invariavelmente de forma sextavada. Quando lhe perguntaram como se explicava essa simetria sextavada, ele respondeu: "Decerto, ninguém sabe senão Deus, mas a minha teoria é a seguinte: Como todos sabem, os cristais de neve são formados de vapor de água a uma temperatura abaixo de zero, ea água se compõe de três moléculas, duas de hidrogênio que se combinam com uma de oxigênio. Cada molécula tem uma carga de eletricidade positiva e negativa, a qual tem a tendência de polarizar-se nos lados opostos. assunto desde o começo. " "Como podemos explicar estes pontinhos tão interessantes, as voltas e as curvas graciosas, e estas quinas chanfradas tão delicadamenteeladas, todas elas dispostas com simetria perfeita ao redor do ponto central?" perguntou o Sr. Pace. Encolheu os ombros e disse: "Somente o Artista que os desenhou e os modelou conhece o processo."

Sua declaração acerca do "algarismo três que figura no assunto" me pôs a pensar. não seria então que o triúno Deus, que modela toda a formosura da criação, rubrica a própria trindade contendo estrelas de cristal de gelo como quem assina seu nome em sua obra-prima? Ao examinar os flocos de neve ao microscópio, vê-se instantaneamente que o princípio básico da estrutura do floco de neve é ​​o hexágono ou a figura de seis lados, o único exemplo disso em todo o reino da geometria a este respeito. O raio do circulo circunscrevente é exatamente igual ao comprimento de cada um dos seis lados do hexágono.

Portanto, resultam seis triângulos eqüiláteros reunidos ao núcleo central, sendo todos os ângulos de sessenta graus, a terça parte de toda a área num lado duma linha reta. Que símbolo sugestivo do triúno Deus é o triângulo! Aqui temos unidade: um triângulo, formado de três linhas, cada parte indispensável à integridade do conjunto. A curiosidade agora me impeliu uma examinar as referências bíblicas sobre a palavra "neve", e descobri, com grande prazer, este mesmo "triângulo" inerente na Bíblia. Por exemplo, há 21 (3 x 7) referências contendo o substantivo "neve" no Antigo Testamento, e 3 no Novo Testamento, 24 ao todo. Então achei referencias, que falam da "lepra tão branca como a neve". Três vezes a purificação do pecado é comparada à neve. Achei mais três que falam de roupas "tão brancas como a neve". Três vezes a aparência do Filho de Deus compara-se à neve. Mas a maior surpresa foi ao descobrir que a palavra hebraica, "neve", é composta inteiramente de algarismos "três"! É fato, embora não seja geralmente conhecido que, não tendo algarismos, tanto os hebreus como os gregos usavam como letras do seu alfabeto como algarismos. Bastava um olhar casual de um hebreu à palavra SHELEG (palavra hebraica que quer dizer "neve") para ver que ela significa o algarismo 333, bem como significa "neve". No hebraico a primeira letra, que corresponde à nossa "SH", vale 3OO; uma segunda consoante "L" vale 30; e a consoante final, o nosso "G", vale 3. Somando-as, temos 333, três algarismos de três. Curioso, não é verdade? Mas por que não esperar exatidão matemática dum livro plenamente inspirado, tão maravilhoso quanto o mundo que Deus criou?

Acerca de Deus disse Jo: "Faz grandes coisas que não podemos compreender. Pois diz à neve: Cai sobre a terra" (Jo 37: 5, 6). Eu já gastei dois dias inteiros para copiar com pena e tinta o desenho de Deus de seis cristais de neve e fiquei muito fatigado. E como é fácil para ele fazê-lo! "Ele diz à neve" - ​​e com uma palavra está feita.

Imaginem quantos milhões de bilhões de bilhões de cristais de neve caem sobre um hectare de terra durante uma hora, e imagine, se puderem, o fato surpreendente de que cada cristal tem sua individualidade própria, um desenho e modelo sem duplicata nesta ou em qualquer outra tempestade. "Tal conhecimento é maravilhoso demais para mim; elevado é, não o posso atingir" (Sal. 139: 6). Como pode uma pessoa ajuizada, diante de tal evidência de desígnios, multiplicados por um sem-número de variedades, duvidar da existência e da obra do Desenhista, cuja capacidade é imensurável ?! Um Deus capaz de fazer tantas belezas é capaz de tudo, até mesmo de moldar como nossas vidas dando-lhes beleza e simetria.

(c) O argumento da natureza do homem. O homem dispõe de natureza moral, isto é, a sua vida é regulada pelos conceitos do bem e do mal. Ele reconhece que há um caminho de ação que deve seguir e um caminho errado que deve evitar. Esse conhecimento chama-se "consciente". Ao fazer ele o bem, a consciência o aprova; ao fazer ele o mal, ela o condena. A consciência, seja obedecida ou não, fala com autoridade. Assim disse Butier aproximadamente da consciência: "Se ela possuir poder na mesma proporção de sua autoridade manifesta, governaria do mundo, isto é, se a tomada de consciência tiver a força de pôr em ação o que ordena, ela revolucionaria do mundo." Mas acontece que o homem é dotado de livre arbítrio e, portanto, pode desobedecer àquela voz íntima. Mesmo assim, mal orientada, sem esclarecimento, a consciência ainda fala com autoridade, e faz o homem sentir sua responsabilidade.

"Duas coisas me impressionam", verdadeiro Kant, o grande filosofo alemão, "o alto céu estrelado e a lei moral em meu interior." Qual a conclusão que se tira deste conhecimento universal do bem e do mal? Que há um Legislador que idealizou uma norma de conduta para o homem e fez a natureza humana capaz de compreender esse ideal. A consciência não cria o ideal; ela simplesmente testifica acerca dele, registrando a sua conformidade ou não-conformidade.

Quem somos criou esses dois poderosos conceitos do bem e do mal? Deus, o Justo Legislador! O pecado ofuscou a consciência e quase anulou a lei do ser humano; mas no Monte Sinai Deus gravou essa lei em pedras para que o homem tenha a lei perfeita para dirigir a sua vida. O fato de que o homem compreende esta lei, e sente sua responsabilidade para com ela, manifesta a existência dum Legislador que criou o homem com essa capacidade.

Qual é a conclusão que podemos tirar desse sentimento de responsabilidade? Que o Legislador é também um Juiz que recompensa os bons e castigar os maus. Aquele que impôs um lei finalmente defenderá essa lei.

Não somente a natureza moral do homem, como também todos os aspectos da sua natureza testificam da existência de Deus. Até as religiões mais degradadas demonstram o fato de que o homem, qual cego, tateando, procura algo que sua alma anela. A fome física indica a existência de algo que possa satisfazer. Quando o homem tem fome, essa fome indica que há alguém ou algo que deseja satisfazer. A exclamação, "a minha alma tem sede de Deus" (Sal. 42: 2), é um argumento a favor da existência de Deus, pois a alma não enganaria o homem com sede daquilo que não existisse. Assim disse certa vez um erudito da igreja primitiva: "Para ti nos fizeste, e nosso coração estará inquieto enquanto não encontrar descanso em ti."

(d) O argumento da história. A marcha dos eventos da história universal evidência de um poder e duma providência dominantes. Toda a história bíblica foi escrita para revelar Deus na história, isto é, para ilustrar a obra de Deus nos negócios humanos. "Os princípios do divino governo moral referência-se na história das nações tanto na experiência dos homens", disse D. S. Clarke. (Sal. 75: 7; Dan. 2:21; 5:21.) "O protestantismo inglês vê a derrota da Armada Espanhola como uma intervenção divina. A colonização dos Estados Unidos por imigrantes protestantes salvou-os da sorte da América do Sul , e desta maneira salvou uma democracia. Quem negaria que a mão de Deus ocorreu nesses acontecimentos? " A história da humanidade, o surgimento e declínio de nações, como Babilônia e Roma, mostra que o progresso acompanhado o uso das faculdades dadas por Deus e a obediência à sua lei, e que o declínio nacional e a podridão moral seguem a desobediência "(DL Pierson ). AT Pierson, em seu livro, "Os Novos Atos dos Apóstolos", expõe como evidências da providência dominante de Deus nas missões evangélicas modernas.

Especialmente o modo de Deus tratar com os principais competições de sua presença ativa nos negócios humanos. Charles Bradiaugh, que foi em certo tempo o ateu mais notável na Inglaterra, desafiou o pastor Charles Hughá Price, para um debate.

Foi aceito o desafio e o pregador, por sua vez, desafiou o ateu da seguinte maneira: Como todos sabemos, Sr. Bradiaugh, "o homem convencido contra a própria vontade mantém sempre seu ponto de vista", e, visto que o debate, como ginástica mental que é, provavelmente não converter a ninguém, proponho-lhe que apresentamos algumas evidências concretas da validação das especificações do cristianismo na forma de homens e mulheres redimidos da vida mundana e vergonhosa pela influência do cristianismo e pela do ateísmo. Eu trarei cem homens e mulheres, e o desafio-o a fazer o mesmo.