Read some of my Novel

that first line i actually changed already because it sounded funny. it actually reads:
The minister was only a lad of thirty or so, with trusty cross in hand, and in his other the widow’s forehead.

But im going to take ur idea into account: The minister knelt before the widow holding his trusty cross in one hand and her forehead in the other. He appeared to be no more than a lad of thirty years.

Thanx for the help. anyone else got ideas?

na, never heard of it. what is it?

try it, im going to try. even if i dont finish by then, its a goal.

im way more than 6000 behind. Im like 9,000 behind.

this is actually an excerpt form chapter 8

And there, engraved upon the crumbling steps of the church was the Hebrew word Hod, perhaps etched by some dying poet, struggling to preserve his soul. Utilized his final breath in a solitary utterance, but faltering before concluding the thought. The image of the poet, now projected within my thoughts, set my mind ablaze searching for an explanation, some sort or rationalization I could use to clarify the meaning he had. Because I could not comprehend the employment of the phrase alone and unaided, it almost irked me to the point of insanity. I often involve myself much too deeply in trivial nonsense like unfinished sentences and foolish assumptions. Suppose the poet was not a poet at all, but maybe a man, or even perchance something greater than a man. The possibility that some divinity had purposefully laid this statement upon this place of transition, fully comprehending the consequence, harangued my soul to no end.

I noted that the letters impacted into the cement were printed and bold. Upon first glance, one would conclude either a child or an uneducated man of minimum importance wrote them. However, when logic is applied to the situation, common assumptions quickly become questionable. For instance, questions like, “Why would someone of this background deface the entrance to his sanctuary?” arise. Unlike learned men, men of discreditable origin have only their faith to look too. Men who sign their name to the black book of knowledge have more than fruitless worship to guide them. I am certain that no man of knowledge would dare leave such a powerful declaration unfinished. The man who vandalized this gateway was unmistakably a fool.

Across the way from the crumbling steps, which were still occupying my mind, was a minister who was attempting to provide comfort to a sobbing widow. The minister knelt before the widow holding his trusty cross in one hand and her forehead in the other. He appeared to be no more than thirty years of age. I noticed the ministers face was badly scarred which proved inconsistent with his career to the untrained eye. However, religion is a war of its own, and just as in battle disfigurement may be the result. Moreover, the stern grimace on his face led me to believe he was a either a dedicated man, or one haunted by the uncertain terms of God. Perhaps he thought his lord would liberate the widow of her suffering through him. I could only hope his savior would save the priest himself from his own naïve nature. But then, where would the widow be without him? Was she better off without the minister and his falsehoods? Allowing the mind to idle to thoughts of that nature only brings about unmotivated passion and a wavering rationalization of reality.

The preacher may have come into the service of the church by his own free will but it is more likely that by some event he was forced into its service. Probably it was the doing of his parents who justified their reasoning with statements resembling, “It is for his benefit”, or “Religion will bring meaning to his life”. This was the common source of many ministers’ beginnings and was an influential cause of the creation of many “priest schools”. A boy attending one of these schools was much in the same position of a slave due to the strict penal codes and harsh headmasters who administrated them. Once attending for seven to twelve years, the boys, who actually were men by this time, were ordained ministers and shipped off to pastor a church. The reason for this program’s great success was by the point of completion his education it was to late to take up study in another subject. In addition, the title of priest is a highly respected position in society and no man, at least not a sane one, would turn down the benefits of it. Regardless of the minister’s reasoning in becoming ordained, the occupation is extremely beneficial to both society as a whole and to the individual. Not only does it provide a comfort to the masses but also, the parishioners pay for the meals, room, and dress of the minister himself. Furthermore, a measly salary is appended to this list to ensure the minister is provided with all the essential supplies. Had I been religious, I would have found the salary to be contradictory and offensive to the title minister because of the common misusage of the salary by the pastor. Frequently the minister would spend his salary on trivial items, unnecessary for survivals purpose. Even though these were the general circumstances of ministers, it was still quite plausible that our minister had freely elected to become ordained. One can never be certain of the case because irregularities do occur.

Beyond the foolish minister and weeping widow, were a set of houses with high, pointed tops associating themselves between the trees. Amongst the visible rooftops was one peculiar roof that stood out from all the rest. There was nothing abnormal about the roof, no perceptible deformities, nor oddness. The roof almost contains a different status than the rest and might even be compared to some sort of king amongst of rooftops. It almost personified some ancient man of blood. Nevertheless, the only inconsistency with this theory of royalty was how aloof it stood from the others, which were adjacent almost to the point of being connected. Why would such an elite entity separate itself to the point of isolation? It was however evident that there was some purposeful design to the layout of these houses which was beyond my comprehension.

Aside from the rooftops, the scenery was dull and somewhat an over populace of trees. The lush forestry seemingly took on various vocations to protect the woods. Take into account the great oak trees littering the scene in all shapes and sizes. Their mysterious appearance and diabolic essence was their contribution. Taking this tone and the absence of movement within the vast trees into account managed to provide an excellent barrier against foreign invaders. This was probably for the good of the trees as a whole. In the midst of the expansive foliage, however, were stumps of good trees cut down in their prime. The purpose of their removal was unbeknownst to me at this point and little did it matter in the larger picture of things. Over the years, the trees remained generally the same and only changed slightly if ever.

To the amusement of my ears, a harsh sounding music echoed from the valleys. This was most likely coming from the town square and was either a group of exceedingly discontent townspeople protesting or a very sad toned celebration. I hoped for the later but my mind was doubtful as to it being the reality. Perhaps the musical procession would display itself in the direction of the Church. I was not certain the minister or the widow heard the music but I knew the trees had heard it due to an immense flock of birds hovering above them.

Just then, a mob of people emerged from the path adjacent to the building dubbed the church. The people were obviously ascending in the direction of the church and no person in the group ever faltered in their footsteps, which was odd due to the rocky nature of the path. I estimate the group was composed of about ten people; each dressed their own style of miserable clothes. The church doors could be described as an awkward, oak portal blockading their destination. It was iron studded and evidently worn by the brutal forces of nature over the years. Possibly even the missing trees within the forest were used to construct this heavily fortified gateway. Based solely on the appearance of the building, it was capable of withstanding a brutal assault – even if the assault originated from the bowels of hell itself. The visible windows of the church had an ominous attitude, which provided a situation that proved genuinely ironic due to the purpose of the structure. The general architecture of the church also proved to be improbable. The structural design was of a gothic origin and referred to something evidently demonic in nature.

Our church may have been the result of an ambitious soul trying to bring hope and salvation to the nearby people but there is some possibility he had other purposes in bring religion to this area. Religion is indeed a funny subject -- people unquestioningly dedicating their existence to the belief that something worth dying for is beyond life. Even though no hard evidence to support this belief exists people undeniably find themselves more loyal to God than to the rulers of their own country. Supposing God does not exist, it raises the question of who is actually behind the figurehead. Possibly a clever businessman was behind it, or even the government intelligently manipulating the masses, or maybe even still it was just the necessity of humanity to rationalize their existence.

As they climbed the stairs, I took notice of the uncomfortable quiet about the people. Not one of them had uttered a single word during the entire time since they had materialized from the path. Upon a closer examination, I concluded that at least one amongst the group was stern-faced soldier recently returning from the distant battlefields. Unlike the minister, this man’s face was not scarred or battered by the elements. The eyes of the group members shared his expression of confidence but their mouths told a different story.

(continue to next post)

As they ascended the stairway, the soldier’s foot came down upon my perplexing phrase and it was as if my soul took two quick, rapid blows. One for the mysterious entity who authored the tragedy and one for another face I could not familiarly place within my intellect. This stranger had an air of majesty about him that I had never seen in anyone else before. Whether the soldier walked on it purposely or not I cannot be sure because I could not see his expression. If he stepped upon the mark deliberately, he did so in order to express his lack of faith in the sovereignty and power of God. In terms of God, however, majesty is not tangible.

Upon reaching the church doors, the group stopped and collected itself. I suppose this was for the sake of appearance. It took two of the strongest men a lengthy, just to the point of awkwardness, time to open the heavy gateway. As it groaned open, I’m almost certain I heard a scream uttered from within the bowels of the Church. I should not be held accountable to this because I quite possibly could have imagined it as I do with many things. I am extremely doubtful to the validity of this accusation I make do to the building from whence the shriek came. Had it not been the church, I would most definitely have called upon the soldier to investigate. The only evidence I have supporting the authenticity of the sound was the newly instituted expressions on the faces of the pack as the hefty doors slammed behind them. Their footsteps echoed for a moment and then disappeared.

While the church’s doors were open, I took note of the large cross occupying the far wall. It must have been made entirely of bronze and was probably very old. I felt sorry for the men responsible for adorning the church with its presence because of how heavy a solid bronze cross must be. Perhaps though I should not be feeling sorry for them because, unlike their savior, they did not personally carry this cross to its destination. They were probably aided by the employment of some simple device or animal and their back was not crushed by the weight of the cross bearing down upon them. This only helped to strengthen my belief that people are very hypocritical in the subject of religion. Nobody is entirely prisoner to religion, if someone truly wanted to follow in their lord’s footsteps they would be forced to live without many of the luxuries they currently have. Most people occupy themselves with meeting the standard associated by the church with becoming saved. This does not require the loss of earthly possessions or bearing of sin the church originally teaches and allows leniency in the subject of being accepted in the afterlife.

The distant music had slowly been approaching during this intellectual interruption and it was now evidently going to pass the church. The drone of voices, angry with anticipation, was evident beneath the music. I was now almost positive this was no celebration and was more likely a protest against some action. This action could have been caused by the church, especially because it was not uncommon for the Church to take sides on an issue. Ironically, these demonstrations against the church were mostly composed of highly religious individuals. Generally, it did not particularly matter which side the church had taken because most people just enjoyed a good protest. I would not be exaggerating by saying that some people attending did not even know what the protest was about.