Proposes a Toast!

Screwtape is the guest of honor during a graduation ceremony. He explains by saying how Hell has a lot of expectations and demands from all the graduates. He says their career is all before them and tells them that they shouldn't keep their hopes up high nor anything is promised. I did get a bid confused on the rest of his speech.
He them seems to be talking to the different groups of people in that class about how evern the great Saints are all sinners too. They are all the same materials as each of them. He also says that when Grace is offered upon them, they should refuse it. It would enable them to be honest, chaste, or temperate. He says, " To accept might make them Different, might offend again the Way of Life, take them out of togetherness, impair their Integration with the group. The might (horror of horrors!) become individuals." I wondered why he would say that, but again, he is the devil and he would say that just so his people won't become of any religion.
At the end of the book they all seem to be happy and satisfied that religion should soon be vanished from the Earth someday. They would be more than happy to take people's sins, where they will keep and continue to tempt human beings successfully!

Chapter 28-31

Ch. 29

Screwtape tells Wormwood that we all can manage hatred even though our nerves and emotions may conflict with hate which makes us prone to any violent emotion. We should not be fearful or be a coward because hatred is best combined with all of this. “The more he fears, the more he will hate.” It’s true because when I dislike something, I keep thinking about it and it takes over my mind turning it in to fear and hatred. It piles up into a bigger mountain. I guess the only way to get rid of the hatred or fear is that we should stand up for ourselves and not be a coward, according to Screwtape. People smell fear and people also see a strong courageous person too! It’s a game with some people and with Satan, but it’s a test with God. “He sees as well as you do that courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at the testing point, which means, at the point of highest reality?

Ch. 25-27

Chapter 26

Screwtape tells wormwood that by the time 10 years comes along, you'll end up hating each other. It first starts off by dating, then Love, then marriage, then trying to please each others wishes. There's also a mutual sacrifice throughout the entire marriage. Unselfishness is the key point so he says. (Then the excitement will not last). Once the unselfishness has established as a rule, then both argues because they truely don't know what each others wishes really are! This creates a grudge against each other. He noted: "If each side had been frankly contending for its own real wish, they would all have kept withing the bounds of reason and courtesy...."

We should all be honest from the beginning to prevent tension and unselfishness later in a relationship with a friend or partner. Actual good advice from Screwtape lately for me. "Love is not enough, that charity is needed and not yet achieved and that no external law can supply its place."

Ch. 22-24

Ch: 22

I believe Screwtape's secretary; Toadpipe is writing in this letter. He seems to be so upset that Wormwoods friend has a girlfriend who is a Christian. He is so upset and disturbed by her that he says she makes him so sick. He is so mad because he thinks the world is all going against him and how he is telling everyone about her. Toadpipe is now despising Wormwood's friend as well as his girlfriend. He tells him that everything: cats, dogs, the house, and the garden will despise her too. There will eventually be dead silence on this earth because of her. I am not sure why Toadpipe is writing so harshly about Wormwood's friend and girlfriend. This book is very annoying because it degrades a lot of things, but if you think about it, that is what the devil would do and is here to do these bad things. I hope that Wormwood will soon respond to his reactions.

Ch. 19-21

Chapter 20: screwtape wants Wormwood to possibly choose a wife so he can be unchaste. He points out when choosing a wife that he should look partlicularly for physical features. He tells Wormwood to look for femenine body figures and tells him to becareful because some women are fakes when it comes to body figures because they will try to look like it be wearing tighter clothes and tighter suits to have the figurely body even though they really have a boyish figure. It's all an act he tells Wormwood. He then tells him that the one he finds to marry will be his "own", or slave, or accomplice, or idol. He also explains that once you are married, your wife is like beauty, ugliness by art. But Screwtape noted the only way to marry her is that he has to be a Christian and must Love her.

Chapter 16-18

In chapter 17 Screwtape is telling Wormwood the his friends mother is a selfish person. She is used to getting what she wants and lately she does not receive anything properly as it was like back in the day. She's greedy and which makes her and her son feel very uncomfortable. She's picky and wants everything her way. He also states that women are more about vanity. I'm not sure if he's trying to sound and is sexist. I was just a bit confused on this chapter but it was interesting to read. On page 90 and 91, I was a bit lost because it seems that he is trying to say that women should cater to men and their needs. Then I think he says that we women should make sure their men/solders should be taken care of even though you have to lie to them? I really don't like this book and it is too confusing to me.

Chapter 12-15

I'm writing about chapter 15 and it was pretty interesting to me. I didn't understand the beginning as I did in the end of the letter. In the beginning, I think Screwtape tells Wormwood that we should live in the present to its fullest and the enemy doesn't. The enemy only looks at the future and we want the enemy to look at the present day. From what I think Screwtape says, he says that we should look at the present because we don't know what will happen in the future. It's unknown to all of us, it could bring us fear, and it is least like eternity. He means that the future is temporary. It's temporary because we don't know when we are going to die. We have to plan for tomarrow and we should not give our hearts to the future. I think he's trying to say live you day everyday like there is no tomarrow? I liked what he said on pg.78. He says: "We want a whole race perpetually in pursuit of the rainbows end, never honest, nor kind, nor happy now, but always using a mere fuel wherewith to heap the altar of the future every real gift which is offered them in the present."

Chapter 8-11

Screwtape seems to tell wormwood alot of good useful information. In one of his letters, he tells him to make good use of anything, even his enemy's because he wants His creatures (meaning humans) to be a replicate of his life. (i think). In chapter nine, it was a little bit more easier to read, but i don't relate to it. He says that humans seem to easily fall in love so quickly. They have more energy in the beginning of the relationship and sometimes in the it's not what you thought it would be. So that's when relationships end. It can be dissappointing to some people because people wonder what happened with the fun and excitement when they first met? on the second page of Ch. 9, i think what he's also trying to say is that when you should meet someone, it should not be at a druken moment because it's not a real thing? i think that is what it says??? Also, that God created this invention for two people to become one. So he says that we must put in some effort into one another instead of one putting effort and the other not.

Screwtape 4-7

So screwtape know that wormwood is going to be called for the military and he wants him to be focused and concentrated as God would want him to be. (i think) God will provide him with all the proper things that he needs. He says not to have the enemy take control over our mind becasuse if they do, they're pretty much taking over you mentally. Screwtape says that it can weaken him spiritually as well. Mind over matter. Another thing he says is to have the energy to look beyond himself and also not to hate. Some people judge on what they hear or read but really don't know the person or something they hear about until they actually met with that thing or person and know how it acts or feels. He says things that are often judged, such a person who is judging someone or somehthing else; well they are most likely to be full of hatred and are most likely a miserable person.
These are all my assumptions on these chapters. I'm still a bit lost on reading, but i guess i sorta get it....very slowly. :)

Screwtape Ch. 1-3

I think this was a challenge for me to read, but here are my thoughts about it. In Ch. 1, I think the devil sees God as two different people. He is also saying that whe n a person who believes in God or is a Christian, then you will believe and see things that really aren't there. Ch. 2 says most Christians convert to the devil sooner or later. He also says that Christians are pictorial (make believe) and says that God is not supportive of his "creatures" who are not realistic. Ch. 3 discussees that the devil says we pray to a imaginary person. I think he's trying to say it's okay to hate one another?
This book is interesting but it's very hard to understand what he's really talking about....