What is the purpose of Satan in Christian theology?

Question: “What exactly is the purpose of Satan in Christian theology? Is he just a bogeyman type scare tactic? I ask because I remember being terrified on the bus in elementary school when an older girl told me all about Revelations, the anti-Christ, Satan, etc--this little Episcopalian had never heard any of that. And if he's not just something to scare waverers--if he represents an actual power that strives against God, then how is it a monotheistic religion?”

An Answer:

C.S. Lewis has a marvelous way of explaining the traditional view of the Devil/Satan for modern thinkers in his book Mere Christiantiy. Much of what I have to say here is inspired by his thoughts. Lewis points out that the concept of the Devil and Satan reveal several things about Christianity's view of existence:

‎1) God and the Devil are not equals. The philosophy that says good and evil are equal is called “dualism.” In dualism there is a never-ending struggle between good and evil and it is the opposition to the other that defines each. So a dualist would say, “We don’t know good times without the hard times.” The problem with dualism is that human existence is doomed to always know evil, wrong, and tragedy.  There is no possibility of existence without evil – a very grim forecast.

      The Christian view believes in a blissful paradise, an ideal state where good exists without evil. This is explained by the story of origin where good (God) exists before evil (the Devil). In short, the devil was the Archangel Lucifer, a created being who, though originally good, corrupted himself with envy, pride, malice, and self-deceit.  

Thus, Christianity teaches it is possible to have good without evil (God without the Devil) but evil without good cannot exist, just as Lucifer/the Devil would never have existed without God, his creator. The end result of which is that Christians don’t believe evil must exist, should exist, or will always exist. In other words, Christians have hope that evil will eventually not exist.   

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2) Evil cannot create. It can only corrupt.  Christianity believes that evil was never able to create, to make something from nothing. Evil can only take what is good and change it in some way God had not intended. There are several lessons here:

    - All created things are, by their original nature, good. There is nothing that exists that was ever   solely evil.

    - Many things that are good can be turned to evil. This is a warning against complacency. 

    - There is hope that anything evil might be turned back to good. This is called redemption.

    - If evil were ever successful in destroying good, evil would not be able to proliferate (since it cannot create) and would eventually die. Thus the end of evil is nihilism – self-destruction and non-existence.

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3) The names for evil specify its primary activity. The "Devil" means "deceiver" and "Satan" means "accuser". Thus in Job, the Satan is more like a lawyer making a case against Job. However, by the time of Revelation, Satan is in outright war with God, attempting to be Judge and Ruler of the world, accusing creation and God of abandoning each other. Revelation is the counter story, where neither God nor the People of God have abandoned one another. As the Deceiver, the Devil is attempting to convince God and Creation of the truth of a false reality – that neither loves, cares, or belongs to the other. 

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4) In continuing to teach about a "Devil" or "Satan", Christianity continues to assert that evil exists; can be recognized; is devious, cunning, adversarial, and even personal; and that we are currently in the middle of an epic conflict full of intention and not just random happenstance. Thus the Christian is likewise to be intentional in living life, carefully making choices and seeking God and not to naively or ignorantly stumble carelessly through life.

One last observation:  Our lives in the West are fairly shielded from some harsh realities - that's not to say life is easy here. I don’t mean that at all. What I do mean to say is that the idea of the Devil/Satan may look a lot more feasible to those of us in the world who have seen diabolical evil - millions injured or killed by plague, disaster, war, or genocide. 

In simple terms, without the Devil everything that happens, including tragedy, is a result of God's intention or negligence. Who else is left to attribute it to? And if God intends such tragedy, then we have to arrive at the conclusion that God is not supremely good.  

A Question About Mormonism

A facebook friend wrote to me. Her question is below.

"...Another reason that I am writing is becuase I have some questions about Mormonism. I am not Mormon and I do not want to become one. I am perfectly happy with my faith as a Non-denominational Christian. My curiousity with the LDS and the FLDS is at an all time high though. I have a friend of mine, who really is a great genuine guy who would give the shirt off of his back. He is Mormon. We have had some discussions about it but I am delicate in the conversation because I don't want to disrespect or be judgemental to his beliefs. [...] I guess what I am looking for is the Honest to God truth. I keep thinking there must be some good to it because I know great people who are LDS members and they are happy with their faith and believe what they have been taught is the truth. I also know, aside from the people who I know that are Momon, there are a lot of followers. There is 2 sides to everything and the only information I seem to get is one-sided. One side is truly behind the Mormon religion and the side that is against it. I am hoping with your relgious education, experience, and knowledge, I can get some honest insight [...]

-C."

Dear C.,

I'll tell you my opinion, but I think I'm going to introduce you to a Lutheran friend (pastor) who is a little more versed on the subject of other faiths. But my thougts first...

Trinity

First: Mormons don't belienve in the Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) in the same way that Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholics, Anglicans (including Episcopalians like me) and Protestants do. For Mormons the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are three (or maybe two) separate individuals. That difference greatly alters greatly the conception of God and who Jesus is and what Jesus is all about.

Morality 

Second: I agree. I see many moral Mormons out there. Some Mormons are really, REALLY good people. Indeed, I think that as a whole Mormons could teach many others a great deal about family as a priority, about self-discipline, community, and moral living. I have heard of a non-Mormon who once said that if Mormonism was a civic club or organization they would sign right up (because of the things I just mentioned). The problem for that person was the religious claims of Mormonism, stemming from the Book of Mormon and from the LDS hierarchy.

A Common Problem 

Third: Many Christians ("and Mormons" or "including Mormons" depending on your perspective) believe that living a good (i.e. a righteouss and morally pure) life is what is needed to enter heaven or to "be saved." Orthodox Christianity says that is mistaken. We simply can't be good enough to enter Heaven or save ourselves by doing good things or being good people. When we think that we can, Christ (and the Bible) tell us that we're in denial.

Salvation

Fourth: What saves us is Jesus Christ. Who he is. What he is. What he did, is doing, and will do. And that is why my first point is so important. Mormons and orthodox Christians disagree on who Jesus is, what he meant, and what his actions resulted in. And thus we have a different understanding of what salvation is all about.

Who's In & Who's Out?

Last Point: "Are Mormons saved?" This is undoubtedly the question that comes up next. The answer is "That's up to God." (That is, by the way, is the same answer for each of us when we ask about our own salvation.)

We all have a faulty understanding of Jesus and salvation because we are all sinners. Sin inhibits our view of truth, goodness, and righteousness. We all depend on God's grace through Jesus to straighten us out. And each of us has to choose every day whether to accept that grace or refuse it. In as much as a Mormon or anyone else, accepts Jesus on Jesus' terms, we are promised salvation through Jesus. The question then is how much are we (all of us) embracing what Jesus calls us to, without addition, negation, or excuse.

I personally think the answer to that question will defy denominational and religious boundaries. Best advice I know is to cling to Jesus and not let other things get between the two of you. Much easier said than done.

Is the Book of Common Prayer Important?

The Book of Common Prayer (a.k.a. "the Prayer Book" or "the BCP") has, indeed, been a central part of Anglicanism since the Protestant Reformation (AD 1500's). It has been second only to the Bible in influencing Anglican (Episcopal) beliefs, morality, spirituality, ethics, and culture. One reason is that the Prayer Book was devised as an intricate recipe to bring various and seemingly contradictory factions into the union of worshiping God together. In the beginning these opposing factions were Protestanct and Roman Catholic. Later, other oposing factions emerged, such as Anglo-catholic and Evangelical. In these cases the Book of Common Prayer was instrumental in bringing about a Middle Way - a way of including both groups into one church.

Today we still have opposing perspectives: Global vs. local, liberal/moderate/conservative, progressive vs. traditional, ritualistic vs. freeform, etc. The Prayer Book remains for us a way of drawing apparently opposing perspectives toward Christ and toward unity. Our Prayer Book connects us with our Christian family globally and locally, whether liberal or conservative, progressive or traditional, etc. When we disregard the Prayer Book as having no importance or authority, when we pay it no attention or ignore it in favor of our own personal preferences (even if it's for the sake of inclusion), we ultimately undermine one of the chief ways Anglicans have been unified one to another throughout time and across the entire globe. In otherwords we exclude others and exclude ourselves from the vast community it represents.

Why is the Book of Common Prayer important? Because it represents our best and most careful efforts to be united to God and to one another throughout time and space in prayer and in belief. It is our living and evolving creed.