The Devil?

Who is he?

I think it ironic that the devil gets so much attention by Christians.

Christians have not just one, but many adversaries.  Many Christians believe that there is a being of ultimate evil that has legions upon legions of demons doing his every whim...

Christians believing this have been deceived by faulted tradition... A not so uncommon circumstance in our religion.

Christianity give too much power to a singular, non-Biblical entity. People claim all of the time that the devil is coming against them and their families, or that a demon has oppressed them, or that all of hell is coming against them. They feel that just because they are facing hardship, they have fallen under the devil's gaze...

Many times a true understanding of what is happening would completely alter their attitude, and the outcome of the situation.

I would like to call to attention the fact that the Bible has very little to say about angels, demons, and the nature of Heaven and Hell... What we are taught by tradition is very corrupted, and erroneous. This is mostly because much of the information that early Christians had access to has been removed from standard Christian tradition today... It is also partly because of the widespread illiteracy of  Christians through the ages, and the fact that the Organization felt that the same doctrine must be taught across the world... When not all of a council could agree in what meant what, they decided it didn't belong, and it was not included in the Canon...

One of the most heated topics debated in early Church history was the nature of angels/demons, and Heaven/Hell.

 When the Old Testament speaks of Satan, it is merely speaking of an adversary. Not always of evil origin, but sometimes sent of God. It boils down to the original Aramaic or Hebrew word that would be in the original Aramic or Hebrew text... Sometimes ideas get lost in translation...

The short of it... A satan could be angel or demon.

Now, before you shut me down because you think I am trying to tell you there are no demons, hear me out. That is not what I am saying. I do believe in demons, but I feel it is important to know the facts.

The tradition of Lucifer, aka Satan, started very early on in Christian history. We have a collaboration of early Church personalities to thank for that. 
      
Two men who are probably the earliest known to claim Isaiah 14:12-15 was a reference to God's evil arch-nemesis were Tertullian (Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus), and Origen Adamantius. The in-depth mythos of Lucifer as we know him today can almost be completely outline by Tertullian himself...

Saint Jerome (Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus) ,who compiled and translated the Latin Bible, aka The Vulgate, followed Origen's and Tertullian's conclusions of Lucifer, and thus propagated the ideology that would become tradition in the Church.

Why is it important to understand that Lucifer is a false persona? Well, one of the biggest issues I see is that, because Christians have believed so full-heartedly in such a mythos, it has given rise to a focus away from God.

Satan aka Lucifer has become to a large part of the world an anti-God that has more sway in the world than God... There are many people in the world that think Lucifer is a force that is nearly equal to God. Christians have given power to the spiritually evil by their belief in the Satanic Lucifer.

Christians have used Lucifer/Satan as an excuse for everything that doesn't line up with how they feel the world should be... From problems in the Church, to problems with their country, to problems with their families, etc. They use the belief that Satan has come against them to stop doing what they should and allow God to take over....

... But in reality, when a satan/adversary comes against a Christian, it usually means it's time for them to take action... 

Christians use the idea of Satan/Lucifer as an excuse of lost free will... They will claim that Satan was just too strong for them, and that they acted under demonic oppression... 

When something happens that makes someone sad, it is claimed that Satan had a hand in it. The fact usually is that whatever makes us upset is a result of us living, or making mistakes, or the result of someone else exercising their free will...

People can do bad things without a demon coercing them to do it... We have an imperfect nature, and with such a nature, we are capable of acting wrongly without help... Such is the way of the selfish. We don't need a demon whispering in our ear...

If we keep believing that demons are laying in wait for us at every turn, we will continue to make excuses and passing the blame for actions we willingly take. Can we be tempted by demons? I am sure we can, but as long as we continue to give them credit for succeeding, then we give them more power than they deserve.

Just because people do bad things, or people get hurt, get sick, or die; just because you hit a financial hardship, or you lose your possessions; just because people you know do drugs, or have lots of sex; It doesn't mean it's all the work of demons... If people succumb to weaknesses of their selfish nature, they may be leaving an opening for demon activity, but it doesn't demons are to blame... 

Death is a part of life, and so is pain and sadness... These bodies we inhabit now are susceptible to such things...
Financial hardship is also a part of life... Demonic intervention isn't needed for you to lose a job, a house, or a car... 
Humans are curious by nature, and prone to enjoying experiences that give them elevated feelings and emotions; it doesn't take a demon to know that drugs and sex can give these coveted sensations to a body.

For those of you that are not convinced... Think of it this way...  If you want to believe in a Christian tradition, believe in this one.

We are told that when the angels chose to turn their backs on God, a third of their ranks turned. That leaves two thirds left with God... That means for every demon that accosts you, two angels are there to intercede for you... I'll take those odds, and as far as I am concerned as long as I have 2 angels and God on my side, a demon can't touch me...

Yet I still have to contend with my free will and selfish nature. God isn't going to touch my free will, it is part of what makes me in His image... So sometimes when I have not turned my self over, my free will can still succumb to those things which my self is weak against... Most of the time I fail, a demon has nothing to do with it...

Christians need to stop giving power to demons that those evil spirits do not deserve. They cannot take your free will unless you give it to them. 

I think it way past time for Christians to take responsibility for their own Fails, and man up to the Standard they claim to follow and/or force on others.