Who or better yet what is Satan.?

Question

This is a much needed question to be answered. I know a bunch of fundies are going to spout all this dogma & "scripture" at it but I do not think it will really gets at the root of what Satan is suppose to represent. I think Satan is not a person so much as more so a post, or even better yet the supreme archetype for evil. To be afraid of Satan is like being afraid of the boogie man. Fear is a really spiritual downer. Didn't Gandhi once say, the only demons that exist are the ones in our own head? In other words we allow ourselves to be evil, or good for that matter. Oh, I'm sure that there might be non-corporeal beings that have + or - influences upon us. But to a greater extent it is our own selves to give in or resist such influences. To think there's a fixed evil being that heads up the department of evil is asinine & flies in the face of freewill. All entities have freewill. So why would "demons" have to stay demons and not become helpful beings?

judy_r8, your version would make a great movie. Anyone here seen Constantine? Great movie. The scenes of hell were the scariest I have ever seen.

gaygoddevil, Satan as a scapegoat for man's dark side. interesting point of view.

Benjamin M, actually the Hindus believe all creation including the concept and or reality of Satan along with evil to be a part of God. God to them has many faces, some of which are quite frightening. Thank you for your elegant response.

Susan, you got a tiny laugh. Thanks for the humor.

Don H, I liked your answer best so far. Satan as a teacher of sorts who works by showing you what error is, interesting. It is true that Satan theoretically was Lucifer that means barely of light. My question is if Satan was the most powerful and knowledgeable angel how could he have possibly fallen. Obviously he would not think he could best God. Something else must be going on, and I like you do not buy the fundie answer.

Carl_the_Truth, Satan as a product of a lack of nads. I actually think it a product of too many nads ;)

judy_r8, I bet my dollars to your donuts you are a mormon, which I have no problem. You answer however is a bit scripted. I appreciate the effort though.

Fuhggerz, we always have a choice, even if our existence continues in one shape or form after our physical death.

kreevich, thank you for the heavenly prosecutor perspective. It is a valid concept for one to think about

Answer 1

I think your question shows that you have seriously reflected upon the nature of God. In my opinion, most religious people have a sort of cognative dissonance regarding the status and nature of the being whom we call 'Satan'. What I think they fail to recognize is that he was created by God, who knew fully what he would come to be. So, if such a being exists, as I suspect he does, and if he possesses all the power that God is said to have given him, then there must be somewhat of a relationship between them greater than that which most Christians are willing to acknowledge. The bible gives testemony to this when it talks about the wager made between God and Satan regarding one of God's favored children, Jobe. Satan convinced God to remove all of the oppulence of this poor human, and reduce him to a palid, painful existence. God did not need to engage in this wager, since He knew well the devotion of Jobe. But that He did, meant that God was 'influenced' by Satan. Thus, I cannot assert that they are enemies entirely. If God is the source of all creation, then He is the ultimate source of suffering as well. This is not a criticism of God, rather it acknowledges that God's ways may not be our ways. There is a saying among Hindus, 'do not drink an ocean of poison in immitation of Siva.'

Answer 2

Satan is a fictional character, first seen in the Book of Job, which was a literary work and not history. In this book, Satan is NOT "the Devil" (a virtual Supreme Being of Evil). He is a member of God's Heavenly Court, sort of like a Prosecutor, allowed to come and go from Heaven on a mission fron God; in fact, to settle a bet! Now according to Christian mythology, 1/3 of the angels rebelled against God before the Creation of Man and became Devils, They were cast out of Heaven and into Hell. Satan would not be allowed to come and go from the presence of God if he were The Devil. God would not work with the Devil, would he? But his function as a Heavenly Prosecutor was so odioius to man that the conception of Satan eventually became The Devil. But it just ain't so! In fact, it's only literature.

Answer 3

Who or better yet what is Satan as a cherub among all the thousands created?

John 17:3,5,24: Jesus was with God before the world was, born on earth he spoke with Satan Matt.4:1-11; So the cherub anointed over Eden OWNS ALL THE KINGDOMS OF THE WORLD BY THE TIME JESUS IS AGE 30??????
Eze.28:13-15[The created cherub anointed over Eden];

All that you are talking about is the business of the Creator and I do not speak for him, but use what is called his Word to search for answers concerning creation.

Job 38:4-7[All the angels were there to see earth become the focus for habitation,
and one has come to be more powerful than all, as permited by God their creator];

Heb.1:6,9,10[Let all the angels worship Jesus the Son of God that came to earth, that was there with them when the foundation of the earth was laid, 2:9,14.16; Jesus took on the form of man and died that he might destroy the one that has power over death and that is the devil, So Jesus was in the kingdom's owed by Satan. John 18:36;

Jesus was crucified in the world that Satan is in, this is the world that will end Matt.24:3,7,14,15,22,36-38[ ONLY GOD KNOWS DAY AND HOUR ];

Rev.17:1-6[ Woman for Satan= OLDEST PROPHECY Gen.3:15] 10-14 #1 to #5 has fallen, Jesus and John were in Rome #6 of the world Satan is in.
THE WORLD in #7 has KJV bible 1611 + 303 = 1914 after Christ an excepted translation, Jesus second coming is in the 8th.

Rev.12:1-6[ Woman for Jesus= OLDEST PROPHECY Gen.3:15]; 7-12; This woman brings the birth of the kingdom of Jesus that rules with a rod of iron, and Satan with his angel are cast out of heaven]; SATAN HAS A SHORT TIME LEFT. Rom.16:20; Acts 2:31-35; Heb.1:1-13;
The wait is for Satan and enemies to be on footstool earth since David Matt.22:42-45;

This is old prophecy fulfilled.

Satan will be in the 8th of Rev.17:10-14; He will be in the 8th a short time from Rev.12:7-12; to Rev.20:1-6; The thousand year reign of Jesus.

Answer 4

The Hebrew word "Satan" means "Hinderer." To hinder someone means to hold him back, to try to prevent him from doing something. God created the Hinderer to give us work to do in this world. Satan is here to make things difficult for us, so we can overcome our evil temptations, and PASS our test. That is the purpose of Satan. Satan is an angel whose purpose has been determined by God. He operates under Gods sanction.

Temptation is there to try and deter us. It gives us the ability to do the wrong thing. More importantly, it gives us the ability to look at evil and refuse to do it. By presenting us with the opportunity to do evil, it gives us the ability to choose between good and evil.

Seen in this light you can understand that the Satan idea essentially works for God as an assistant of sorts. He might be compared to a teacher who works In reverse buy showing us the effects we can expect if we make negative choices. The hope is that we will learn not to make these types of choices once we see the inevitable outcome.

The other name for Satan, Lucifer Means light bringer, or bringer of enlightenment. That is if we follow his lead at some point we will see his deception and make different choices. However you look at him he is here to assist us in our spiritual growth. In truth seeing this idea as a being is incorrect. It is internal to us and is called ego. Our job here is to overcome this part of us.

Unless of course you are reading something like the bible. Then it’s hellfire and damnation all the way. What a load.

Answer 5

Satan does'nt exist. He's a made up scapegoat. All evil on earth comes from man himself. The problem is most men don't have the nads to admit it. So they made up someone to blame everything on.

Answer 6

Satan is a vague symbol. Sum ppl to confront their fears and inner demons need to give it a face, and ppl find comfort in things everyone has accepted. Your right, inner demons r definetly the true things we shuld focus, because everything you see around you is represented from what you believe in your mind. No matter who people turn to for answers (family, God), it will always lead you back to the answer in youself.

Answer 7

Satan is another name for lucifer, an angel who was in gods favour until he demanded that God take away man's free will and plotted a revolt against god when god refused. He was thrown out of heaven along with the other angels who revolted, and has vowed revenge against god.

Answer 8

Because those "demons" made their choice in life to be Evil, and now are paying the ultimate punishment. Death is not the end of life, but for the evil it is the end of choice.

Answer 9

Ultimately, He is a scapegoat. He is the dark side of mankind's nature. if you want to see some more, go to www.churchofsatan.com and go to "theory and practice" menu, and click on "9 Satanic Statements".

Answer 10

It is the scapegoat for the bad things in the world. People have a hard time blaming themselves so they have to invent some other thing to blame.