The Devil is Dead

Years ago a parishioner at our church walked out on a sermon by one of our former priests when that priest said, "We no longer believe in a literal Devil." Needless to say, I was stunned by the priest's sermon, and after studying up on the subject, I concluded that only the Devil himself could be behind such a notion. I found that I could no longer trust that priest when he went through the motions of baptizing an infant, and he asked the parents,

"Do you renounce Satan and all the spiritual forces of wickedness that rebel against God?

I have since learned that revisionists use clever little mind tricks to hold two discordant beliefs together. One way is to play to the audience, to say the words they want to hear which will do less harm than to tell them what you really believe, or in other words, it is okay to tell a white lie to protect the spiritually and intellectually less advanced.

The Church of England must also be having this devilish problem (priests having to act hypocritically due to the prescribed liturgy), and they are considering doing something about it. No, they are not thinking about educating their clergy in the theology of Satan. It is much easier to change the language of the Baptismal Rite to accommodate the clergy. Reports in the media suggest that the language is being changed to accommodate the laity, but I suspect this is old fashioned dog-collar led revisionism at play.

The story from the Daily Mail sums it up and implicates the Archbishop himself in this scheme,

"Parents and godparents no longer have to ‘repent sins’ and ‘reject the devil’ during christenings after the Church of England rewrote the solemn ceremony.

In the original version, the vicar asks: ‘Do you reject the devil and all rebellion against God?’  

Prompting the reply: ‘I reject them.’ They then ask: ‘Do you repent of the sins that separate us from God and neighbour?’, with the answer: ‘I repent of them.’  

But under the divisive reforms, backed by Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and already being practised in 1,000 parishes, parents and godparents are asked to ‘reject evil, and all its many forms, and all its empty promises’ – with no mention of the devil or sin.  

The new text, to be tested in a trial lasting until Easter, also drops the word ‘submit’ in the phrase ‘Do you submit to Christ as Lord?’ because it is thought to have become ‘problematical’, especially among women who object to the idea of submission." 

Just as I did several years ago, I have studied the issue, and my conclusion is the same as it was then.

Screwtape is rubbing his hands in glee. His devils have successfully carried out the biggest stunt they ever attempted. They have killed the Devil. To the collective mind of Man there is no more Devil. This accomplishment tops their earlier elimination of the concept of Sin.

The Devil is dead! Long live the king, ME!

"Hee, hee, hee..." - Screwtape.

H/t Vic the Vicar, Fr. Dale Matson

Addendum: Screwtape be damned. I made these additions to the Revised Revisionist Dictionary, Satan, Devil, devils.