by Father John Catoir
To some, the devil is nothing more than a silly Halloween costume. Nothing could be further from the truth.
The Las Vegas massacre cannot be explained as a mental health issue. It was pure evil that manifested itself as demonic madness. Those who deny the existence of Satanic malice have a lot to learn.
The Vatican has for centuries maintained archival records of diabolical possessions. A special school exists in the Holy See to train priests to be exorcists. To regard demonic behavior merely as a person’s disconnection from reality is spiritual blindness.
Those who deny the existence of the devil need to realize that if you cut out all the sections of the Bible that mention the activity of Satan and the forces of darkness, the book would be left in shreds.
“The serpent is a liar, more crafty than any of the wild animals. God said, ‘You must not eat fruit from this tree or you will die.’ Later, Satan said, ‘You will certainly not die.’ Genesis 3:1-5.
“But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ.” 2 Cor. 11:3
“The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.” 1 John 3:8. And, “I came that your joy may be full.” John 15:11.
Before the local leaders picked up stones to throw at Jesus, He said to them, “You belong to the devil; he is your father, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth. When Satan lies, he speaks his native tongue, for he is a liar and the father of lies…then Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.” John 8:44, 59.
“Then Peter said, ‘Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land?” Acts 5:3.
“Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the powers of darkness, and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Ephesians 6:11-16.
Jesus said, “Fear is useless what you need is trust.” Luke 8:50.
It is because I care that I present these truths to you. A good father wants to protect his children from all danger, visible and invisible. Yes, it’s scary; it’s upsetting I know, but it is the truth.
I worry about all the high school kids who were taught by their science teacher never to believe anything that they can’t prove scientifically.
To that I say, just look at the slaughters that took place in Las Vegas. There is evidence from all over the world, where Muslim Jihadist terrorists have mercilessly massacred thousands, even while they are at worship. Is that evidence enough for you? Tell it like it is.
May the Lord be your strength and your joy.
I am so glad to see the article written by Fr. John Catoir.
We seldom hear priests mention the existence of Satan and this give him incredible strength and power to get more victims to accompany him in hell because our behavior comes to the point that there is no consequence for sins since hell does not exist. A priest told me that I should not be surprised to find Hitler in heaven because God is merciful. I am not in a position to judge Hitler. But He is a just God. The blood of the victims in the concentration camp cries out for justice just as the blood of the victims of the massacre in Nevada, the victims of 9/11 cry out for justice. In Genesis 4:10 God said to Cain, “Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the soil!”
God is kind and merciful and forgives man seventy times seven. But God did not forgive Lucifer who rebelled against Him. So Satan exists and he wants to grab as many souls as he can to accompany him in hell by infiltrating our minds to do whatever we like with no consequence because God is a merciful and He will forgive us.
The Church can save more souls if articles like this can be brought to the attention of the priests as well as to the laity.
Evil is real and a product of Original Sin. While Baptism forgives Original Sin, a person still has the free will to access the evil within. Ascribing this evil to an entity outside of oneself, like a devil, minimizes the responsibility of the individual in confronting his or her evil intentions and actions. “The Devil made me do it” or tempted me to do evil provides a false defense in accepting that I must confront and combat the evil impulses that originate within me. People who express devil possession may manifest an internal moral struggle that is real and serious and need the prayers categorized as the Rite of Exorcism. The Church and the Bible may have personified this evil as the “Devil” as a way to understand a complex truth in a tangible form. However, I am concerned that this leads people to believe evil is something “other” and an outside influence rather than something inside us all that we need to acknowledge and strive to overcome.