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Essay Name       : 1308.txt 
Uploader         : Jonathon Gamet
Email Address    : 
Language         : English
Subject          : Religion
Title            : Satan
Grade            : 84%
School System    : College
Country          : USA
Author Comments  : Used to describe personal views
Teacher Comments : Good paper
Date             : 10-15-96
Site found at    : By accident
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Satan


I  grew  up  in  the  ------  church.  I  was  baptized  at  the  age  of  eight.  I  went  to  Sunday  School  just  about  every  Sunday.  With  all  of  this  church  background  in  middle  school  I  still  moved  away  from  God.  I  did  not  believe  in  God.  I  wanted  as  far  away  from  God  as  possible.  I  tried  to  drop  out  of  the  church  but  my  mom  would  not  let  me.  
Then  one  night  in  the  eighth  grade  while  I  was  sleeping  I  saw  a  figure  standing  across  the  room  by  my  door  looking  at  me.  The  figure  was  tall,  had  a  black  beard.  He  had  a  plaid  shirt,  jeans,  and  suspenders.  He  had  red  eyes  that  seemed  penetrate  through  my  body  right  into  my  soul.  He  said  nothing  just  stood  there  looking  at  me.  Then  I  awoke  from  fright  and  I  still  saw  him  by  my  door,  then  I  pinched  myself  and  it  was  real.  Then  I  remembered  a  childish  game  called  Bloody  Mary,  in  the  game  you  got  rid of  Satan  by  turning  on  the  lights.  I  have  a  night  light  above  my  bed  that  I  switched  on,  then  right  away  I  said  a  prayer.  I  felt  as  if  someone  was  watching  over  me  and  that  I  was  safe.  I  then  turned  off  the  light  looked  by  my  door  and  saw  nothing.  For  away  I  just  stared  at  the  door.  Then  I  decided  I  should  get  some  sleep  so  I  told  myself  not  to  worry  about  it  and  get  some  sleep.  I  did  not  know  what  or  whom  I  saw  but  I  had  a  feeling  it  was  the  Devil.
About  this  time  I  changed  congregations  that  actually  had  people  my  own  age  that  went  on  a  regular  basis.  I  began  to  enjoy  going  to  church  again.  Then  about  one  to  two  months  after  my  first  vision  I  had  another  one  that  was  basically  just  like  the  first.  This  was  the  last  of  my  experiences  like  these  two.  I  am  very  glad  that  was  my  last  experience  of  that kind.
Then  in  my  junior  year  I  read  The  Devil in  Tom  Walker  and  Satan  was  dressed  as  a  lumberjack  in  the  story.  That  imagery  of  the  Devil  is  like  what  I  saw.  In  the  summer  of  my  junior  year  I  went  on  Canoe  Camp.  Two  adults  and  I  were  sitting  around  the  campfire  talking.  One  of  them  told  a  story  about  being  at  a  retreat  for  priesthood  members  at  the  camp  grounds  and  seeing  the  exact  same  thing  I  saw.  He  was  talking  to  an  older  guy  and  the  older  guy  said  that  he  had  a  similar  experience  and  that  Satan  comes  when  he  almost  has  you  and  then  he  loses  you.  Then  after  he  finished    telling  his  story  I  told  them  mine  for  the  first  time.  I  believe  that  was  probably  the  first  time  I  told  anyone  my  story.
In  the  ninth  grade  I  went  on  Youth  Venture  for  Christ.  I  went  on  it  every  year  of  high  school.  Over  the  four  years  I  had  the  most  amazing  experiences.  I  saw  people  very  sick  and  who  were  administered  to,  and  then  they  were  healed  quickly.  I  became  the  opposite  person  then  I  was  in  middle  school.  I  am  thankful  for  my  experiences.  Without  them  I  have  no  idea  where  I  would  be  today.  I  do  not  like  thinking  about  where  I  might  be  if  things  where  different.  From  my  experiences  on  Youth  Venture  for  Christ  I  got  very  close  with  God  and  became  very  religious.  Through  my  experiences  in  middle  school  I  do  not  get  really  scared.  After  those  experiences  nothing  has  come  close  to  scaring  me  like  those  did.
The  Devil  has  many  names;  The  Adversary,  Father  of  Lies,  The  Evil  One,  and  Prince  of  Darkness.  His  proper  names  are;  Lucifer,  Satan,  and  Mephistopheles.  The  general  names  for  Satan  are  El  Diabolo,  the  Devil,  and   Diabolos.
“According  to  Christian  tradition,  Satan  is  a  pure  spirit  created  by  God  who  rebelled  of  his  own  free  will  and  now  preys  on  a  fallen  humanity.  He  is  a  liar  and  seducer  of  immense  intelligence  who  makes  evil  look  good.” (Woodward  pg. 67)
“Satan  hates humankind  and  seeks  our  ruin  because  he  hates  God,  his  and  our  Creator.  He  seeks  only  to  thwart  God’s  plans,  wreck  his  work,  rob  him  of  glory,  and  in  that  sense  master  God.”  (Packer pg. 24)
These  two  quotes  are  similar  about  who  the  Devil  is  and  what  he  does  and  plans  to  keep  on  doing  for  as  long  as  he  can.  These  are  also  like  II  Nephi  12: 23-32.  They  all  basically  say  the  same  things.  It  seems  like  this  is  general  school  of  thought  on  the  Devil.
“The  concept  of  the  Devil  as  we  know  him  originated  with  the  efforts  of  the  first-century  followers  of  Jesus  to  define  themselves  by demonizing  their  enemies-especially  Jews,  pagans,  and  heretics.”  (Pagels  pg.  A6)
I  do  not  believe  Ms.  Pagels  quote.  I  see  how  it  can  be  interpreted  in  that  way.  That has  happened  many  times  over  the  course  of  history.  The  other  people  usually  are  the  wrong  ones.  People  hardly  ever  take  blame  for  their  own  mistakes.  The  world  was  very  egocentric  even  more  than  it  is  now,  which  is  probably  a  reason  for  her  statement.  I  only  put  the  quote  in  for  diversity.
“According  to  a  recent  Newsweek  Poll  two  out  of  three  adult  Americans  do  indeed  believe  that  the  Devil  exists.   For  a  fourth  of  them,  however,  he  is  merely  a  symbol  of  man’s  inhumanity  to  man.  Among  Christians, only  the  born-again  reveal  a  robust  sense of  the  Devil’s  presence.  Sixty  percent  of  born-again  believers  report  that  they  have  been  tempted  by  the  Devil  and  half  as  many  say  they  have  met  someone  whom  they  thought  was  in  Satan’s  control.” (Woodward pg. 64)  
“In  contrast,  only  26  percent  of  Roman  Catholics  say  they  have  been  tempted  by  Satan and  31  percent  of  nonevangelical  Protestants  insist  that  there  is  no  such  thing  as  the  Devil...  College  graduates  are  twice  as  likely  as  Americans  with  no  higher  education  to  deny  the  Devil’s  existence.” (Woodward pg. 64)
“A  recent  Gallup  poll  in  Canada,  for  example,  revealed  that  from  1985  to  1995  belief  in  God  slipped  from  87  percent  to  70  percent-but  during  the  same  time  period  belief  in  the  Devil  rose  from  33  percent  to  54  percent.” (Graham pg. 65) 
Nowadays  people  look  for a logical explanation  for  things  that  happen.  There  is always  a  specific  reason  why  things  happen  for  some  people.  If  people  can  not  find  a  reason  they  make  one  up  or  blame  it  on  other  people. People  are  not  comfortable  with  saying  the  Devil  did  it,  or  God  did  it  depending  on  what  happen.  I  believe  there  is  logical  explanations  for  lots of  things,  but  some  things  it  is  all  up  to  God  or  the  Devil.
Evil  was  and  will  be  always  around.  Without  evil  there  will  be  no  good.  Without  any  good  there  would  be  nothing  to  compare  our  lives  with.  If  there  was  only  good  there  would  be  nothing  to  improve,  we  would  be  hunters  and  gathers  still.  They  will  be  just  experiences  neither  good  nor  bad.  It  is  like  the  saying  “Sugar  is  not  sweet  unless  you  have  tasted  salt.”  Since  there  is  always  evil  there  is  a  belief  against  a  good,  all  powerful  God.  
“The  real  Satan  is  no  pitchforked,  arrow tongued,  redhead  Devil,  the  church  has  always  been  better  informed  than  the  world  about  what  Satan  is  and  how  he  manifests  himself  and  invades  our  lives,”  Rev.  Howard  Creecy  Jr. (Woodward pg. 66)
Satan  is  considered  to  be  omnipresent  but  not  omniscient  or  omnipotent.  God  created  Satan,  he  has  to  stay  within  the  boundaries  that  God  set  for  the  Devil.  God  could  probably  get  rid  of  Satan  but  God  knows  there  has  to  some  kind  of  evil  in  the  world.  He  is  constantly  trying  to  get  more  people  under  his  domain.  He  calls  God  to  get  rid  of  people  who  are  sinful.  Satan  is  always  around  the  corner  trying  to  tempt  you  so  he  could  win  you  over  to  his  side.
Satan  plays  on  the  pride,  ego,  greed,  and  addictions  of  people.  When  people  began  to move  around,  and  became  industrialized  the  things  of  Satan  became  a  qualities  needed  in  American  society.  These  “virtues”  are  pride,  cunning,  and  self-assertion.  He  puts  down  everything  that  God  stands  for.  Love,  wisdom,  friendship,  and  helping  other  people.  
“Mark  sets  the  human  story  of  Jesus,  his  followers,  and  his  enemies  in  the  context  of  a  supernatural  conflict  between  God  and  Satan, thereby  implying  that  Jesus’  enemies  are  on  the  Devil’s  side.”  (Pagel  pg.  A7)
In  Dante  Alighieri’s  Divine  Comedy  there  are  three  sections;  Hell,  Purgatory,  and Paradise.  The  first  section  is  called  Hell.  He  meets  a  guy  named  Virgil  in  a  forest  who  promises  to  show  him  the  punishments  of  Hell,  and  Purgatory.   
He  follows  Virigl  a  ways  and  finally comes  to  the  gates of  Hell.  They  come  to  the  river Acheron  where  they  are taken opposite  side  of  the  shore  by  Charon,  the  ferryman.
There  are  nine  main  levels  of  Hell.  The  first  level  is  Limbo.  They  find  souls  that  have  lived  good  lives  and  do  not  need  to  suffer  for  sins.  These  people  would  be  in  Paradise  if  they  were  baptized.
At  the  entrance  of  the  second  level  they  see  Minos  the  Infernal  Judge.  His  job is  to  beware  people  entering  the  other  regions  of  Hell.  In  the  second  level  they  find  souls  of  carnal  sinners  who  are  punished  by  being  tossed  around  in  the  dark  air  by  very  furious  winds.
In  the  third  level  the  gluttonous  are  punished.  “Their  torment  is,  to  lie  in  the  mire,  under  a  continual  and  heavy  storm  of  hail,  snow,  and  discolored  water;  Cerberus  (dog  of  Satan)  meanwhile  barking  over  them  with  his  threefold  throat,  and  rending  them  piecemeal.”  (Alighieri  pg.  21)
In  the  fourth  level  of  Hell  they  see  Plutus.  Here  the  prodigal  and the  avaricious  are  punished  by  rolling  great  weights  against  each other.
In  the  fifth  level  of  Hell  the  wrathful  and  gloomy  are  tormented  in  the  Stygian  lake.
The  sixth  level  is  the  city  Dis  where  the  heretics  are  punished.  They  are  in  tombs  burning  with  intense  fire.
In  the  seventh  level  is  enclosed  by  a  rocky  precipice.  This  level  is  guarded  by  the  Minotaur.  There  is  three  parts  of level  seven.  The  first  part  is  where  the  violent  against  their  neighbor  are  punished.  They  are  put  to  violent  death  over  and  over  by  others  in  this  part.  In  the  second  part  people  who  took  their  own  life,  light,  and  violently  consumed  their goods.  In  the  level  three  types  of  crimes  are  punished.  They  are  against God,  nature,  and  art.  They  are  punished  by  having  “flakes of  fire,  which  are  eternally  showering  down  upon  them.”  (Alighieri  pg.  55)
In  the  eighth  level  there  is  ten  parts  of  this  level.  In  the  first  part  has  sinners  who  seduced  a  woman  from  her  duty,  for  their  own  pleasure  or  not.  The  second  part  is  of  flatterers  who  remain  in  filth.    In  the  third  part  is  the  ones  who  are  guilty  of  simony.  There  heads  are  downward, and  their  feet  are  burned.  In  the  fourth  part  they  are  forced  to  have  their  face  on  the  back  of  their  heads  and  walk  backwards.  In the fifth  part  are  the  barterers  or  public  peculators.  They  are  plunged into  boiling  pitch  and  are  guarded  by  Demons.
In  the  sixth  part  the  hypocrites  are  to  pace  continually  around  and  around.  In the seventh  the  robbers  are  punished  by  venomous  snakes.  The  eighth  has  the  evil  counselors,  and  the  ninth  has  the  sowers  of  scandal  and  schismatics.  The  tenth  part  has  alchemists and forgers.  
There  is  four  parts  of  the  ninth  and  final  level.  In  the  fourth  and  last  part  of  Hell  are  those  who  have  betrayed  their  benefactors  and  Satan  himself.  This  level  is  covered  with  ice.  “The  emperor,  who  sways  The  realm  of  sorrow,  at  mid  breast  from  the  ice...As  he  is  hideous  now,  and  yet  did  dare  to  scowl  upon  his  Maker,  well  from  him  may  all  our  misery  flow...His  three  faces:  one  in  front  of  hue  vermillion,  the  other  two  with  this  midway  each  shoulder  joined...Under  each  shot  two  mighty  wings,  as  enormous as  became  a  bird  so  vast...He  flapped  in  the  air  that  from  him  issued  still  three  winds...At  six  eyes  he  wept:   the  tears  down  three  chins  distilled  with  bloody  foam.  At  every  mouth  his  teeth  a  sinner  champed.”  (Alighieri  pg.  139)
 
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